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Twitter during Lectures part 2

2009-07-08T08:40:16Z

Rankin uses a weekly hashtag to organize comments, questions and feedback posted by students to Twitter during class. Some of the students have downloaded Tweetdeck to their computers, others post by SMS or by writing questions on a piece of paper. Rankin then projects a giant image of live Tweets in the front of the class for discussion and suggests that students refer back to the messages later when studying.

This video is an example on how to use twitter during classroom. The disadvantages encountered so far are:

There are some topics we discuss that need more information than Twitter’s 140 character limit allows
“It’s going to be messy but that doesn’t mean bad.” Welcome to the social web, where that’s a great attitude
Twitter search and archiving are notoriously short-lived so their comments will soon be gone from twitter
It’s a public forum this can raise concern for privacy. Edmodo is a closed communication forum comparable to twitter but this comes at the expense of public knowledge sharing
It takes some time before students are used to using this kind of technology and to incorporate it in the lecture or classroom

You can read more about her twitter experience during classroom here “Twitter Experiment” by Monica Rankin (UT Dallas)

Thanks ReadWriteWeb

How and Why Junior Physicians use Web 2.0

2009-07-06T06:43:56Z

The answers:

89% (32/35) of physicians used at least one Web 2.0 tool in their medical practice, with 80% (28/35) reporting the use of wikis, only one respondent contributed to web 2.0 making regular contribution to a medical wiki site
physicians checked for medical information on an average of 2.6 different sites a day, with 1.4 visits a day or 53% of the total (235/444) being to sites using user-generated or Web 2.0 content
most commonly visited sites were Google, used on 32% of all recorded cases (142/444) and by 80% (28/35) of all physicians, and Wikipedia in 26% (115/44) of cases and by 70% (25/35) of all physicians
53% (235/444) of cases the information used was Web 2.0 content. Other content used was from traditional sites such as PubMed and hybrid sites such as www.bmj.com which not only publishes peer reviewed content but also has blogs and rapid responses
The principle motivation for using the internet for information seeking was its ease of use, cited by 93% (33/35) of physicians
it had better information than alternatives such as medical textbooks (more up to date, covering more topics, and allowing extras such as interactive images)
the main reasons against using the Web 2.0 was the limits to information found (72% or 27/35 of physicians) such as quality and information overload
the purposes for which physicians used the Web were to solve an immediate defined problem and secondly, for background reading on a subject. The former being the use of the internet for simple clinical decision support, the latter as a tools for ongoing medical education that precipitated the use of Web 2.0.
Web 2.0 tools were strongly used for open questions (82% or 107/130 of search cases using Web 2.0) and hybrid or best evidence
tools for closed questions (84% 90/107 of search cases using these tools).
68% of physicians noted using Google as a navigation device, they already knew which content sites they would trust, and were using the search engine to get to the appropriate part of the site quickly.
The physicians noted that patients used Internet for information which could be discussed with their doctors
Physicians didn’t need technical skills for searching but need training in identifying trustworthy sites, have understanding of the quality of the information
Physicians complained about the lack of access, in some clinics Google was blocked based on the policy of the clinic in question

“Web 2.0″ refers to what is perceived as a second generation of web development and web design. It is characterized as facilitating communication, information sharing, interoperability, user-centered design[1] and collaboration on the World Wide Web. It has led to the development and evolution of web-based communities, hosted services, and web applications. Examples include social-networking sites, video-sharing sites, wikis, blogs, mashups and folksonomies.

In short, junior physicians used web 2.0 tools because of the ease of use and accessibility and up to date information but they were also aware of the limitations in the quality or usefulness of information found. Web 2.0 tools were used for open questions to get background or overview information on a topic while more traditional tools were used for closed questions to get specific information or double check. Google was also used to identify and navigate known and trusted site.

Overall web 2.0 tools are used mostly for background questions instead of clinical decisions. Stilll some fears exists that due to the ease of use and breadth of information more use of web 2.0 tools will be made in the future. The researchers used junior physicians since they are more at ease using web 2.0 tools, are more competent in using the Internet than older physicians and they are our future doctors.

For me the most important conclusion is:

… ensuring physicians have the skills to determine what credible internet information is, and may require research to investigate what really constitutes sufficient steps to “validate” the accuracy of information found

Let’s hope our younger web savvy colleagues will in a later stage contribute to the medical content on the Internet.

