I mentioned that Gary Sittig was expanding Hodgson's business development opportunities, and one current market we are looking to expand in is health care. So, I was interested to read how Twitter is being used by the health care field.

When the HINI virus, or swine flu, broke out, the National Institutes of Health started using Twitter posts to monitor its spread. In addition to using Twitter to broadcast information, NIH staff monitored tweets to track down and stop the spread of misinformation.

The FDA set up a Twitter account (follow at FDCrecalls) to issue a peanut recall, and subsequently issued recalls for pistachios and Brussels sprouts. Now, over 10,000 follow the Tweets. While social media isn't applicable for all audiences—particularly those over 35, rural residents, and low income communites—it does offer a novel way to get the word out.