Facebook Wants to Offer You Advice on Preventive Health Care

Facebook announced on Monday the launch of a new tool designed to remind users of the dates of medical examinations, in a new step in the field of personal digital health care tools, taking advantage of its huge user base.

“Facebook is developing products and partnerships that can help people access resources that support their health,” the social networking giant said in a blog post. Today, we share an update on some of these actions, including a new preventive health tool in the United States. ”

Facebook began rolling out its new tool that reminds users in the United States, based on demographic factors such as age and gender, for a health check or test.

The tool comes from Facebook, because research by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and other research groups has shown that millions of people are not taking evidence-based preventive steps to care for their health, said Freddie Ebnosi, a cardiologist. , Which manages Facebook's health efforts.

Facebook explained that its new tool - called Preventive Health - is searchable through its mobile application. Users can see tests, such as mammograms or cholesterol tests, recommended. Facebook will also proactively push users to get influenza injections while they are likely to work, as well as find nearby locations such as grocery stores and pharmacies where they are available.

The company does not appear to have a way of verifying whether the user has already received the flu vaccine, exposing him to the problem of redundant reminders. But avoiding this requires deeper integration with the healthcare system, including patient medical records, and Facebook has previously avoided this type of integration in light of privacy concerns.

The company is working with several public health partners on this initiative, including the American College of Cardiology and the American Heart Association. Over time, it will add more health organizations and make the tool available in more countries, Facebook said.

This is not Facebook's first step in health-related initiatives. The company has developed tools to encourage people to donate blood when there is a shortage, and promotes organ donation by requiring users to share their condition.