The Status

March 4, 2005 10:45 AM

theStatus is a free, private, weblog-style site that lets the hospitalized "spend less time responding to inquiries and more time recovering".
posted by turbodog (7 comments total)

I learned about theStatus, unfortunately, from a family friend undergoing cancer treatment. For several months it's been an excellent way to stay informed about her condition without pestering her directly.
posted by turbodog at 10:46 AM on March 4, 2005

That's a great idea. I started a blog when my dad was in the hospital for (sadly) the last time, to spare my mom some phone calls.
posted by MrMoonPie at 10:53 AM on March 4, 2005

I woulda thought that most hospital patients get bored and would welcome calls from family and friends. Shows how much I know!
posted by garycarlson at 11:51 AM on March 4, 2005

garycarlson - one of the top things on the sample page is whether visitors are allowed and information on when and where to call the patient.
posted by revgeorge at 11:57 AM on March 4, 2005

This is a good idea.
posted by gai at 12:33 PM on March 4, 2005

CarePages is a similar service.

My sense is both these sites work with hospitals, and that hospitals are the ones actually paying for the sites. (Among other things, those who are getting patient updates are also encouraged to donate to the hospital where the patient is being treated.) Which isn't to say that this isn't a great idea - patients and their families can let everyone know how they are without having to repeat the information multiple times. And the hospital does get fewer phone calls to handle.
posted by WestCoaster at 12:53 PM on March 4, 2005

I agree...this is a good, great idea.
posted by jaronson at 7:04 PM on March 4, 2005