Hughes, B., Joshi, I., Lemonde, H., & Wareham, J. (2009). Junior physician’s use of Web 2.0 for information seeking and medical education: A qualitative study International Journal of Medical Informatics DOI: 10.1016/j.ijmedinf.2009.04.008

Jockipedia: A Social Media Database of Pro Athletes

2009-07-07T03:25:48Z

Wikipedia is great for finding biographical and historical information on a specific subject and person. However, it’s not ideal for finding real-time data. That’s where social media tools like blogs, Twitter, and Facebook fill in the gap. By following the social media accounts of a friend or celebrity, you can keep up with their latest escapades.

Combining real-time information with the historical information available at places like Wikipedia has been hard to come by, though. And even then, design and functionality has hurt many great aggregation tools and wikis. That’s why we find Jockipedia so interesting. On the surface, it’s a wiki on professional athletes. Under the hood though, it’s a social media database done right.

Jockipedia, which just launched, claims it is “the definitive source for Athletes’ First-Person Communication.” Immediately, it comes across as different than a normal wiki. It profiles 3,000+ athletes in a variety of sports. Users contribute not only information like player biographies, their team, and their key stats, but places a strong emphasis on their social media presence. Take a look at Dwight Howard’s Jockipedia page for example:

For athletes using Twitter, it displays their most recent tweets and displays a tag cloud that shows what interests that specific athlete the most, while providing the biographical information of Wikipedia. Essentially, it acts like a social media database and aggregate, providing solid information from multiple sources. However, whether it can grow and sustain a userbase that will constantly contribute to Jockipedia (it is a wiki, after all) will determine whether this project will succeed.

Reviews: Facebook, Twitter, Wikipedia

Tags: Jockipedia, wikipedia

What can healthcare organizations learn from Obama about communications?

2009-07-01T22:02:27Z

Its a tricky topic, one that sparks off a debate fueled by passionate emotions and virulent opinions. Healthcare reform is a hot topic.

Regardless of one’s feelings about the topic, there is a lot to admire about how President Obama and the White House communicate and garner support for their program. In fact, it is a perfect model for how healthcare organizations can join the conversation.

Today, the White House hosted a live internet town hall event. The President made his pitch and answered questions from constituents. While the use of internet streaming video is an admirable step, it is not what made this event so remarkable.

Several weeks before the town hall meeting, the White House invited the American public to submit questions via FaceBook and YouTube. During the live event, the President addressed some of those questions (including some from Twitter). Understandably the vast majority of the questions went unanswered, but that is where the two-way internet kicks in. What the White House has done is to get people talking directly to people. No pundits, no news anchors with an agenda, no editorial commentary and faux news channels telling people what to think… The White House is tapping into the passions and energy of the public at large. It is grass roots done internet style.

During the town hall, which was co-hosted on FaceBook, there was a live scrolling chat of people posting comments while they viewed the event. That takes courage. Most of FaceBook’s users are younger and statistically many are the uninsured (or under insured) that stand to benefit from healthcare reform. This is an energetic group that is open to sharing exactly what is on their minds, even if it is counter to the President’s plan. It sends a message: The White House is comfortable with ideas that run counter to their own, maybe even open to them. That means more people will participate in the conversation. Its a powerful way to grow an audience – who’d have thought, being inclusive really works.

What can Healthcare organizations learn from this event? For starters, it is a fairly transparent and portable idea. Copy it. Host your own town hall events internally and externally. Invite your employees and patients and physicians to submit video questions before the event and to participate via social sites during the show. Encourage people ask the hard questions – “what do we for charity care?” “How are we improving our communities?” “What can we do better and what do we do really well right now?”
If healthcare organizations want to have a voice in the discussion, they need to follow the lead of the White House.

Thanks to Tom Stitt for the insightful brainstorming on this topic.
__

By the way – there was a nice but subtle reference to Atul Gawande’s article in the New Yorker which you can find here.

If you don’t know Gwande’s work, check out his book Better:

How a Hospice Nurse is Born

2009-06-30T18:55:00Z

Teresa Yarbrough, a registered nurse at Alive Hospice in Nashville, talks about how her early experiences shaped her desire to become a hospice nurse.

