Pinterest

Topic: Pinterest https://www.pinterest.com/

Review: 
Pinterest is an online visual bookmarking tool that uses images to link to the sites. You can collect pins and pin to various boards that you create. You can create numerous boards in a number of categories. You can follow other users and see what they have pinned or you can search pins, boards, or pinners using key words.

Pinterest is easy to use and get started. You can login with facebook, twitter, google+, or email. There is a short tutorial to get you started.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:
I would recommend Pinterest for public health messaging for sharing visual information such as infographics or to use images to capture a person attention and link to facts, information, or calls to action.

Public Health Pinterest Boards:
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention http://www.pinterest.com/cdcgov/public-health-infographics/
Iowa Department of Public Health http://www.pinterest.com/iapublichealth/

Resources

Topic: Health Indicators Warehouse http://www.healthindicators.gov/

Review:
The Health Indicators Warehouse contains statistics for over 1,200 different health indicators in various topics such as chronic disease and conditions, health behaviors, and injury and violence. Each indicator contains an over, data, and the option to download.

The site is easy to navigate. You simply need to click on the category of indicator you would like to look for. There is also a glossary of terms, user's guide and an excellent FAQs page.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:
This is helpful information for many different types of health messaging when you want to share data. For example, if you wanted to highlight the disparity in maternal mortality between white and black women, you can find the maternal death indicator. This particular indicator has data from 2007, so it may not be new enough depending on what you are using it for, but the difference is 10 deaths per 100,000 for white women and 26.5 per 100,000 for black women.

This site is excellent for finding data on various health indicators in the U.S.

Other Resources of this type:
WHO Data and Statistics page http://www.who.int/research/en/
National Center for Health Statistics http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/

QR Code Generators

Topic: Fancy QR Code http://www.fancyqrcode.com/

Review:
Fancy QR Code creates codes that direct to websites and is very simple to use. On the left hand side of the page you select whether the site is http:// or https:// then simply put in the web address you want the code to direct to. Click the refresh code content button and the QR code for your desired site generates.

When using this particular code creator, you need to take a screen capture of the code that is generated. If you want to be able to save your code or manipulate it, you need to upgrade to a pro account.


Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging: I'm not really sold on QR codes. Some of the readers are hard to use and in practice, we find that people don't use them. However, one of my favorite uses that I think is the most useful is using a QR code to link to a copy of something that is in hard copy in front of someone or a link to the item that is written about.

For instance, maybe you have a really great poster up regarding making healthy choices, you could provide a QR code that links to an online version of the poster so people could in essence take the poster with them. Or if you have a handout,etc. about the benefits of using MyFitnessPal, the QR code could link to the app store. You'd need two codes, one for Android and one for iOS. 

Other QR Code Generators:
Kaywa QR Code http://qrcode.kaywa.com/
QR Code Generator http://goqr.me/

Feed Readers

Topic: Feedly http://cloud.feedly.com/#welcome

Review:

Is it easy to use/understand? Feedly is very easy to use and understand, you can log in with facebook, twitter, google, etc. You set up your feeds and your ready to go.

Does it have a search feature? It has a very nice  and easy to use search feature.

Can you categorize/organize your feeds? Your feeds can be organized into various groups.

Is it accessible from other devices (cell phone, Kindle Fire, etc.)? There are mobile apps for many different OSs, so it's accessible from most any device.

Is it easy to add feeds to this reader? It's really easy to add feeds. You can use the search feature to search for feeds to add or you can use the RSS link on the site you would like to add.

How does it look? Your feeds are listed on the left and your articles are on the right.

Favorite things about this Feed Reader: You can change the way articles are displayed and the help page is excellent.

Negative things about this Feed Reader: None really, it's a feed reader and it does just that.

What three feeds did you sign up for? I was already using feedly, so 3 of the feeds I have are CDC's Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, In the Library with the Lead Pipe, and News from the National Library of Medicine.

Other Feed Readers:

Inoreader http://www.inoreader.com/

The Old Reader https://theoldreader.com/

Discovery Engines

Topic: Prismatic http://getprismatic.com/

Review:

You can sign up with prismatic through facebook, twitter, or using an email account. You choose 10 topics to follow and the site aggregates stories relevant to those topics. You can follow or unfollow topics at any time and are not limited to just 10. You can search for interests, save articles that are relevant to you. It's easy to get started and set up.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:

A discovery engine could be used in order to keep up with various public health topics such as nutrition and health or to keep up with technology that might be useful in relaying public health information.

