In Case Of Emergency, Read Blog

I wanted to mention a new mini-guide/chart from the Yale University School of Public Health Preparedness called Social Media And Preparedness. In a simple basic form, it lists the leading social media tools and how they can be used in public health and emergency preparedness. As the introduction describes:

“The internet is buzzing with tweets, diggs, podcasts, widgets, and avatars. With these new social media technologies emerging at such a fast pace, it can be a challenge to make sense of what these developments mean for public health, and to decide how to use them to increase emergency preparedness. However, with some planning, you can incorporate social media technologies into your communication plans to increase the impact of existing strategies, to reach new audiences and to enhance trust among existing ones.”

The guide is a helpful brief overview for any institution using or planning to use social media in public health and emergency preparedness. It’s also a good introduction for individuals who want to take advantage of these new applications in preparing themselves. The two-page piece can be found at http://publichealth.yale.edu/ycphp/newsletters/Social%20media_PH.pdf. Thanks to Robert Buzzerd, a paramedic and graduate student, for bringing this to my attention.