Research Article
Understanding how Social Media Imagery EmpowersCaregivers: an Analysis of Microcephaly in Latin America
@INPROCEEDINGS{10.4108/eai.20-5-2019.2283541, author={Vivian Genaro Motti and Niloofar Kalantari}, title={Understanding how Social Media Imagery EmpowersCaregivers: an Analysis of Microcephaly in Latin America}, proceedings={13th EAI International Conference on Pervasive Computing Technologies for Healthcare - Demos and Posters}, publisher={EAI}, proceedings_a={PERVASIVEHEALTH - EAI}, year={2019}, month={6}, keywords={social media analytics social networks instagram microcephaly}, doi={10.4108/eai.20-5-2019.2283541} }- Vivian Genaro Motti
Niloofar Kalantari
Year: 2019
Understanding how Social Media Imagery EmpowersCaregivers: an Analysis of Microcephaly in Latin America
PERVASIVEHEALTH - EAI
EAI
DOI: 10.4108/eai.20-5-2019.2283541
Abstract
This paper reports the results of an imagery analysis about Microcephaly in Latin America from the perspective of caregivers.The analysis includes 500 Instagram images associated with the hashtag Microcefalia. Microcephaly affected more than 4,000 babies in Latin America, and the outbreak of the epidemic made Instagram an accessible tool for caregivers to express their thoughts, feelings, raise funds and awareness, exchange information about the condition and find peer support. Most publications are managed by the mother of female patients seeking to celebrate milestones, exchange information, and find social support. The analysis of the contents posted elicits the caregivers’ perspectives about microcephaly and clarifies how Instagram empowers them to raise awareness and communicate about the condition. Instagram demonstrated to below-cost tool to provide support for caregivers pervasively, supporting healthcare practitioners in disseminating medical information.By allowing users to share their individual perspectives and experiences through pictures, images and videos, Instagram has become popular for users promptly seeking for information and support.