Over twenty years later, I met a woman who was a hospice nurse. I curiously asked her to tell me what she did exactly. What did her work look like? She began to describe to me how she cared for patients during their tender transition time of dying. As I listened, I was instantaneously transported back to my Grandpa’s bedside the night I stayed with him very near the time of his death. The sacredness of that time had left an indelible imprint on my life. Just as quickly as that memory came flooding into my heart and mind, an intense desire to pursue hospice nursing as a career was birthed in me.

Also read “A Gentle Death: Five Months with Hospice”, written by the wife of a hospice patient after his death in 2002. Barbara O’Neil Ross’ husband, John, spent over five months in the care of Hospice of Cambridge in MA. Barbara’s nine-part series captures the essence of hospice care and the various roles the hospice team can play in the lives of the dying and their loved ones.

The Acronyms of End-of-Life Care Discussed

2009-06-30T18:57:00Z

In March, we wrote about a USA TODAY article that discussed whether changing the language health professionals use to ask about end-of-life care preferences might affect the answer of patients and their families. Specifically, whether the phrase “allow natural death” was better received than “do not resuscitate.”

Last week’s ADVANCE for LPNs (a magazine for practical nurses) featured an editorial by Martha Chambers, MSN, RN, CHPN, which discussed this distinction and included another acronym, ACT (aggressive comfort treatment.)

DNR is often viewed in a negative way. But DNR does not mean "do not treat." It does not mean "abandon the patient, nothing more can be done" and it does not mean "give up hope."

A DNR order does not give permission to end someone's life; it gives direction not to start CPR if a person dies.

An AND order recognizes the patient is dying and allows for patient autonomy, and supports aggressive symptom management with the goal of comfort for patient and family.

Establishing a palliative-care supportive treatment plan assures symptoms are anticipated, prevented and managed with a team approach that includes the patient and family. Withdrawal of life-sustaining medical treatment and unnecessary procedures allows death to occur naturally in an as comfortable and stress-free environment as possible.

No two patients or family units are the same, and developing an aggressive comfort treatment (ACT) plan is often a challenge. The nursing team only has one chance to get it right.

Most people are not afraid of dying as much as they are afraid of dying in pain, distress and with a lack of control. The goal of ACT is a peaceful end, with comfort and dignity.

In 'ACT': Taking a Positive Approach to End-of-Life Care, Patricia Murphy defines ACT as "a concept that frees yourself of the constraints of the care-oriented medical model," allowing you to "better focus on caring for the whole person."²

Inappropriate Treatment - More Providers' Fault than Surrogates'

2009-07-03T12:59:00Z

Medical futility disputes are often described as being the "fault" of surrogates. They demand continued treatment that providers think is inappropriate. But the issue of ineffective treatment goes far beyond medical futility disputes. Far more often, ineffective treatment is provided and there is no dispute. The provider offers it (perhaps culpably) and the patient or surrogate accepts.

Boston Doctor has a recent post on this titled "Our Fault."

End-of-Life Care: Top Priority for Comparative Effectiveness Research

2009-07-01T12:43:00Z

Comparative effectiveness research (CER) is a way to identify what works for which patients under what circumstances. Congress, in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009, appropriated $1.1 billion to jump-start the nation’s efforts to accelerate CER. ARRA tasked the Institute of Medicine (IOM) to recommend national priorities for research questions to be addressed by CER and supported by ARRA funds.

In a report released yesterday, the IOM identified in its second and fourth quartile lists of research priorities:

Compare the effectiveness of coordinated care (supported by reimbursement innovations) and usual care in long-term and end-of-life care of the elderly.
Compare the effectiveness of hospital-based palliative care and usual care on patient-reported outcomes and cost.

Twitter during Lectures

2009-07-02T07:12:34Z

Lectures have become out of favor with medical students or should I say educationalists. They haven’t completely disappeared but giving a lecture to medical students is often an unsettling endeavor. During the lecture to at least 400 med students their is hardly any interaction. One lecture hall is crowded with 300 med students, the other 100 watch your lecture on screens in the adjourning lecture room. Posing questions to them, such a large audience hardly gets any reactions.

Wouldn’t it be wonderful to use twitter during lectures. Have a twitter break to have a look at the remarks and questions half way your lecture and nearly at the end of the lecture, wouldn’t that improve understanding and possibly also interaction? I got this idea from proceedings from the EduMedia conference held in Salzburg.

The proceedings (pdf download) start by explaining microblogging and a discussion: Can Twitter help to improve interactions among learners, and enhance their learning experiences?

