Editor's Note, Volume 6 Issue 2

D’Arcy Little, MD, CCFP, FRCPC
Medical Director, JCCC and HealthPlexus.NET

I am pleased to introduce the second issue of the Journal of Current Clinical Care for your reading pleasure.

Recently, Ontario became the first province in Canada to recognize gender identity in its human rights legislation. An amendment to the Ontario Human Rights Code prohibiting discrimination against transgender people was passed in the legislature this past May and many feel it will change a great inequity and will help transgender people be accepted.

Dr. Adam C. Millar, offers Navigating the Gender Spectrum: A General Overview of Transgender Health Care. Transgenderism is not uncommon. The term "transgender" reflects a broad spectrum of identities, including agender, pangender, genderqueer and genderfluid. Although there is increased public recognition of transgender issues, many physicians remain uncomfortable managing matters of transgender health. Integration of transgender-related subject matter into medical school curricula is one of the first steps towards enabling future physicians to increase their comfort in transgender health care.

Drs. Julia Alleyne, Yoga Raja Rampersaud, Hamilton Hall and Jess Rogers, present the CORE BACK TOOL 2016: New and Improved! Through the redesign of the already successful CORE Back Tool, primary care clinicians now have a more comprehensive, user-friendly approach to clinical decision making for patients presenting with low back pain. The key components of the tool include a high yield history connected to mechanical low back pain patterns, embedded key patient messages, clear listing of appropriate radiological indications, criteria for consultant referrals as well as a management matrix geared to office practice.

In their article, The Role of Nutraceuticals in Atopic Dermatitis, Drs. Joseph M. Lam and Jacky Lo, from the University of British Columbia, examine the use of nutraceuticals as an alternative therapy to treating atopic dermatitis, a chronic relapsing and remitting dermatosis with no definitive cure. While the use of nutraceuticals alone is unlikely to cure AD in many patients, there is some evidence supporting the use of prebiotics, probiotics, fish oil, vitamin E and D in the prevention and treatment of AD.

For his Ethics blog, Dr. Michael Gordon, from the Baycrest Centre of Geriatric Care in Toronto examines whether there is Any Reason to not Enjoy Sex if you are in a Nursing Home.

I hope you enjoy this latest edition. Please consider commenting or submitting an article of your own.