By using this site, you agree to the Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Accept
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
  • Health
    • Mental Health
    Health
    Healthcare organizations are operating on slimmer profit margins than ever. One report in August showed that they are even lower than the beginning of the…
    Show More
    Top News
    benefits of using protein powder to build muscles
    Protein Powder for Muscle Mass: Everything You Need to Know
    December 12, 2021
    changes brought on by blockchain in healthcare
    Technology In The Healthcare Industry
    March 28, 2022
    What Does Core Body Temperature Say About Health?
    August 17, 2022
    Latest News
    Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
    May 16, 2025
    Learn how to Renew your Medical Card in West Virginia
    May 16, 2025
    Choosing the Right Supplement Manufacturer for Your Brand
    May 1, 2025
    Engineering Temporary Hospitals for Extreme Weather
    April 24, 2025
  • Policy and Law
    • Global Healthcare
    • Medical Ethics
    Policy and Law
    Get the latest updates about Insurance policies and Laws in the Healthcare industry for different geographical locations.
    Show More
    Top News
    FDA Approves Diabetes Pill
    May 2, 2011
    Patient Gets Drunk on Hand Sanitizer
    June 20, 2011
    Cultivating Health Improvement
    July 20, 2011
    Latest News
    Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
    May 18, 2025
    The Critical Role of Healthcare in Personal Injury Recovery: A Comprehensive Guide for Victims
    May 14, 2025
    The Backbone of Successful Trials: Clinical Data Management
    April 28, 2025
    Advancing Your Healthcare Career through Education and Specialization
    April 16, 2025
  • Medical Innovations
  • News
  • Wellness
  • Tech
Search
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Reading: Interview with Liza Bernstein: ePatient, Breast Cancer Survivor, and Social Media Person
Share
Notification Show More
Font ResizerAa
Health Works CollectiveHealth Works Collective
Font ResizerAa
Search
Follow US
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
© 2023 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
Health Works Collective > eHealth > Social Media > Interview with Liza Bernstein: ePatient, Breast Cancer Survivor, and Social Media Person
Social Media

Interview with Liza Bernstein: ePatient, Breast Cancer Survivor, and Social Media Person

DeniseSilber
Last updated: April 6, 2013 7:48 am
DeniseSilber
Share
5 Min Read
SHARE
 

Interview with Liza Bernstein, ePatient speaker, Doctors 2.0 & YouI first met Liza Bernstein in Palo Alto at Stanford Medi

 

Interview with Liza Bernstein, ePatient speaker, Doctors 2.0 & YouI first met Liza Bernstein in Palo Alto at Stanford Medicine X conference run by our partner, Dr Larry Chu. Liza was an “ePatient Scholar”, and she and I discussed what she could bring to Doctors 2.0 & You, as an ePatient with an international background. Liza was born in South Africa, speaks four languages and is very active globally in breast cancer social media. We followed up on Social Media and here we are, preparing for her talk at the Doctors 2.0 & You conference in June. 2013. We love this quote and hope you’ll enjoy the interview below.

“These conversations and relationships on Social Media also helped me find my voice and realize that I could have an impact and be of service.“

Denise Silber: Tell us, Liza, the interesting story of how you became involved with Social Media.

More Read

ePatient Dave is In The Room (video)
Social Media Laws – Really?
4 Tips for Using HealthCare Social Media to Attract New Patients
7 More Social Media Tactics That Boost Engagement
Who is the Healthcare Consumer?

Liza Bernstein: I got involved in Social Media with an experiment. It was October 2010, I was recovering from 15 months of treatment for my 3rd breast cancer, and in between surgeries.  Since 1994, the year of my 1st diagnosis, I had always felt isolated, under attack, voice-less, misunderstood, exploited and more during October, aka Breast Cancer Awareness Month (BCAM). In October 2010, though, for the first time, I was feeling less negative/more able to handle it, but realized that other survivors also suffered during this month that was supposed to be about “helping” us. I decided to go on Tumblr and Twitter and challenge myself to step out of my isolation and post some thoughts/observations about Breast Cancer and BCAM. I did it anonymously because I was too shy and afraid to be fully “out,” but with integrity and authenticity.

