Through social networking, PatientsLikeMe gives member patients a venue to share their experiences on a particular condition. The site is open to anyone willing to share their medical history and connect with other patients to learn from actual outcomes. The goal of PatientsLikeMe is to help patients learn to live with their medical condition by giving them a support group that understands what they are going through.
The site was created by three engineers from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Brothers Benjamin and Jamie Heywood and family friend Jeff Cole got their inspiration when the Heywoods’ father was diagnosed with a serious and rare health condition, amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). They did not know anyone with ALS, and their family clearly needed all the help and support they can get. PatientsLikeMe became their solution.
The site has gone a long way from being a community for ALS patients. Today, PatientsLikeMe is a company that has dozens of communities for other life-altering conditions: epilepsy, Parkinson’s disease, HIV, organ transplantation, and Parkinson’s disease, to name a few. Last June 2011, the company reached the 100,000 member milestone.
Although considered as one of the most innovative companies with a cause, PatientsLikeMe has stirred discussion about the positive and negative sides of patient sharing experiences. Medical professionals debate that the service might scare people away or discourage them from seeking professional help. Patients members tend to disagree.
PatientsLikeMe may have created a divide between the medical community and patients, but it still operates under an innovative idea that has undoubtedly changed lives in some ways.