Group Proposal

Joseph Bignell, Alfred D’Mello, Morgan Haigler & Matt Hamilton

Science, Technology and Society (STAS) 341

Section 21
Topic & Research Question:

With the emergence of new technology, there are new ways to organize, store and retrieve
information. The internet brought a time-bias in which information is communicated
quickly across vast distances. This time-bias brought can bring an advantage to health
services, such as an electronic health record (EHR), where personal health information is
stored electronically. Unfortunately, not everyone supports the idea of using EHRs. There
are a number of services or programs that use EHRs, such as Alberta’s Bill 52, Google
Health, HealthVault and VeriChip. Each of these services approaches the use of an EHR
differently. Bill 52 requires that doctors report the information provided by patients, and
the Province stores that information. Google Health and HealthVault are similar products,
where the user enters their own personal health information for storage, and that
information can only be viewed by the user. VeriChip is a product where a chip is
implanted into a person’s upper tricep, and their personal health information is stored in
there. The project will mainly focus on Google Health, and whether it is an appropriate
way to store EHRs. To generate a better understanding of Google Health, our group
proposes to answer the question “Should electronic health records be used to store
patients’ health information through Google Health?”

Literature Review & Methodology:

To answer the research question, “Should electronic health records be used to store
patients’ health information through Google Health?” clearly and accurately, our group
will continue to explore all relevant background information about Google Health.
Initially, we will accentuate the major advantages of using Google Health services online,
explaining how it can be used to track a person’s medical history, learn about certain
health conditions, medications and allergies, refill prescriptions, import medical records,
and share personal health information with family, friends and health care professionals.
One reliable point of reference is the Google Health website which details how health
information is stored, accessed, shared and protected under the Google privacy policy. To
present a balanced overview of Google Health, we will also discuss the major concerns
that have been raised about using this centralization service. Several online articles have
addressed this issue, including a BBC News article entitled Google ranked ‘worst’ on
privacy. This article explains how the rights group Privacy International determined that
Google infringes on users’ privacy through the amount of data it collects about users and
their activities, incomplete privacy policies and poor record of responding to complaints.
Some links to help advance this area of interest in our website and final presentation are
listed below:

What Google knows about you

http://news.idg.no/cw/art.cfm?id=30DDFD05-1A64-67EA-E4F6724918775D86

Telus, Microsoft hope Canada will buy into patient-centred e-health records
http://www.cbc.ca/health/story/2009/05/06/tech-telus-health-space-microsoft-electronic-
health-records.html

Willingness by patients to trade hands-on medical care for computer consultations

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/150627.php

Through this sample of online sources, we recognize that there are still some factors to be
examined further. We seek to explain both the advantages and downfalls of Google
Health through online medical journals, books, magazines, videos and possible
interviews with doctors, patients, Google Health users, and experts affiliated with Google
Health or similar health information services. If interviews are conducted, we plan to
obtain each person’s consent through consent forms that have been provided through a
previous University of Calgary research template. By explaining our research findings to
the class, we seek to encourage students to participate in more critical reflection and open
classroom discussion.

Division of Labour:

Since research will be a large factor towards the success of our project, we have decided
that all four members will be engaged in research activities. We will subdivide the topic
into four groups so that each group member can specialize in a certain segment. At this
point, it is still undecided as to what the categories will be, but we will start with a basic
model (loosely based on the Winston Model) to divide the work as follows:
-Member 1 will likely be researching primarily on what Google Health is and
coordinating the research of others. All members will need a good understanding
on what Google Health is, so this person will be providing the basic framework of
all of the research.
-Member 2 could research why there is a social need for Google Health. This member
would research the demand, or pull-factors, for such a service, and in what ways it
would benefit society.
-Member 3 could research the potential consequences and concerns regarding Google
Health. This member would investigate things like privacy issues and security
issues. Thus, this person will be researching society’s resistance towards Google
Health.
-Member 4 could research the science behind Google Health. A technical approach to
this might be able to help validate the claims and predictions of member 2 and
member 3. This work could be combined with member 1.
This should be most effective if member 2 is a strong believer in a service such as Google
Health and if member 3 is opposing it, with member 1 and member 4 providing support
for both sides. Of course, this model can be subject to change if it no longer suits us.
Dissemination of Project Findings:

Both a PowerPoint presentation and a website will be developed to show our research
findings to the class. The PowerPoint will be modeled after the following outline: The
objectives and purpose of the research will be presented, then a brief overview on how
the research was conducted, followed by the research results and how these results effect
our research question finally the research question will be answered and a conclusion will
be drawn. In concerns to visual information in the PowerPoint, if a relevant video clip
can be found that helps convey a valid issue it will be used in the presentation.
Screenshots of Google Health will be put in the presentation to help visualize the
application itself. Additionally, a brief and humorous skit will be performed in front of
the class before the PowerPoint to help introduce and bring life to the project. The skit
will demonstrate a contrast between a person that has their records on Google Health and
one who does not. Since two of our team members have excellent website design skills,
we will design a website for the final deliverable for this project. The website will expand
on all of the issues mentioned above for the PowerPoint outline and will provide more
information along with a deeper justification of conclusions and reasoning. There will be
more visuals included on the website, including all of the visuals that were in the
PowerPoint. Finally all materials will be properly sited and referenced on both the
PowerPoint and website in hopes that our research findings could be used by others in an
attempt to expand the issue we discussed.

Timeline

Task Date Completed By Members Involved

Complete and Compile May 26th, 2009 All Members
Project Proposal
Complete Research June 13th, 2009 All Members
Complete PowerPoint and June 21st, 2009 Morgan and Mathew
Skit
Complete Website June 23rd, 2009 Alfred and Joseph