Thursday 17 May 2012

The internet and online communities:

In this weeks blog we have been asked to look at online communities that are related to one of our fieldwork experiences. While on my first placement I got to spend a couple of weeks on the head and brain injury wards I found this really interesting as all the patients had such different stories but alot had similarities to other patients so for this posting I have decided to look into online communities for those people that have had brain injuries in their lives at some stage.

The 3 online communities I have chosen to look into are:

Weka disability support: http://www.weka.net.nz/support/by-support-service/rehabilitation-and-healthcare


The Brain trust: http://www.braintrust.org/


The Brian Injury Association New Zealand:  http://www.brain-injury.org.nz/


Weka Disability support is an online community that provides stories and videos of people going through the same thing as many other people out there. It has a chance for people to ask questions about what they are going through or on general topics. It is a very useful site as it provides links to rehabilitation equipment stores and provides details for information centers in both the north and south island. It has service links for the many other services which include:
-Disabilities
-Employment
-Education
-Housing
-Living
-Rehabilitation and health care
-Support
-Traveling
-Needs assessment service coordination 
It also has links to sites that provide help from addiction to Alzheimer's, brain injuries and amputees and many many more.






The Healing Exchange (T.H.E) Brian Trust this global community has been set up as support group for people who have had to deal with brain tumors or injuries in their lives. The service was set up as a place for people to be able to ask questions, make connections and have a discuss topics. The brain trust is not only for the people who have had to go through this but also for their families too. The brain trust also has a link to make donations to there trust if you wish to do so here is the link: https://www.communityroom.net/donate.asp?id=169


The third online community I am going to look at is The Brain Injury Association NZ this association has been set up for those people that have suffered from a brain injury. The website has a list of available courses that are educational to those that have had brain injuries and also their families. They inform people of what their brain injury effects may be and how to prevent them from having another brain injury. the site has information on what the association provides and also how you become involved in the association. If you are interested here is the link for jobs at the association: http://www.brain-injury.org.nz/about_jobs.html
They are also always after donations to keep the association running so if you feel the need here is the link for you to make a donation: http://www.brain-injury.org.nz/donation.html
The association also provides people with a newsletter which you can download from the following link: http://www.brain-injury.org.nz/about_newsletter.html


The following sites I have just talked about all fall into the topic of occupational disruption. All of the online communities above have been formed as a way of supporting those whose lives have become disrupted by their brain injuries. These sites provide a place for people to talk about what they have been through and provide them with support. It is a way of connecting people with others that have gone through the same thing. 
As well as occupational disruption these sites also fall into occupational transition. These sites provide a place for people to tell their stories a place where they can talk about the changes they have had to make to their lives while living with a brain injury. It can also be a place for other people going through the same thing to get ideas on how to cope with the changes that they are going through because of their brain injury. 

Because all these sites are from the internet there is always going to be the ethical considerations to take in like whether the information that is provided on the sites is actually reliable or not. also the copyright issues and things like where the money you are donating is actually going. another issue may be as these sites are for people to comment on and write their opinions this could also mean that some things that get written may be classed as inappropriate to others.   

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