Other Discovery Engines:

Digg http://digg.com/

Newser http://www.newser.com/

Public Health Image Resources

Site:  Public Health Image Library http://phil.cdc.gov/phil/home.asp

Review:
This site contains photos, illustrations, and videos relating to field of public health that are free for use, with a few exceptions. The images can be used on websites, in campaign materials, presentations and more. 

The image quality of the  pictures on the site is ok. Some are even pretty good, but I was mostly unimpressed. 

The indexing is terrible. The site claims to use MeSH, but if you perform a category search for pregnant women, you get different results than if you search the terms pregnant, pregnancy, etc. The MeSH search should bring up all images of pregnant women no matter what the keyword labels are. Most of the sites I viewed were very difficult to search, but I expected more from the CDC.

On the homepage there are featured collections including Health Behaviors and Everyday Activities which were the first two that I clicked on. Health Behaviors says it includes images depicting actions that keep people healthy and safe, but when you click on it, the first 3 pages of images are of food (potatoes and fish mostly, but also lobsters and crabs in tanks and a few veggies), turtles, a snake, various birds, and rats on display in pet stores. There aren't even any people until you hit the fourth page.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:  
There are images that would be valuable for public health messaging such as images that show people getting the flu vaccine, exercising, choosing health foods, etc., but it's hard to find what you're looking for.

Similar Tools: 
WikiMedia Commons http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Main_Page
NIH Image Bank https://imagebank.nih.gov/

Public Health Widgets

Site: CDC Widgets and Gadgets http://www.cdc.gov/widgets/

Review:

Include the following in your blog posting review: 

CDC Widgets has a fairly long list of available widgets covering many topics, from the flu to asthma to winter weather health and safety. All of the widgets are free to use on your website. You just need to copy and embed the code.

Using the CDC widgets site was quite easy. I found the widget I wanted, copied the code, and embedded it into my website.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:

Widgets can be used in various ways for public health messaging. To name just a few, they can help people find places, like testing sites for sexually transmitted infections, help people calculate BMI, and link to other sites with more information.

Similar Widget Sites: 

Health Widgets http://healthfinder.gov/StayConnected/HealthWidgets.aspx
Public Health Emergency Widgets http://www.hhs.gov/web/services/library/phewidgets.html

Tagul

Tool: Tagul http://tagul.com/

Review:

Tagul allows you to create and customize word clouds. You can save your word clouds in tagul to access later. The clouds can be downloaded as images, you can embed them in web pages. The tagul store offers various items that you can have your word clouds printed on.

Tagul is fairly easy to use. You create a free account and can begin creating clouds. Enter the text you would like to use in the table. You can customize the size of your words, colors, font, angles, and shape of your word cloud. There are so many options it can seem a bit overwhelming at first, but I found it to be a lot of fun to play around with. Personally, I liked it much better than wordle.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:

Tagul is different than other word cloud generators in that you can tag the words with urls. This can be used in public health messaging to lead users additional information. Instead of just being a "nice to look at" word cloud, it becomes an interactive tool.

Similar Sites: 

Wordle http://www.wordle.net/
WordItOut http://worditout.com/

Website Builders

Tool: Weebly (http://www.weebly.com/)

Review:
Weebly allows you to build a website without having to know html, xml, or any other markup language. Getting started is easy. You register for free, pick a theme from the many templates available, and choose a domain name. When using the free version, your webpage has a weebly.com domain, but you can choose to purchase a domain and your page will not be tagged as a weebly page. 

Adding content to the site is pretty straightforward. In the editing pane, there are a number of element options and you simply drag them onto the page you are editing and put in your content. You can also embed media. You can also customize the theme you chose.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:
Websites can be used in public health message for information sharing, motivating, instructing, etc. Some examples: You can share statistics and other information on a disease; contact information for the health department; tell people where to go for vaccinations or STD testing, you can include maps for how to get those places; you can use your website in an attempt to motivate people to lose weight; embed videos that demonstrate how to do certain exercise or how to cook healthy meals also how to prep (how to mince something vs. chop it, what it looks like to simmer something instead of boil). Obviously, there are things that can be better addressed in person, such has how to properly use a lance and blood sugar monitor, but websites lend themselves to all sort of communication possibilities.

