It is estimated that 60 to 80 percent of Americans have used the Internet to find health information, rivaling physicians as the most common source of information. The term Web 2.0 has been created to signify the idea of an interactive web, one that invites users to share experiences, to lead discussions and change, and to adapt the Internet to make it a public forum rather than a static informational grid. The potential for technology to continue to influence health decisions is impressive; more specifically, its potential in transforming well-being could be enormous.

One area in which technology is nascent is in wellness programs. Employers are just starting to realize the connection for instance of providing employees with a dedicated support structure for quitting smoking or losing weight. In what might seem to be an obvious connection, the happiness of employees directly relates to their perception of work and health, among other factors. By providing them with the network to improve those facets of their lives via integrated seamless programs, employers can close this gap and create sustainability to these endeavors.

The connection between communication, technology and patient care is increasingly becoming more established.  These facts present an amazing opportunity for companies adept enough to take advantage of them. Through the use of new technology (smart phones) health information can be made available to employees at an unprecedented level, taking the emphasis on wellness to an entirely new level and reinvigorating an already thriving area.

As seen on the PRWeekus.com “Insider” blog on April 1, 2010. This blog post is part of a series of three blogs focusing on communications and personalized medicine. Each week PRWeekus.com features a guest blogger on its “Insider” blog.

Some notable coverage:

New York Times: Tech Talk Podcast with ACM Chief Executive Offiicer John White (CSEdWeek section begins at 10:27)

Education Week Blog Post

This new phone has built in WiFi which makes for a much faster browsing experience when you’re in the office or at home. It also works with the phone’s other network-enabled applications such as Google Maps. What’s interesting is that Google Maps still thinks we’re at our old office building when I get my data connection from our office WiFi.

Strange, I thought. So I dug around for a few seconds and found The blue circle comes to your desktop on Google’s Lat Long blog. It seems Google has amassed a whopping database of WiFi access points. Another quick nose around found this:

Google said on Thursday to GPS Business News that its WiFi data has been developed internally, however the company refuses to give any information about its exact coverage. “Many major domestic [US] and international cities are included in the database. We don’t release a comprehensive list of areas covered since coverage will expand continuously as usage of our location-based services grows. In cities already covered, the quality of the information will also improve”, wrote a spokesperson in an email.

So that explains it. It’ll be interesting to see how long this stale information lies around before we are refreshed into our new office location.