Here’s a link to my posts on Tumblr from October 2010: http://itsthebunk.tumblr.com/archive/2010/10 Part of the experiment was to see if I could find anyone out there with anything interesting to say. I researched keywords, found hashtags and in December, found that the San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium — a leading annual meeting of researchers and doctors in Breast Cancer — had a hashtag and that people were tweeting from and about the conference. I spent hours on the hashtag and had my first real conversation on Twitter. That anecdote is expanded on here: http://itsthebunk.blogspot.com/2012/10/my-epatient-bio-from-stanford-medicine-x.html That conversation led to others, it also led to other conferences (on Cancer, mHealth, etc.) that I engaged in via Twitter as I was not able to travel, and I found the weekly #hcsm tweetchat.

The real, substantial conversations I was having and the real, substantial people I was engaging with inspired me to drop the anonymity. These conversations and relationships also helped me find my voice and realize that I could have an impact and be of service.

DS: How have you seen Social Media evolve over time?

LB: Here’s what comes to mind with this question: In 1999, I was working at GeoCities, one of the online community pioneers. A big meme at the time was “the end of bricks and mortar” with people imagining and fearing a world without “in real life” interactions. Meanwhile, at GeoCities we were having monthly conference calls with 40+ online community members from around the world (some as far away as Australia). We would also fly in a community member each month to join us in the room for the call.  This planted a seed in my mind about the true power and possibilities of online communities. A decade or so later, I saw them realized through my engagement on social media. Speaking on the phone with tweeps, meeting them in person, developing meaningful professional relationships and friendships. It’s through social media and social media alone that I found out about Stanford MedicineX and Doctors2.0 and You.

DS: Where you think Social Media brings its greatest benefit?

LB: Social media is a communication tool, like the telephone and the telegraph. It’s all in how you use it. For me, its greatest benefit is how it allows people to interact directly and quickly around common interests and have a real impact. The #bcsm tweetchat is an example of that.

DS: Liza, thank you for a wonderful interview and see you soon.

Share This Article
Facebook Copy Link Print
Share

Stay Connected

1.5kFollowersLike
4.5kFollowersFollow
2.8kFollowersPin
136kSubscribersSubscribe

Latest News

Do You Grind Your Teeth at Night? Here’s How Night Guards and TMJ Treatments Can Help
Do You Grind Your Teeth at Night? Here’s How Night Guards and TMJ Treatments Can Help
Dental health
May 21, 2025
The Secret To A Confident Smile: Top Tips For Better Teeth
The Secret To A Confident Smile: Top Tips For Better Teeth
Dental health
May 21, 2025
Clinical Expertise
Building Smarter Care Teams: Aligning Roles, Structure, and Clinical Expertise
Health care
May 18, 2025
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Grounded Healing: A Natural Ally for Sustainable Healthcare Systems
Health
May 15, 2025

You Might also Like

Big Data Part II Social Media

April 18, 2012
patient centricity healthcare marketing
BusinesseHealthMedical DevicesMedical InnovationsMobile HealthSocial Media

Patient Centricity and Healthcare Marketing

March 15, 2016
DiagnosticseHealthHome HealthMobile HealthRemote DiagnosticsSocial MediaWellness

How Technology Is Affecting Healthcare

June 3, 2015
google and healthcare blogs
eHealthNewsSocial Media

What’s Google Doing with Healthcare Blogs?

July 23, 2014
Subscribe
Subscribe to our newsletter to get our newest articles instantly!
Follow US
© 2008-2025 HealthWorks Collective. All Rights Reserved.
  • About
  • Contact
  • Privacy
Welcome Back!

Sign in to your account

Username or Email Address
Password

Lost your password?