Global Alliance for Self Management Support

The Global Alliance for Self Management Support is an international online virtual community with the goal of promoting self management support and patient empowerment worldwide through massive collaboration using the New ICT. This is an initiative from the Education, Health and Society Foundation in Spain . Most of the members of the group are running the Chronic Disease Self Management Programme from the University of Stanford, named Expert Patient Programme in the UK and in Spain. The group began in April 2007 through a meeting of experts in the UK . The GASMS was presented in 2008 at The IV World Health Congress Europe, in Berlin, March 2008, and at the IInd Chronic Care Congress, Alexandria, US, June 2008. The GASMS is VIP partner for World Congress since 2008.

In brief, GASMS is run by Dr Manuel Serrano, President of the Education, Health and Society Foundation in Spain and counts with an outstanding team of experts on the field from more than 30 countries.

In July 2009, the GASMS wrote the module for the Evidence Baded Chronic Illnes Care Course, organized by the Panamerican Health Association, at the University of Miami . Nellie Deutsch (in Toronto, Canada) and Gladys Gahona (in Cancun, Mexico) moderated a live online session on WizIQ while Dr. Serrano (From Spain) presented that face-to-face conference in Miami on July 17, 2009.

Since February 2009, GASMS prepared a protocol for self management support for obesity, with expert patients leading weekly sessions with the goal of promoting a social movement using the web 2.0 to fight against obesity internationally.