Participation and Online Technology

This briefing paper reviews the prevalence of online technology and explores how e-participation and social networking can provide the NHS in Scotland with tools to support the participation of patients and the public in healthcare services. Social networking tools at present appear to be more useful for sharing information rather than conducting two-way engagement. However, several NHS Boards are currently piloting access to social networking tools for e-participation and online consultation. It is likely that use of such technology will increase as mobile web-enabled devices become increasingly common.