HAWC establishes 'Community of Practice' Web site

  • Published
  • By Lt. Col. Kari Howie
  • 4th Aeromedical Dental Squadron
SEYMOUR JOHNSON AIR FORCE BASE, N.C. --  The Health and Wellness Center offers many programs to assist and motivate members in their efforts to increase health and fitness. Now, however, their wealth of knowledge and expertise is available 24/7 through a Web site, known as a Community of Practice, on the "Air Force Knowledge Now." 

The Seymour Johnson Health and Wellness CoP at https://afkm.wpafb.af.mil/SJ-HAWConline is more than just an everyday Web page. It is a Web-based collaborative environment where members use shared information and communications tools to conduct business, manage projects, stay informed, solve group problems and spread the word about the importance of health and fitness. 

While there have been several knowledge management initiatives across the Air Force, the Air Force Chief Information Officer, John Gilligan, noted the Web page is the most mature and successful to date. In fact, there are over 2,000 CoPs in use across the AF. 

They run the gamut of Air Force specialties from engineering, logistics, operations and manpower to safety, technology, transformation and healthcare. 

The base's health and wellness center CoP capitalizes on this powerful knowledge-sharing technology to bring numerous related organizations and multimedia products into one Web location. Current articles, books, guides and virtual libraries are just some of the resources found on the CoP. 

Topics include fitness, nutrition, diabetes, high blood pressure, chaplain services, stress management and tobacco cessation. 

Interactive programs include expert and peer discussion forums, the DoD's alcohol abuse prevention campaign "Don't Be That Guy" and a live survey that lets users tell the HAWC staff how they can better meet their needs. 

Currently, this site is accessible only to users with a military Web address. However, the Web page's future development plans include family member access. 

Take the time to become a member today. The more exposure and opportunities used to educate the community, the better the job is done in preparing members to become fit to deploy and fight. 

For more information, call 722-0407.