Facebook is not just a social media platform. It is one of the big tech companies standing alongside Alphabet, Amazon, Apple, and Microsoft. Like the other tech giants, Facebook is foraying the healthcare sector and has planned to make the most out of it.
How is Facebook foraying the healthcare sector?
AI in medical imaging
Facebook Artificial Intelligence Research group is in work with the radiology department of NYU school of medicine. They are working on reducing the time taken for Medical Resonance Imaging (MRI) using AI. Results of this study have been positive, and MRI results using AI have been able to generate better images than conventional MRI images.
Wearables
Facebook is on the verge of creating VR glasses and smartwatches with health and wellness features. The smartwatch will have messaging and other social features that will help it stand out.
Facebook acquired Oculus Rift for its strength in VR. It has partnered with RayBan to develop smart glasses. Foraying with mixed reality smart glasses will be in fitness games.
Vaccine clinics
During the COVID pandemic, Facebook set up pop-up vaccine clinics that helped underserved communities gain access to vaccination in the US. Many believe the initiative is to help people build trust in Facebook as it is foraying the health space.
Chan Zuckerberg Initiative
Recognized as one of the most well-funded philanthropies, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) is a non-profit organization co-founded by Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. The organization aims to promote equality in the areas of health, education, and scientific research.
Healthcare help provided by Facebook:
For healthcare providers
The Healthcare sector has many regulations to avoid the spread of misinformation and misuse of patients’ personal health data. Healthcare providers need to meet these regulations and compliance to avoid getting penalized by the governing bodies.
Facebook provides guidance and support to the healthcare providers with its Healthcare Marketing on Facebook video resource. It helps the Healthcare providers effectively market their products and services and at the same time remain compliant with the Healthcare industry’s regulations and Facebook’s ad policies.
For users
- Preventive Health Tool
Facebook launched Preventive Health Tool to help people become proactive with their health. The tool uses age and gender information to suggest medical tests the user needs to take, like breast cancer screening, blood pressure tests, etc. It allows the user to mark tests complete, set reminders for future tests, and share with their friends and family. It reminds people to take flu shots and find nearby locations to get them.
- Patient Communities
Facebook helps people connect, and this has helped form patient communities. While suffering severe diseases, patients feel lonely and cannot relate to people around them. These communities help patients get virtual support. It also helps them understand what to expect in the medical procedure, precautions to be exercised, side-effects of medications, etc.
- Blood Donation Tool
Facebook launched a blood donation tool in 2017. The tool helps people find opportunities to donate blood nearby when needed. After signing up for blood donation, the donors are alerted if there is a need for blood nearby. Currently, the Blood donation tool is active in 37 countries, and over 50 Million users have signed up for it.
- Using AI in suicide prevention
The reporting of suicide-related posts is one of the Facebook features available for years. Recently, Facebook added AI-based technology to it. Whenever a user expresses suicide-related thoughts, the shared post is flagged by AI and sent to Facebook in-house reviewers.
The posts are analyzed using both technologies, user reports, and reviewers’ post which user is offered support with suicide prevention hotline and other resources. Extreme cases are intervened by the Law enforcement response team of Facebook.
Challenges faced by Facebook
Facebook is known for the usage of personal data for targeted advertising. In press releases, Facebook stated it does not use the health data of its users for advertising. However, its involvement in data breaching scandals, the spread of false news regarding COVID and vaccines, etc., has gained a lot of backlashes.
Though Facebook has taken up a lot of initiatives in the healthcare sector, the company is having a hard time building trust among people.
Related links
https://www.facebook.com/business/industries/consumer-goods/healthcare
https://about.fb.com/news/2019/10/connecting-people-with-health-resources/
https://preventivehealth.facebook.com/
https://socialimpact.facebook.com/health/blood-donations/
