WebProNews

Healia Communities opens to new members

The launch of Healia Communities adds to a growing mix of sites all aimed at providing a common ground for people, ailments, and the ability to connect with others online.

Healthcare as an area of interest online has ramped up in recent months with entrants vying to earn the trust of people and become a destination for their medical interests, including networking with like-minded folks.

Consumers who may feel spoiled for choice between Healthline, HealthVault, RightHealth, TauMed, Revolution Health, WebMD, and others have another option to consider. Healia Communities opened today, with an emphasis on its community and on social networking.

Visitors to Healia Communities may join like-minded groups on the site, categorized by medical condition. This opens up the ability to discuss and learn from others about various ailments.

Answers don't come from just the regular people in a community. Healia founder Tom Eng said in a statement that people with questions about an ailment can ask it on Healia, and see a response from physicians, nurses, and/or other health professionals within 48 hours.

Once those answers reach the community, users may rate them and the information they provide. People seeking communities have the option of searching for them based on criteria like health condition, age, location, or other factors.

Amid the rush to create these services, like Google's efforts to catch up with its Health product, we wonder if there will be a consolidation in the future. The personal nature of healthcare information may make it likely people will want to stay with one provider.

An insurance provider like Aetna, which opted for Healthline for its members, could drive adoption of one or two of these services as the standard for sharing healthcare information within its membership. This makes us believe a shakedown of providers will happen over the next couple of years.