In their proceedings they offered ways in how attendees and organizers of conferences can use twitter.

Before a conference twitter can be used to announce events, workshops and keynote presentations
Before a conference twitter can be used to remind attendees to register or to bring specific items
Twitter can be used by the attendees to organize their trip and share information about accommodations
During the conference twitter can be used to keep the attendees updated of last minute changes, organizational hints and to engage attendees to upload pictures, links to related blog entries
Attendees can use twitter to write personal notes for other or themselfs, discuss topics with other attendees or ask questions about presentations
With a specific hashtag for a presentation you can use twitter breaks to respond to questions
After the conference organizers often use Twitter after the conference to thank attendees for their presence, post reflections and interesting statistics or they gather feedback and ideas for the next conference and spread the wordabout upcoming dates
Attendees of the conference use Twitter to post links to their blogs, where they published longer and deeper reflections about the conference. The community of interest shares links to other interesting meetings and conferences and often stays in touch using the hashtags from the conference

The researchers developed an anonomous survey that could be used online in several different conferences.

The survey was divided into three different sections and comprised multiple choice, matrix, lickert scale and open-ended questions, which enabled the researchers to survey about respondents’ gender and age, their use of Twitter before, during and after the conference, and also about what they liked and disliked microblogging. It was also asked why they used Twitter and what were, in their opinion and experience, the advantages and disadvantages of using Twitter in conferences. In Total, the survey consisted of 34 questions.

Microblogging at conferences seems to be an additional way of discussing presented topics and exchanging additional information. Their research shows that several conference speakers and attendees are using Twitter for various purposes. Communicating and sharing resources seem to be one of the most interesting and relevant ways in which one microblogs. Content attached to tweets was reported to be mostly limited to plain text and web links.

I couldn’t find technical details about using twitter during lectures with twitter pauses. You will probably need a stand alone version with a hashtag, but students should need a way to be online during lecture, anyone experience with this, especially the technical part?

Thanks Speaking about Presenting

Pet Peace of Mind Program for Hospice Patients

2009-07-02T14:47:00Z

This USA TODAY article covers a program started a Oklahoma hospice, to help take care of the pets of hospice patients. The program has received a grant to develop and promote the program to non-profit hospices across the U.S.

The Pet Peace of Mind Program that Taylor McNac developed provides not only pet food, vet care, meds for older animals with arthritis or other chronic disease, flea and tick control, and vaccinations, but also sends volunteers to walk dogs, make runs to the groomer, or provides transportation for any other pet need.

Music Therapy Part of Hospice Care

2009-07-02T14:50:00Z

This article talks about the role of a hospice music therapist in Minnesota.

One of music therapist Julie Szamocki's patients is an elderly woman in the later stages of Alzheimer's disease.

The woman is unable to carry on a meaningful conversation anymore. When she does speak, it rarely has any relationship to the time or place she happens to be in.

Yet her memory for music remains largely unimpaired. And so last week, without the aid of a musical instrument, Szamocki began to sing a series of old-time songs with her patient, whose agile singing voice was soon harmonizing with her own.

In the hospice community, they call it being present in the moment, and it was clear that Szamocki had reached that moment with her patient, who was soon looking down the hallway and waving people to come over and listen.

"She was so pleased with herself, because she knew she was making this beautiful music, and she knew she was being successful," said Szamocki, who joined the staff at Seasons Hospice in September as the organization's first music therapist.

The American Music Therapy Association reports that there are 250 music therapists in the country whose practice is devoted to the terminally ill.

Open Discussions Best for End-of-Life Care

2009-07-02T14:55:00Z

A study from Open Medicine surveys 440 patients with terminal illness and 160 family members from five Canadian hospitals. This article includes an interview with one of the researchers:

Only 18 per cent of patients and 30 per cent of families said they discussed the prognosis with their doctors,even among very sick patients with more than 50 per cent probability of death within the next few months,the study found.

This has to change, said Heyland, professor of medicine at Queen's and research director at the clinical evaluation research unit at Kingston General Hospital.

Patients with terminal illness and their families who had open and honest discussions with their doctors were more satisfied with the level of care given and had time to prepare for the impending death.

. . .

"Some are just uncomfortable talking about death and dying," Heyland said, adding that it can be time-consuming for doctors with many other patients to see.

