Replying to my own post, should've read entire column before posting:

"Keeping your back to the direction the wind is coming from gives you a buff that will help you move and cast faster. Keep in mind that healing is a 360-degree endeavor, and you don't actually have to be facing someone to heal them; they only need to be in your "line of sight," so to speak."

As far as I am aware this is an extremely common misconception - through the naming of the buffs and some experimental positioning it's fairly easy to prove that you gain the debuffs based on your position in relationship to the boss:

It has been an extremely long time since I got VP as my hc, so if these are wrong (either someone points it out, or you try it and die horribly), then just switch them around in your head.

Downwind of Altarius should be:

Origin of wind -> Boss -> Player (this is bad)

Upwind of Altarius should be:

Origin of wind -> Player -> Boss (this is good!)

as I say please just switch those round if I got the naming convention/mechanics wrong, and I apologise for over-using colons :)

I've already written what will end up a long comment so to summarise "correct" positioning for the healer:

Stand by the side of the boss, and move through the boss to avoid the frost breath if needed. If the wind spawns on the wrong side, you can simply step through the boss and continue healing. Sometimes it can be tricky, but just remember sometimes you need to move either towards the tail or the head somewhat to gain the buff and it's easy :) Hope I've helped anyone confused by the mechanics here

You've got a point, but luckily for Paladins you have that mobile heal. Shaman don't really have any heals that can link everyone else when they inevitably spread out to tackle these guys, as they have the Chain Heal and the Healing Rain, both of which would prove wildly ineffective. It's not all bad, though, since we can quickly pop off a Riptide and two Healing Surges. With any luck, one or two of them will crit and we'll get some nice mana return and some decent heal procs on other group members.

Yeah, I've heard the "wind at your back" assertion before, too, and subsequently tested it.

Spinning around in place to get the wind at your character's back? Not getting the haste buff.

Sidestepping through the dragon's hitbox to get upwind of the critter? Snagged the haste buff.

It's worth mentioning, however, that if you ARE upwind, and facing the dragon, the wind will necessarily be coming from behind you.

Further sidenote: No trash in Cataclysm drops heroic loot. That means there is no heroic version of Rainsong, despite what the data miners may say. Fairly annoying, too, since I've had three of the stupid things drop in heroic Pinnacle to date. And the BoE ring in heroic Throne, and...

If the wind hits you before the boss you get the upwind buff, which is a haste & movement speed increase. If the wind hits the boss before you get the down wind debuff. Haste and speed reduction. In 4.06 they are making the wind easier to see and therefore determine its direction. The thing that confuses people is that the wind direction changes but also the boss turns. Since its a dragon people assume it has a cleave/tail swipe so move with it but I don’t think it does. Stay with the wind hitting you before the boss and if you stand right on top of his hit box you don’t have far to move to find the right buff. Just watch out for whirl winds. If your really struggling to see the buff/debuff set up power auras to flash you which one you have.