[Guidelines for internet mailing lists and electronic forums for patient groups].
Internet mailing lists (and other electronic forums) for discussions between patients are places where patient and their family and friends can talk, by e-mail, about their problems, exchange their experiences, and find support. The charter presented here proposes guidelines more specifically appropriate to this particular community--patients having conversations--than are either the general rules of Netiquette or the general guidelines for these lists. Three themes play a primary role in the guidelines set by this charter: the role of the list owners and moderators, the definition of the contents of exchanges, and relationships with doctors and more generally healthcare professionals. This charter is a regulatory instrument for lists that can serve a three-fold purpose: as a governance tool for list owners, as a tool for reflection for the constitution and definition of lists, and as training tools for list moderators.
Méadel
Cécile
C
Centre de sociologie de l'innovation. Ecole des mines de Paris, F-75006 Paris, France. cecile.meadel@ensmp.paris.fr
Oziel
David
D
D034742:Electronic Mail; D017408:Guidelines as Topic; D020407:Internet; D010361:Patients; D010379:Peer Group