You have to watch out for my colleague Rob Halper when he has a camera in his hand. During last week’s BlogWorld conference in Las Vegas, Rob was roaming the halls, looking for a chance to capture the event on film. Luckily he had a chance to interview Kim McAllister from Emergiblog who, along with Dr. Val Jones, organized the day. Check it out:

According to a report from Alzheimer’s Disease International, more than 35 million people worldwide are living with Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia. While the report notes that many caregivers of people with dementia take pride in their role, they also experience high levels of emotional stress that can impact their own health and well-being. 

In recognition of World Alzheimer’s Day, the Johnson & Johnson health channel is featuring a few videos to acknowledge those who care for Alzheimer’s patients. Caregivers discuss what it means to take care of a family member with Alzheimer’s disease, the challenges they face, and resources available to help support caregivers and patients.

Approximately every two seconds, someone needs blood in the U.S. According to AABB, an average of 40,000 units of red blood cells is needed each day. Blood transfusions are often required for trauma victims, people undergoing heart surgery or organ transplants, and patients receiving treatment for leukemia, cancer or other diseases.

Most people who donate blood never have the chance to meet the recipient. The video I Saved Lauren’s Life shares the true story of Lauren Larsen, who became a multi-gallon blood recipient during the near-fatal birth of her child. Four years after her recovery, Lauren and her blood donors met in person. Several of her donors talk about the experience of meeting someone whose life they helped to save just by taking the time to donate blood.

Today, Lauren is an active blood donation advocate who also serves as a living example of the impact of volunteer blood donation.

A series of videos that raise awareness about the importance of blood donation are now featured on the Johnson & Johnson health channel.

Find out more about becoming a blood donor here.

Marc recently wrote about the progress Johnson & Johnson has made in engaging with people in the social media realm (such as the Kilmer House blog, the Johnson & Johnson health channel on You Tube, and the Twitter account) and lessons learned along the way. As Marc says:

“As a company that sells not only consumer products, but also prescription medicines and medical devices, there were numerous legal and regulatory hurdles that needed to be taken into account. But we realized early on that it is only by jumping in that you can learn— and we are learning every day.”

Many of our operating companies have also found ways to get involved in social media initiatives. When I found out that DePuy Mitek is using Twitter to reach golf players and fans with health and fitness updates, I had to check it out. I was also interested on a personal level, because my husband loves to golf, but I don’t know much about helping him stay in good shape for his game beyond slipping sunscreen in his bag when he heads outside.

DePuy Mitek is the official mobile health and fitness provider of the PGA Tour and Champions Tour, which means they provide players with on-site rehabilitative and preventive care and educate fans. From their unique position at the tour, they are using Twitter to inform attendees about events, such as opportunities to have a photo taken with a replica of the Charles Schwab Cup or the FedEx Cup. They share with their followers on Twitter the same tips they give to on-site pros and fans: techniques to improve your swing, how to find the right golf shoes, and other info to keep your body and your game in prime form.

For those of you who don’t golf but stay active in other ways, they also tweet about maintaining joint health, preventing and treating knee pain, and how to detect the early symptoms of osteoarthritis (which I’ve learned from a recent tweet is the number one cause of disability in the US).

You can follow on Twitter at NSM_GolfTour

Read Marc’s article on social media here

From Mai Kristofferson, Corporate Communication

They say ‘an apple a day keeps the doctor away.’ Well, for many members of the nearby New Brunswick community, (where our world headquarters is located) fresh produce hasn’t always been readily available. That is, until Rutgers University and the city of New Brunswick teamed up to establish a bi-weekly farmer’s market with the help of a grant from Johnson & Johnson.

Opened recently, the market is all about encouraging healthy lifestyle choices in New Jersey inter-cities, especially for those of modest means. Not only can people who visit the market buy locally grown fruits and vegetables, but they can learn about nutrition counseling, cooking demonstrations, and food budgeting and safety practices as well.

When we heard about it, Marc, Rob and I packed up our bags (and a video camera) and headed over to check it out. You can learn more about this effort in this video we put together at the ribbon-cutting ceremony:

As I was sitting in the summer sun at the ribbon cutting ceremony, I was struck by just how important access to fresh fruits and vegetables can be to the health of an entire community. As Rutgers President Richard McCormick explained, many of us fill our diets with empty calories and unhealthy foods. Food choices which result in chronic health conditions are now all too familiar throughout society. Childhood obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular diseases are just a few with correlations to the absence of nutritious food. “These problems,” he said in his speech at the ceremony, “cheat ordinary people of productive and healthy lives.”

Unfortunately, for many communities, it often isn’t easy to gain access to fresh fruits and vegetables.

Though too many communities still lack access to farm-fresh foods, hopefully the recent trend to open more farmers markets in town centers and urban areas will ensure that everyone can get their one apple a day.

Thanks to this initiative, for our neighbors in New Brunswick, an apple a day is no longer far away.

For people in need of specialized cancer treatment away from their hometown, finding a place to stay in a new city can be a huge financial and emotional stressor. Often, this can mean the difference between receiving a treatment or not.

I recently learned that the American Cancer Society helps to make treatment easier and more accessible for adult cancer outpatients and their caregivers through their Hope Lodge program. These temporary housing facilities are available free of charge in more than 20 locations throughout the U.S.

