The Center for Connected Health’s 2008 Symposium was held in Boston on October 27-28, 2008. I gave a talk entitled, “Participatory Medicine: How User-Generated Media are Changing American Attitudes and Actions, Online and Off.”

Much of what I said can be traced directly to the conversations we have every day on e-patients.net, as well as to the data that the Pew Internet Project generates. But one of the most important insights came after my speech, in a conversation with Lena Sorenson, RN, PhD, an Associate Professor at the MGH Institute of Health Professions. She pointed out that my 7-word challenge focuses on doctors and should instead focus on “providers” (doctors, yes, but also nurses, therapists, and every other health care professional who cares for people). I updated my slides before uploading them to the Pew Internet site to reflect that important change.