Social workers and ethicists can help by getting the conversation going so patients and their families are better prepared for making critical decisions when they meet with a doctor, Heyland said. He warned, however, that some patients and their families don't want to have end-of-life discussions with a doctor.

In those cases, he said, having such a conversation can have the opposite effect and make matters worse - as can a poorly handled discussion.

Potential Major Changes in the Use of Pain Medicine

2009-07-02T18:12:00Z

The Diane Rehm show has a great episode today on a recent recommendations to the FDA on a scale-back of the safe dosage of acetaminophen.

It's not directly related to end-of-life issues ... but two painkillers, Percocet and Vicodin, do include acetaminophen, and they are sometimes used in palliative care. And, one of the recommendations made to the FDA was to ban Percocet and Vidodin.

I'm posting the link because it's an excellent hour of radio and an important issue for everyone to stay informed on.

If for no other reason than who hasn't taken two tylenol or two Excedrin when they had a headache? And an interesting tidbit from these recommendations: two pills at once may be too much acetaminophen for your liver to healthfully process.

Obama on Medically Inappropriate EOL Treatment pt2

2009-06-25T22:06:00Z

More excerpts from last night's ABC transcript:

DR. MICHAEL JENSON, MAYO CLINIC: I'm Dr. Michael Jenson at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minnesota. I see too many patients who have terminal illnesses or no hope of recovery who receive weeks or months of intensive care unit treatment, only to prolong their death. I find this approach very distressing and the waste of money is appalling. . . .

ROBERT WASSON: My name is Robert Wasson. My mother is 74 years old. She has terminal cancer in the stomach lining that has spread to the lungs. She deserves to be treated medically to the best of their ability. To say it's too expensive is not right. I just don't think you can put a price tag on quality time with loved ones, especially at the end of their lives.

OBAMA: Well, and -- and that's absolutely true. And end-of-life care is one of the most difficult sets of decisions that we're going to have to make. I don't want bureaucracies making those decisions, but understand that those decisions are already being made in one way or another. If they're not being made under Medicare and Medicaid, they're being made by private insurers. We don't always make those decisions explicitly. We often make those decisions by just letting people run out of money or making the deductibles so high or the out-of-pocket expenses so onerous that they just can't afford the care. And all we're suggesting -- and we're not going to solve every difficult problem in terms of end-of-life care. A lot of that is going to have to be, we as a culture and as a society starting to make better decisions within our own families and for ourselves. But what we can do is make sure that at least some of the waste that exists in the system that's not making anybody's mom better, that is loading up on additional tests or additional drugs that the evidence shows is not necessarily going to improve care, that at least we can let doctors know and your mom know that, you know what? Maybe this isn't going to help. Maybe you're better off not having the surgery, but taking the painkiller. [The adjective "necessarily" carries significant weight here. What about treatment that has SOME probability of improving care?]

Spectacles

2009-06-19T18:22:00Z

The Olympics
Kumba Mela
Times Square on midnight at New Year's
Burning Man
TED
The Super Bowl
Calcio Storico
Warren Buffet's annual meeting
The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Your birthday

People love them. We generally agree we don't have them often enough. What if you started one? More than half of the events on the list above were started by one person or a small organization.

No dogmas allowed

2009-06-19T17:28:00Z

Sort of corny but pretty sweet, too. A dog chapel in Vermont, made both for dog owners to grieve the loss of their beloved canine friends and for all of us humans to be able to bring our dogs along with us into the chapel. The chapel was actually inspired by the near-death experience of artist Stephen Huneck.

I love, love, love that visitors can post remembrances of dogs who have passed away on the walls of the chapel. It must be so comforting both to share your memory and read the memories of other dog lovers.

And how clever is that sign out front? No dogmas allowed :)

Hospice Notes: New Social Work Certificate, More Hospice Radio, NHPCO Contest

2009-06-19T17:42:00Z

The National Association of Social Workers (NASW) has partnered with the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) to develop a baccalaureate level credential for social workers who specialize in hospice and palliative care. The Certified Hospice and Palliative Social Worker (CHP-SW) designation is now available for bachelor’s social workers with experience and expertise in end-of-life issues for patients and their caregivers. Learn more.

