Overview of Blogging Project

Students teams create and publish a blog about one of the following eight big ideas related to the US Health Care System: workforce, technology, financing, outpatient care, inpatient care, managed care/integrated systems, long-term care, or health services for special populations.

Each team member will individually author a post related to one of the following subtopics: an brief overview of the topic including relevant history, the political (red, blue, or purple) stance of the team including statements describing beliefs and values related to health care, and several proposals for health care reform related to the team's topic. By the end of the academic term, each team member will author one post. Your team is expected to solicit individual posts from four guest authors about your team's topic: a patient, an interested student studying health at another university, a professional working in health care today, and a fourth guest author in any of the these three categories. All posts are limited to 750 words.

Students will receive points for their individually-authored posts and group performance points for overall appearance, organization, guest author contributions, contentious presentations during class, volume and quality of class comments, and success of each group's proposals during student referendums. Details will be provided by your instructor.

Students are required to publish the blog so that it is accessible to all class members, guest authors, and the instructor. Teams may publish their blog to the wider web if they choose to do so.

The other sample posts to this blog describe the nature of the required posts on an overview of the topic, reform proposals, and writings by guest authors.

Post an Overview of Your Team Topic

This posting provides an overview of your topic. It should reflect the major points of the related chapter in your text, but it should also anticipate what your reform proposals might include. Identify at least five important sources on your topic; sources can include journal articles, government or private reports, and government or private websites. Include links when links are available. Use APA guidelines to cite references at the end of your post; the reference list at the end of your post is not part of your 750 word limit.

While it is impossible to be comprehensive, what you choose to include should be an important part of your topic and you should write about it in a way that is interesting and understandable to adults with a high school education. If you are ready to do so, comment on the relevance of your topic to cost, access, and quality of health care in the United States.

Post Proposals for Reform

Each team posts several separate proposals for health care reform related to the team's topic. Since one group member has written the topic overview, each of the remaining team members should write one post proposing a reform.

Each proposal-for-reform post must include descriptions of a problem or opportunity, an actor(s), scope of impact, action to be taken, influence on cost, influence on access, and influence on quality. The post should end with a clearly stated referendum.

Problems represent current difficulties with cost, quality, or access; opportunities are chances to lower cost, increase quality, or improve access.

Actors include Congress, federal or state regulators (FDA, CMS, new agencies etc.), President, private insurance companies, professional associations, private industries(supplies, pharmaceuticals, devices, etc.), governors of the states, state legislatures, employers, unions, large regional health systems, etc.

Scope is individual, organizational, local, regional, state, and national.

Actions include law, enforcement, clinical practice, standards of care, funding for different types of goods and services, taxation, coverage of populations, targeted services, allowed goods and services, etc.

Influence on cost, quality, or access should be explained and quantified when possible; cite other sources to support your claims.

Example of a clearly worded referendum: Congress should pass legislation defining, supporting, and enabling universal access to primary care for all residents of the United States.

Patients Posting as Guest Authors

Your team is required to recruit one or two patients who have something to say about your topic and the reforms your team is proposing. Your blog may include one or two patient posts.

In general patients should write about their experience with your topic area, and tell what they like and dislike about the health care they have received.

Try to find patients who have some experience with your team's topic. The patient perspective may be different. If the topic is financing, the patient may talk about insurance forms, prior authorizations, coverage, copayments, elgibility for insurance, deductibles, or many other related topics rather than the perspectives reflected in the team's finance proposals.

Add the patient as an author on your team's blog; be sure to tell them they are limited to authoring one post, but they are encouraged to post comments on any of the other posts on your team blog. Some patients may not have email; you can help them get gmail, hotmail, or other free email accounts and then add them to the blog as an author. An alternative is to have the person legibly print or write their post, then you type it as a post generally describing the author.

PLEASE ENCOURAGE PATIENTS TO PROTECT THEIR PRIVACY BY USING AN ALIAS LIKE "JANE (OR JOHN) PATIENT" INSTEAD OF THEIR REAL NAME. DISCOURAGE PATIENTS FROM USING THE NAMES OF SPECIFIC HEALTH CARE ORGANIZATIONS OR HEALTH CARE WORKERS.

Health Care Workers Posting as Guest Authors

Your team is required to recruit one or two health care workers who have something to say about your topic and the reforms your group is proposing. Your blog may include one or two health care worker posts.

Generally health care workers should write about their expertise and experience with your topic area, and comment on health care reform proposals related to your topic area.

Try to find health care workers who have some experience with your team's topic. Their writing may support, oppose, or ignore the other posts in your blog.

Add the health care worker as an author on your team's blog; be sure to tell them they are limited to one post. Discourage health care workers from using their real name and position; it is better if they use an alias and generally describe their work role. Encourage workers to comment on other posts to your team blog.

Health Students from other Universities as Guest Authors

Your team is required to recruit one or two health students from other universities who have something to say about your topic and the reforms your team is proposing. Your blog may include one or two health student posts.

In general health students should say what health field they are studying, the name of their school, write about their area of study in relation to your topic area, and comment on one or more of the health care reform proposals posted by your team.

Try to find health students who have some interest in your team's topic. Their writing may support, oppose, or ignore the other posts in your blog.

Add the health student as an author on your team's blog; be sure to tell them they are limited to one post. Guest authors should be encouraged to post comments on other posts in your team's blog.