Maria Suarez-Almazor, MD PhD
University of Texas
Dr. Suarez-Almazor is studying the effects of social networking on chronic disease management in arthritis. After studying the information needs of patients, Dr. Suarez-Almazor created a private Facebook community for rheumatoid arthritis patients called Social Networking for Arthritis Patients (SNAP). Now she is evaluating SNAP to determine if social networking groups, like those found on Facebook, can provide patients with a more effective and meaningful way of learning about their health. Her hope is that SNAP can provide patients like Sarah with the information and peer support they need to manage rheumatoid arthritis. If you have rheumatoid arthritis and are interested in this study please contact snaparthritis@gmail.com.