Hospice Radio will be airing a show today on "Medical Ethics and the “Concept of a Good Death" at 2 p.m. ET. The show’s guests are Dr. Harry Moody from the AARP, author of 'The Soul of Bioethics' and 'Human Values in Aging' newsletters along with Dr.Pamela J. Grace, Associate Professor - Adult Health & Ethics at Boston College, William F. Connell School of Nursing. Topics will be drawn from the discipline of medical ethics and will explore the possible goals for people caring for aged parents, people who act as health care guardians, and concerns for the general public considering options regarding their own end-of-life care. A second half will air on Tuesday, June 23 at 2 p.m. ET.

NHPCO is conducting a Photography, Writing, and Film Contest. Submissions should be professional or volunteer development films/videos, and all entries are due by Friday, July 17, 2009.

Supporting Grieving Special Needs Children

2009-06-17T21:00:00Z

We seldom see articles focused on supporting grieving children with developmental and/or intellectual disabilities. Carol A. Ranney, a single adoptive parent of seven children, writes for Examiner.com’s Philadelphia site. Two of her sons have died, one at age 13 in 1996 and one at age 31 in 2007. Ranney shares the experience of helping her son, who has cerebral palsy and is nonverbal, grieve the loss of his siblings.

When there is a death in the family or in the peer group of a special needs child or adult, that person is very often forgotten in the planning of the service, the mourning rituals, funeral home visitation, and the other common aspects of grieving and mourning the death of someone loved. Just as children are sometimes left out of these important experiences because “they’re too young,” they won’t/don’t understand,” or “it would be too upsetting,” special needs children and adults are also frequently forgotten mourners.

Contrary to what the general public may think, people of all ages who have exceptional needs still have their emotions intact, are generally aware of the people around them, and are also aware of the absence of these important people. Even though the child or adult may not be verbal, be assured that they have their thoughts, their memories, their questions, and their sorrow. If they are able to love, they are able to grieve, and if they are able to grieve, they need to mourn and to heal.

Children with cerebral palsy, like the one mentioned in the article above, have a range of developmental disabilities and also may have intellectual disabilities. When professionals consider how to support diverse populations through illness, death and grief, those with developmental and/or intellectual disabilities should be included.

Lawyers and Advance Directives

2009-06-18T19:41:00Z

Viki Kind has a provocative post today on HR 2705, which proposes to give a tax break to someone using a lawyer to complete their advance directive.

Kind writes "While at first glance, I love it that the government is considering ways to make sure people have advance directives but there is a hidden danger . . . doctors hate it when people have advance directives written by lawyers." Among other things, "the lawyer’s advance directive annoy and confuse the doctor." I absolutely agree. But we must remember, here, to distinguish between instructional and agent-appointing directives. Only the former are really subject to Kind's criticism.

Lawyers can certainly effectively help draft effective agent-appointing advance directives (aka DPAHCs). Such directive need not speak for themselves and guide medical treatment. They merely empower the agent to do that -- in real time. Moreover, I was just reminded yesterday, by a wonderful webinar by Charles Sabatino at the ABA, that lawyers can add some real value to such advance directives because of material gaps in many states' default healthcare agency rules.

Announcing the launch of TEDx -- and our first TEDxTalk from TEDxUSC

2009-06-15T16:00:00Z

We're excited to announce the launch of TEDx, a program of local, self-organized events that bring people together to share a TED-like experience.

As you know, nearly three years ago, we starting posting our TEDTalks freely online. Ever since then, hundreds of people have been sharing TEDTalks in independently organized group settings -- in private homes, high schools, universities, corporate lunches, and salons.

Because TED’s mission is “ideas worth spreading,” we’re enthusiastic about people doing this. And today, we formally launch the TEDx program to the world. TEDx, where x = independently organized TED event, is a program to promote local events with the TED spirit. Learn more about it at www.ted.com/tedx.

We tested the concept with a few partners, and have been thrilled with the outcome. In fact, today, we're releasing our first TEDxTalk: the Biospherian Jane Poynter, who spoke at the TEDxUSC “Ideas Empowered” Conference. This is the first in what we hope will be a series of new voices and ideas from around the world. You can see highlights from some of our first TEDx events here:
+ TEDxUSC
+ TEDxTokyo

Upcoming TEDx events on the schedule will be held in all corners of the world – from Sydney, Australia, Shanghai, China and the Fiji Islands to Qatar and Capetown, South Africa. The complete list is available at http://on.ted.com/r.

Or sign up to host your own TEDx event. Invite friends, family or co-workers, and send us feedback after your event.

We hope you are as excited about this program as we are and will consider joining us on our newest TED journey.