China Sees Dramatic Increase in Blogs in 2007 — Important Development for Health Care
by Fred Fortin
The China Internet Network Information Center(CNNIC) reports that by the end of November 2007, China had almost 73 million blog “spaces” and 47 million bloggers. “By the end of 2006, the number of blog writers was 17.5 million, and within one year the increase reached nearly 30 million, indicating the large-scale growth in number of the blog writer group,” according to the CNNIC report.
While health care is not specifically mentioned, the report goes on to say that blogs cover “almost all the areas of people’s daily life, including the cultural, military, economic, tourist, living areas, etc.” and has become an “important channel for people to obtain information.”
We know that in the West internet use to obtain health information is major activity, with blogs becoming a serious source of consumer information and empowerment. Blogs, especially bridge blogs (those that translate information from one language to another), are critical entry points in developing countries where people can gain access to health information on a global scale. Just as important is that the reverse is also possible; the growth of these blogs also gives the West an opportunity to connect and interact with what I would call ‘local communication and health care leadership’.
Now there’s a great idea: Could a blog or internet service aggregate connections to those local blogs in such a way as to facilitate health care communications directly between East and West? Sort of a ‘Global Voices’ for health care? Consumers to consumers? Doctors to doctors?
