Parents are often faced with the issue of how to best care for a sick child. After other avenues of help, such as medical professionals, have been explored, people sometimes turn to the internet for health information.
The most important thing to remember when searching for health related information on the internet is that you need to stay alert to the origins of what you find. When looking for authoritative health information it is a good idea to restrict your search initially to government sites. You can do this in Google from the “Advanced Search” page by entering .gov in the domain field. To restrict your search to Australian government websites simply use .gov.au
A search using the exact phrase “information for parents” and restricted to Australian government sites leads to a varied list of relevant topics relating to child health in the broadest sense, from communicable diseases to child protection orders. An alternative search which adds the search words “child” and “health” results in a more focused result.
One Australian government health site stands apart from the rest because of its features and searching capabilities. HealthInsite is funded by the Commonwealth Department of Health and Ageing. It acts as a gateway to other websites which contain authoritative information on a broad range of contemporary health issues. Websites go through a stringent quality assessment process which involves a number of groups of professional people.
From the left hand navigation bar on the homepage, click on ‘A to Z Health Topics’ to gain access to a substantial listing of health topics arranged in alphabetical order. Go to the ‘Child Health’ section and you’ll be able to choose from a list of specialised subjects ranging from Dental health for children to Child Safety to an A-Z listing of Childhood conditions.
Don’t miss the ‘Life Stages’ link also in the left hand navigation bar which leads to a nifty visual timeline of health events related to different stages in our lives, including birth, childhood and adolescence.
Need help searching the web? Contact your local Citi library branch:
Citi Library Aitkenvale 4727 8312
Citi Library Flinders Mall 4727 9665
Citi Library Thuringowa 4773 8601 or infodesk@townsville.qld.gov.au
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Searchlight is a weekly column written by CityLibraries Townsville. It is published in the Townsville Bulletin newspaper and on this 'blog every Monday. Searchlight aims to make your internet searching more effective, efficient and fun by reviewing search tools, providing searching hints and tips, and helping with tricky search topics.
