Press Day: Google Heath is now public
Today Google hosted their "factory tour" which was basically a chance for them to give the press a good idea of what they have been working on. It was heavy on the explanation of how Google's search results are becoming smarter, and more able to predict what a person actually means, rather than always taking things at face value.
After all the boring, but important (and really cool for people who care) stuff, Google also launched their Google Health service that has been in the making for quite a while. It started with the hard work of Adam Bosworth, who has since left Google. To me, it is unclear how and if Google is planning to make money from the service -- other than on search ads that are displayed when people do health related searches that is.
Before you jump in with both feet, it would be wise to make sure you are comfortable with the terms of service. Fellow blogger Larry Dignan steps you through some of the more interesting clauses you should be aware of.
If you are comfortable with the terms they put forth, it's actually quite a powerful tool that helps you manage your health in an easier and more effective way than ever before. Philipp Lenssen has a good overview of the new Google Health service if you are looking for a walkthrough. Basically, the service lets you do the following:
- Build online health profiles
- Import medical records from hospitals and pharmacies
- Learn about health issues and find helpful resources
- Search for doctors and hospitals
- Connect to online health services
It will be interesting to see how the public will receive this new service. How about you? Will you be using Google Health to store your personal health record?