Riding on the bandwagon  and the huge success, as well as, worldwide popularity/usage  of  Facebook,    the Communication  and   Information  Systems for the Control of Avian Influenza  (CISCAI)  finally lands a space on Facebook.   The site was developed and is being managed by  Mr. Bambang Wijayanto, CISCAI System Administrator.

Recently, Facebook (FB)  and similar social  networking sites (i.e. Twitter, Friendster,etc.)   have  proven to  be effective  media for   public  and social participation,  most specially during  post-disaster situations, as have been shown in  the most recent  Philippine's post -Typhoon Ketsana (2009), where  some  requests for relief  for flood-ravaged  victims came from these internet-based sources. Similarly, the same  use of  internet-based social networking  services have been exploited in the post-Haiti  earthquake  disaster, where most of the  reports  of buried  victims came from   text/short messaging system (SMS)/tweets from social networking sites using mobile devices such as cellular phones.

In the near future, CISCAI aims to take advantage of  Facebooks unique, natural  and  friendly appeal to internet users. Most of all, CISCAI  and its management  recognizes Facebooks  efficient and seamless social networking capability, which easily links one  FB user account to another account, and to other  communities of FB users - eventually creating a web of interconnected networks. Added  to these features  are  FBs  ubiquity and  accessibility  to internet-enabled mobile devices such as cellular phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs). These are the same  information  infrastructures necessary for  effective  early detection and reporting  of, and response to   Avian Influenza (AI)  infections and other related emerging infectious diseases (EIDs).

For its part, CISCAI intends to  develop  in the near future, a suite of FB-based applications that  will enable FB-based AI  (and EID) reporting, as well as  intelligent  and web-based AI  expert systems  for self (medical) assessment  without, however, sacrificing for  data quality  and human medical  advise and consultation.  

Much as AI (virus) and other communicable diseases are spread through (physical) human social networks  (i.e. interactions of humans  within societal  networks such as homes, offices, schools, etc.), so too do we  try to exploit  the same  virtual social  networks  created by  social networking sites such as the Facebook, in order to turn the  odds around by disseminating useful and current information about AI. , said Dr. Jose Edgardo Aban,  Project Coordinator of CISCAI.
 
CISCAIs Facebook  presence is also  an initial strategy  towards  increasing  CISCAIs   client base for  public information  dissemination  and education campaign about the   Project, and AI consciousness  in general.

Finally, CISCAIs has its own  place in this ever-growing  community of Facebook users.

Become a Fan of CISCAI@Facebook  now!

 

(CISCAI-PCU)