Drug & Food Safety In The Age Of Social Media and Transparency
The Drug & Food Safety In The Age Of Social Media and Transparency panel took place on July 16, 2009 from 10:00am to 10:30am and was followed by a Question & Answer session from 10:30am to 10:45am.
Americans have been concerned about drug and food safety over the past several months as they grappled with E. coli, salmonella, flu, and drug safety scares. More and more people are turning to the Internet for information and the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has taken notice. Several agencies, including the FDA, are utilizing robust social media tools to help inform the public – health professionals as well as consumers. This panel will focus on the general approach HHS is taking in addition to focusing on some of the specific tools the Office of the Secretary and the FDA have incorporated into their websites in order to quickly, accurately, and easily inform the public.
The panel:
- Discussed the efforts under way at the Department and inside FDA to incorporate social media tools—including how they are working, how they are coordinated, the lessons learned, and the challenges that have arisen
- Explored how social media tools can be incorporated into efforts to warn the public about counterfeit medications
- From the health provider’s perspective, shared what has worked well, where there are gaps, and suggestions for next steps
- Raised issues around the digital divide, health literacy, and how best to evaluate the usefulness of the information.
Panelists:
- Sanjay Koyani, Director, Web Communications, Food & Drug Administration (FDA) -- presentation
- Andrew Wilson, Web Manager, Department of Health & Human Services (HHS)
- Val Jones, MD, Medical Blogger and CEO, Better Health LLC -- presentation
- Patricia Hinton Walker, PhD, RN, FAAN, Vice President for Nursing Policy & Professor of Nursing, Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences
Moderated by:
- Robin Strongin, President & CEO, Amplify Public Affairs, and Creator, Disruptive Women in Health Care Blog
More information will be added as it becomes available.
Already have questions for the panelists? Add them as comments below for possible inclusion in the Question & Answer session!
