I had some fun the other day exploring a new social media tool. It was called Blab. It’s kind of like a google hang out or Skype type of tool, but I like it, it seemed a bit more user-friendly & less prone to technical glitches. I was invited to try it out by a few people I’ve done tweet chats with, which I’m game for because I like exploring & learning about new social media tools.
The fun part was that we had people from all over the country & world participating. The tweet chat it was simulcast with (running at the same time) was #IrishMed, which is led by a great GP in Ireland, Liam Farrell. Once he found out I’ve done improv, he’s always trying to get me to write him material or to say something humorous (but I can’t be funny on command, yet).
Still, I enjoy giving him a bit of a friendly ribbing whether it’s in real-time video or in a tweet chat. The other two doctors who ran it I know from the Healthcare Leadership (#HCLDR) tweet chat, which I’ve talked about before (thanks Chuck & Jimmy for the invite).
Here’s a replay for those who are interested.
I’ve never been much for video to be honest, but I see Blab as being a great way to keep people engaged or to start new conversations.
I had a great time for someone who really doesn’t enjoy being on video based tools. I did get to engage with others I knew from the chat but had never met, which was awesome as well.
I think new social media tools like this could really help efforts on a nonprofit level of allowing people to participate who can’t attend conferences to talk & engage on topics or to participate in roundtables other than a standard conference call, podcast or audio archive, webcast, or just a streaming video option.
I think also there could be uses for telemedicine too, although I know there’s privacy issues surrounding that.
However, I’ve seen some basic video visits happen in one of my rare disease communities. I think that’s a great thing for a specialist you have to drive a distance to see. I hope telemedicine takes off, because I see real potential in it for people.
Overall, maybe at some point I’ll do my own blab on something. I could think of worse ways to kill a few minutes of time with other cool people.
As I live And Breathe 
Nikki, if anyone can figure out a method to extend the utility of Blab, it’s you! I’ll be happy to participate with whatever you set up. This could be a great medium to provide patients with rare diseases (eg. LAM, TSC) the opportunity to interact with the medical professionals in these specialized areas on a consistent basis. Godspeed to you!
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Hey Dennis – agree and will keep that in mind. I also see this as a cool and maybe less consuming vehicle or alter ovary than podcasts or something that could be done in tandem. It’s fun to think about for sure! I’ve even thought it might be fun for some of us blogger buddies to talk and share ideas or writers pontificating on stuff – so much potential 🙂
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