Introducing... NASBHC's Social Media Fellows (part 2 of 2)

Introducing…  Iman Shervington

Greetings fellow NASBHC convention attendees! I'm from a community-based non-profit in New Orleans called the Institute of Women & Ethnic Studies (IWES), and as a Social Media Fellow I'm here to impart the highlights, sights and sound(bites) back to you, as well as to those that couldn't make it this year. I have an MFA in Film Directing, and at IWES I am privileged to be able to mix my love of art and media with social justice, specifically to advocate for the health and well-being of the youth of the New Orleans metro area. 

Through our Media Advocates for Prevention (MAP) program as well as our Social marketing Technology Outreach Program (STOP), I work with youth aged 13-24 to promote HIV prevention and sexual health among their peers through youth-created media content (audio and film pieces). A major focus of both of these programs is new media, specifically the utilization of web-based technologies such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, & YouTube. At IWES, we also work with the Louisiana Public Health Initiative (LPHI) to promote School-Based Health Centers in New Orleans by serving as a liaison between the administration and the community to promote enrollment and utilization of clinic services. 

I look forward to meeting many new friends this weekend and sharing your stories through NASBHC's social media channels! Please look out for me throughout the convention if you have an interesting experience you would like to share.

Introducing… NASBHC Social Media Fellow Darby Baker

Hello everyone! My name is Darby Baker and I am from Camas Valley, Oregon. I am affiliated with Umpqua Community Health Clinic of Roseburg, Oregon. I am currently the receptionist for their School Based Health Center at Douglas High School in Winston Oregon. Umpqua Community Health Clinic is a Federally Qualified Health Center so I work in their other locations as well. Currently they operate two school based health centers and four not for profit health centers located throughout Douglas County as well as a dental clinic. We operate on mostly federal dollars that offset out expenses so that we are able to provide health care in a teen health center setting but are able to provide health and dental care to uninsured adults as well.

Social media started its impact for the 2010 NASBHC Convention many months ago. The ability to email, blog, text, facebook and twitter has made the ability to converse with other professionals much easier and many of the same network users will be able to use those tools while they attend the convention. The ability to stay in contact via Twitter and Facebook is a popular choice instead of phone calls and email. Bloggers have exploded onto the social scene and the ability to share technology and content has evolved dramatically. Having the ability to ask questions, participate in Webinars and having access to so much information from others in the same professional capacity is encouraging. Convention goers will easily be able to continue their communications long after the conference is over. 

The media that will profoundly impact the NASBHC Convention will not stop with the attendees. Even those that are unable to attend the convention will be able to access certain information through the internet. I always look forward to meeting new people and having the ability to continue these professional relationships via Twitter and Facebook. We can share ideas, concerns and even plan for the next conference thanks to the accessibility of social media and the profound effect it has on our world today.