For the millennium Triple Helix Cyberdoc we take a bird's eye view of Christian healthcare sites on the internet. Here is Cyberdoc's top ten of what remain a select breed of Christian internet sites by, or very relevant for, Christian health professionals. There remains much room for improvement and even the best site could get better, but it is certainly true that there is a lot of useful information out there if you know where to look.

10. CHRISTIANS IN CARING PROFESSIONS

Christians in Caring Professions. Aside from providing minimal information about this group, this site is mainly interesting for its links page. Even this is not extensive. The internet is treated by too many as a flyer advertising a group. Most surfers are looking for a little more than this site can give.

9. HEALING THE NATIONS

This site, although minimal in its own content, is worth a mention for a nice design and some very useful links to other medical missions pages.

8. NCFA NSW

The best of the Nursing Christian Fellowship pages, this Australian site has a few nursing articles and some useful links to other branches of the NCF in various countries.

7. CMDS/EMAS

Nicely designed and some good (although a little sparse) material, this Canadian site does have a good list of other links, a few position papers and some extracts from the current issue of the magazine.

6. CMDA

Well designed but at times the layout is confusing - to me online resources should not mean an online bookshop. This is a useful site, including position statements and some articles on ethical issues. The number of articles and their depth seem significantly greater on the Christian Medical Fellowship site, this may well be because the American sister organisation do not put their journal online. There is a members-only section to the site which may have more content at a cost but when there is a free CMF site available why bother with this one!

5. AMERICAN LEPROSY MISSION

This site is simple, limited but effective in its design and message. It is a hard hitting exposure of the horrors of leprosy and an appeal to support the work of the Christian American leprosy mission. There are no links, and relatively little information, but it hits hard enough to risk seriously a dent in any visitor's wallet. There is an option to subscribe to an e-mail prayer letter.

4. CENTRE FOR BIOETHICS AND HUMAN DIGNITY

A reasonable number of brief comments on bioethical issues from a Christian perspective. This site also has a 'members only' section. It rather neatly lists news headlines that are relevant on its homepage.

3. GLOBAL CHANGE

Although brightly designed and heavily self promoted, this site is still well worth a visit. One wonders how Dr Dixon manages to do or write even half of what he does. There seem too few links to other sites

2. CARE

This site is excellent in its summary of up-to-date medical ethical issues under consideration by parliament. There are briefing papers, articles and information about the work of CARE. Unfortunately the site exists in a vacuum with no links out of it and none of the other sites linking into it (perhaps this is no coincidence!)

1. CHRISTIAN MEDICAL FELLOWSHIP

This site is the clear winner. With its vast array of articles, you can usually be sure of not just one but several well argued, biblically based Christian views on any subject of interest to Christian healthcare professions. Linking as it does the Medical Missionary Alliance and International Christian and Medical and Dental Association web pages and with links to most of the other sites reviewed in this issue, it is a great resource. If one was looking for improvement, it would be to have links to some of the other sites' offerings on each subject. Then the CMF site really would be the only web address needed to access Christian healthcare information.

Article written by Cyberdoc

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