Insights Gained from the Implementation of a Content Curation Strategy

Towards the end of 2011 the then new Scoop.it  content curation platform became available online. This precipitated the formulation of a strategy for content curation from the world wide web in close to real time for a niche area within healthcare. The strategy implementation would need to be iterative and undertaken in a stepwise manner in order to meet sustainability goals.

The first topic chosen for a domain on the Scoop.it platform was solid organ donation and transplantation. The focus would predominantly be on curating relevant news, patient stories and other related social media advocacy that would all be of interest to a general audience. The web sub site was named Organ Donation Transplant Matters (ODTM) and a logo generated. For the first 3 months highly selective filters were placed on the RSS feeds via the back end of the Scoop.it platform in order to not overwhelm the resources allocated towards curation activities. When it became apparent after the first month that only 1% of the visible RSS feeds were being posted, the filters were then significantly loosened such that as many information sources as possible could then be tapped into.

Consideration was subsequently given to establishing a second related domain on the Scoop.it platform and this was implemented 4 months after the first. The second sub site would have more of a professional focus and  hence would contain curated reports, guidelines and professional opinion on organ donation and transplantation. This second sub site was named Organ Donation Transplant Matters Resources (ODTMR). Only good quality material would be selected for posting which meant that more highly selective filters were able to be placed right from the start on the RSS feeds for the ODTMR sub site.

So after three years what are the lessons learned? Metrics available via the back end of the Scoop.it platform now provide data on the most reliable sources for posts. In addition the Scoop.it platform has been progressively re-engineered such that there is now far more interaction between the curator and the platform. The low rate of postings onto the ODTM sub site means that the filters for these particular RSS feeds will now be significantly altered (and tightened). 

Whereas for the ODTMR sub site, the RSS feed filters can and will be progressively altered in an ongoing iterative manner to include some of the suggestions which are now beginning to be made available from the Scoop.it end. In addition feedback can be provided to Scoop.it on which types of links are not useful.

This ongoing steady optimization of the RSS feeds for curation purposes, contributes to efficiency and efficacy goals both continuing to be met. With the ongoing increase in online activity year upon year it is apparent that effective content curation requires the use of an online tool that is also changing in parallel to meet the increasing demands of dealing with the burgeoning flow of online information.  

This is part of the humarithm philosophy (the interaction between humans and technology), underpinning the ongoing evolution of the Scoop.it platform from which this curator is one of the many continuing to benefit.

Why Innovation is a hot topic in the health care sector

It is relatively easy for anyone who works in the healthcare sector to concentrate only on the day to day, week to week activities which are the major focus of ones working life. So what do you think of when you hear the term 'Innovation' being used? Do you think of innovation as being like the light bulb switching on (i.e. a new idea), or perhaps even a new process?

In fact innovation is a little more complicated than just being a light bulb moment. You can have the best idea in the world but if it does not translate into an outcome that results in some fundamental change, then it remains ..... just an idea.

One of the best definitions of Innovation can be found via Wikipedia and involves the notion of doing something differently versus just doing something better.

Due to the ongoing challenges faced across the world in the healthcare sector  'Innovation' is beginning to feature in the parlance of a number of major healthcare organizations. Examples include the Center for Innovation Mayo Clinic , the Cleveland Clinic Innovations Centre as well as the web portal for the Innovation Dashboard NHS in the United Kingdom.

What all of these organizations have in common, is an understanding at the leadership level of the importance of harnessing the untapped talents of all of the employees. This is in order to bring about the types of ongoing fundamental change that will enable increasing value to be derived from the allocation of resources within the organization. This involves building both a community and culture for innovation within the organization. This process requires that a number of  elements be in place as summarized in the following graphic-

So why is it important for healthcare organizations to embrace innovation? As outlined in this online post via the Harvard Business Review there remain a number of unmet challenges facing healthcare organizations and hence embracing innovation is one strategy for addressing these challenges,                                                  

Decided about organ and tissue donation? - DonateLife Australia Video

This well put together video has been produced in order to inform Australians of the importance of organ and tissue donation and what is required to ensure that as many people as possible can then benefit