Online Communities

Tut 6

Cancer touches 1 in 5 lives. Two of these online communities have helped people that I know, when going through cancer. It stops your life for a time and you need all the help you can get.

1. Canteen http://www.canteen.org.nz/

It is a huge help. Canteen’s mission is to support, develop and empower young people living with cancer through a national support network, and high quality education. They sometimes send teens on big world trips like going to Disneyland, before times sometimes becomes too short.

Online community is all about helping people out or people help other people out.

As you from the screen shot.

 The site is very interactive and you can follow Canteen on Facebook, Twitter etc. People can contribute with there time, money, or following and giving support.

I think people choose to contribute because normally they have somehow be touched by cancer, or they are just very kind and nice people.

This site deals with occupational disruption and deprivation, as peoples lives stop at times when family members become ill with cancer.Sometimes Work or occupation can' t happen due to being away from home or needing that time with the loved one. Canteen helps with this sort of things, what to prepare for  and who you can get help off.

2. Ronald McDonald House

Our Ronald McDonald House programme provides a "home-away-from-home" for families so they can stay close by their hospitalised child at no cost.  Our Houses are built on the simple idea that nothing else should matter when a family is focused on healing their child – not where they can afford to stay, where they will get their next meal or where they will lay their head at night to rest.

This is how I have known it as, they also now have a retreat house. To give the families a break. They are a charitable trust, and the money goes towards making the lives of families with sick children so much bearable. The site is like Canteen, can donate, follow different house, volunteer, also sort you just need to get on the page, follow link J http://rmhc.org.nz/ronald-mcdonald-house-charities

Again it helps families deal with occupational disruption and transition. Let’s families have a home away from a home, no money worries for the accommodation and meals. Information and as much support.

Both Canteen and Ronald McDonald House are very aware of ethical consideration. They would be made to stand if they had crossed the line somewhere.

Both these communities are so geographically spread due to the extent illness affects so many people. 1 in 5 will have been affected, that is just cancer.

3. Otago Occupational Therapy Students-closed group on Facebook.

This is a page for the 2^nd years to clarify and notify their whole group at Otago about extra things the lecturer have said. Reminds us to bring things to class.

Very interactive, anyone in that group can comment and normally someone is on Facebook.

You contribute by putting your opinion to a comment or asking a question in a post, or linking a helpful site onto the page. Anyone in the group can contribute.

We contribute to help each other out, treat people the way you want to be treated. Don’t want to see our classmates fail.

Studying can be occupational disruption at times, you can’t continue if you don’t know how to progress. Put up a post, get an answer or direction and disruption has gone. Also occupational transition, go from being an average student to a knowledgeable student with all the information that is provided on the page.

Sometimes there can be lack of accountability, but for the most it is pretty good. With everything in life you decide how you react to it. Benefits are instance help, limitations; sometimes the information is wrong.