This video, filmed at the American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge New York City Jerome L. Greene Family Center, provides a glimpse into what life is like at one of these facilities. What struck me most about this video was the incredible spirit of the patients (and their caregivers, too) in spite of dealing with the challenges of cancer treatment. With support from the Hope Lodge staff and other guests, patients are able to focus all of their energies on getting better.

Now the way I learned about all of this was because The American Cancer Society recently honored Chairman and CEO Bill Weldon and Johnson & Johnson for leadership in finding ways to better prevent and treat cancer. Proceeds from the event were donated to the American Cancer Society’s Hope Lodge New York City Jerome L. Greene Family Center.

This week, a new video is featured on the Johnson & Johnson health channel on YouTube about living with cancer.

The first video in the three-part series tells the story of a social worker and oncologist who found themselves in the roles of patient and caretaker. I thought it provided a unique insight into what it is like to receive a diagnosis of cancer as a professional in the health care field who works with cancer patients every day.

In the videos, Dr. Val Jones (founder of the blog Better Health) talks with a woman named Hester who spent about 15 years as a social worker at a Boston hospital counseling people with cancer. Hester thought she knew what it felt like to face a diagnosis of cancer…that is, until she herself became the patient. The reality of hearing the diagnosis, having to tell her loved ones, and facing treatment gave Hester an entirely different point of view on what it is like to live with cancer.

Her husband, an oncologist who works at the same hospital, developed a profound understanding of what partners and spouses experience when they watch a loved one cope with cancer. Watching this story, I realized that no amount of medical training can prepare you for being on the other side of a cancer diagnosis. However, for these health care professionals who had devoted their working lives to helping people with cancer, the disease touched their lives in an unexpected way and gave them a different perspective on patient care.

Parts Two and Three of the video series are also available to view.

After we launched the Johnson & Johnson health channel on YouTube in August of last year, one of the first videos I posted was a series on ADHD which was originally produced by Dr. Nancy Snyderman. The first part called ADHD: A Child’s Diagnosis told the story of Davina Beacham, a 37 year-old artist whose oldest son Brad was recently diagnosed with ADHD. During the course of this diagnosis, Davina discovered that she too had ADD (without the hyperactivity).

Now Davina is a frequent visitor to social media sites like YouTube, and when she saw that the video she was featured in was running on the Johnson & Johnson health channel, she felt compelled to leave a comment. When I saw her comment, I contacted her and asked if she was interested doing a follow up video. We decided that we would, and so I grabbed a cameraman and drove up to Dover, MA, to visit Davina at her home. She and her family were extremely gracious, and we did interviews with Davina, her husband, Hal, and her two boys Brad and George.

Subsequent to the original video two years ago, she also learned that George, her younger son, was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome as well as ADHD. Despite all the complications and challenges posed by this situation, what impressed me most was the openness, patience and understanding that Davina showed her two boys, always emphasizing and nurturing their creativity and expressiveness. Her husband Hal, the only member of the family without ADHD, showed a similar patience, embracing the situation, rather than resisting it.

I’m very happy with the video stories that were the result of this visit. And I left the two boys with flip cameras. I WAS going to leave one for both of them to share, but I found out VERY quickly that wasn’t going to work! The idea is for them to record a kind of video diary of their very interesting life, which I would then post on the JNJhealth channel. I’m looking forward to these, and I’m sure they will be as interesting and gratifying as our own experience videotaping this wonderful family. Here are the links to the current videos:

Davina, Part One
Davina, Part Two
Brad
George

Wednesday night, Rob Halper and I hosted another of our blogger dinners — this time in NYC.

The conversations we had at Piano Due (which served a really nice porcini mushroom ravioli course) spanned a variety of subjects — from how to monetize a Twitter account to dogs. John Mack, who was one of our guests, posted a nice wrap-up of the conversations that went on at HIS end of the table — which appeared to mostly focus on steps that can be taken to improve the accuracy of online health information.

At the other end of the table, there were discussions about the ROI of social media sites and expanding the awareness of social media efforts. Oh — and there were several conversations about dogs.

So what did I take away from all the socializing? Well, I picked up quite a bit, but one point stuck out in my mind — that ensuring the accuracy of healthcare information online is crucial — and that one of the best ways to do so is to encourage numerous stakeholders to enter the conversation. According to John’s summary of the discussion:

I agree. But that can only be accomplished once more of these stakeholders overcome objections by dispelling perceived risks — and mitigating real risks — to jump into discussions on different healthcare topics. There is clearly much that needs to be done before this can be achieved.

I’d like to thank all of our guests for joining us and making this a great evening.

I wanted to share an interesting idea we’ve initiated on the Johnson & Johnson health channel. It’s a series we call “Real Moms.”

I’ve invited Mommy Vlogers to submit videos on topics relevant to them, and which might be helpful to a larger audience.

So far, I’ve received videos on safety tips for toddlers, how to make homemade baby food, and teaching your kids to be ecologically friendly. They don’t have to be perfect — most have been made on a flip cam — and I do post most of the videos sent to me, as long as they don’t reference specific products. To compensate the vlogers I pay $100 for each video used.

One of my favorites was done by Colleen Padilla (Classy Mommy) on tips about how to keep from going stir crazy with your kids when stuck inside during bad weather.

I’m always looking for more content, so if you are interested, just let me know by clicking “send message” on the Johnson & Johnson health channel.