Ηealthcareitnews | Diana Manos, Senior Editor
Siemens Healthcare and Social Media Today LLC have announced a collaborative agreement whereby Siemens will provide exclusive sponsorship of the Healthworks Collective, an editorially independent, moderated community for thought leaders in international healthcare.
As part of this ongoing sponsorship, Siemens experts said they will contribute content and resources to inform the group’s discussions on aspects of medical technology, healthcare informatics and healthcare reform. It also provides a forum for healthcare professionals to debate the latest issues and advances.
The Healthworks Collective hosts discussions about innovative medical technology and the latest healthcare policy ideas. Bloggers on the site examine issues such as remote diagnostics, healthcare reform, hospital administration, healthcare informatics, medical technology, education and the future of global health.
"As a global player in the healthcare industry, Siemens was an ideal founding sponsor for the Healthworks Collective,” said Robin Carey, CEO and co-founder of Social Media Today. “Healthworks Collective is designed to provide a company-neutral platform for sharing ideas and opinions about significant issues affecting healthcare providers globally. Siemens has a unique perspective to provide to this discussion and will be a welcome participant.”
Siemens officials said sponsorship of the Healthworks Collective is aligned with the company’s interest to support and enable discussions about global issues affecting healthcare providers. One of the first Siemens executives to take an active role in Healthworks Collective discussions will be John Glaser, CEO of Siemens' Health Services Business Unit.
“It is only through collaborative and open discussion that the most insightful ideas come to the fore,” said Glaser. “In the United States, the field of healthcare informatics is enabling many aspects of healthcare reform and is a salient discussion point in our most critical conversations on accountability, quality and cost.”
“Globally, information technology is proving that it can be a significant driver for higher quality and lower cost care,” Glaser said. “The Siemens Healthcare Sector is actively positioning itself to address these issues through our Agenda 2013 initiative and I look forward to sharing my perspective and, more importantly, to learning from the wider array of assembled experts.”
Siemens officials made it clear that Siemens does not have influence over Healthworks Collective’s independent bloggers and this community is not intended as a venue for any company to promote products or solutions.