Similar Tools: 
Wix  http://www.wix.com/
Yola  https://www.yola.com/

Cartooning/Comics

Tool: MakeBeliefsComix.com (http://www.makebeliefscomix.com)

Review of Tool:
MakeBeliefsComix.com is a tool you can use to create your own comic strip. Using the various characters and backgrounds included on the site, you can put your own comic together. The characters and objects can be resized and moved around the panels and you use your own text in the word and thought bubbles. You can add or delete items as many times as you want.

Getting started is quite easy, you simply click on the Enter Here box and can begin putting your comic together. However, a demo is located on the left hand side should you need it. Click on the little bird man to view the demo.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:
I think the best use for this type of tool would be simple and straightforward messages, not something that would require a great deal of explanation and demonstration. Some examples would be using seat belts or sunscreen, or placing baby on back to sleep as in the comic below.

Similar Tools:
ToonDoo http://www.toondoo.com/
Pixton http://www.pixton.com/

Public Health Website Resources

Website: NPIN (National Prevention Information Network) Web Tools (http://www.cdcnpin.org/scripts/webtools/index.asp)

Review:
The web tools section of the NPIN site contains widgets, images, and e-cards that are free to be used on websites. The code is located next to the image for you to copy and insert into the body of your web page. The tools cover mainly HIV/AIDS, STDs, and TB. There are also links to other sites that provide free web tools.

The site is quite easy to use, you simply copy the code next to the widget you want to insert in your web page, insert it, and the widget is ready to use.You can either scroll down on long list of the tools with the code or use the links at the top to navigate to the various sections.

In terms of public health messaging, there are widgets that help identify the location of the nearest testing site. If your web page is promoting testing, these could be excellent tools to help your audience find sites. Some of them use a zip code search and others illustrate how to use a text messaging service to retrieve the information. Different widgets focus on different target audiences, so you can select the one that best fits your needs. Some examples are young women, Spanish speakers, and African Americans.

Similar Websites: 

Public Health Emergency (PHE) Widgets Library - http://phe.gov/widgets/Pages/default.aspx
CDC Widgets and Gadgets - http://www.cdc.gov/widgets/
Widgets from NIH - http://www.nih.gov/widgets.htm

Infographics

Tool:  easel.ly (http://www.easel.ly/)

Review:
Easel.ly can be used to create infographics. You need to register for a free account to get started. The site has a number of templates you can use, or you can choose to begin with a blank canvas.

It's very easy to get started, but I found it difficult to find images I wanted to use to convey my message. The number of images provided is minimal. Also, there many public infographics that can be used as templates, but there is no way to search them. It's very cumbersome scrolling through everything to get design ideas.


Recommended use for public health messaging:
Infographics are great for visually representing data. They can be used to visually convey statistical information that may be difficult to grasp in written format, such as disease rates. The visual aspect of infographics helps capture ones attention when communicating vital safety information such as what to do during a tornado or showing proper car seat use.


Example of an infographic:
https://s3.amazonaws.com/easel.ly/all_easels/412146/MemoryBoosters/image.jpg

Similar Tools:
Venngage http://venngage.com
infogr.am http://infogr.am/
 

Blog Review, Public Health Blogs (MPH O786)

Tool: Blogger (http://blogger.com)

Review:

Blogger can be used to quickly an easily set up a blog. All you need to get started is a google account. You assign your blog a name and url (provided it isn't already in use by someone else), pick a template, and you're ready to go. Blogger is also available as an app for iOS and Android making posting to your blog from your tablet or smart phone easy and seamless.

The set up was extremely simple. I went to blogger.com, logged in to my google account, and had my blog set up with just a few clicks.

Recommended Use for Public Health Messaging:

Blogs can be used to reach large numbers of people, so they are a good choice for disseminating information to a large audience. Anything could be posted from reminders of upcoming health events, like car seat checks or health fairs, to new services or new research that might be changing the health care field. 

Similar Tools:

WordPress http://wordpress.com

Blog.com http://blog.com