in a comfortable online environment.

MentalHealthSocial.com is designed to allow people to share experiences
anonymously, reach out to others with similar problems, and connect caregivers
assisting loved ones facing mental health problems, the Naples company said.
 
Colin Spencer Wood, the company president and CEO, was diagnosed with bipolar disorder in 1999.
 
"When people suffer from mental health conditions, they can sometimes feel
isolated," Wood said in a statement. "There might not be anyone else in a
patient's life that has experienced their condition, which can make it difficult
for family and friends to relate or understand what they're going through.
MentalHealthSocial.com eliminates those feelings of isolation by bringing people
with similar experiences together. Sometimes people just need someone to talk to
who really understands whatever mental health condition they're dealing with."

 
The service has the same major features as Facebook and other social
networks. Users can share information about themselves, post videos, upload
audio or photos, and offer help. It supports e-mail style messaging, instant
messaging, chat, blogging, status updates, commenting, and forums, as well as
free classifieds and events. Users can create private areas for peers with
similar conditions.
 
The service will also work to raise money for mental health related nonprofit
organizations.

Social networking has emerged as both a tool and a source of problems for
healthcare providers. Organizations like the University of California San
Francisco Medical Center and Mayo Clinic are using Facebook, Twitter, and
YouTube to connect with med students and the communities those organizations
serve. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control is using Twitter, YouTube, and even
games to spread information about swine flu. And Second Life has a following
among healthcare providers, as Chicago Children's Hospital is using Second Life
for disaster preparedness, while disabled people turn to the virtual world for
peer support.
 
On the other hand, a study by the Journal of the American Medical
Association shows med students often behave unprofessionally on social
networks, even violating patient confidentiality.