November

Just over 10 years ago, I was juggling family commitments and running a computer business and an average-sized medical practice. It was what I had expected from my training as a physician and what I thought physicians were meant to do. But I was tired and moving as fast as I could.

Myiasis describes the parasitic infestation of a host, such as a human or other vertebrate, with larvae from the order Diptera (flies).[1-3] Cutaneous myiasis, the infestation of a parasite in the skin, commonly occurs in travelers to tropical and subtropical latitudes.[2,3] This diagnosis is not often considered in patients who have traveled solely within North America.

My wife, a nurse for 45 years, and I strongly support your idea [BCMJ 2001;43(7): 378] that a step in the right direction for nurses to regain respect would be to return to the days of discrimination—when you could tell the difference between the floor cleaner and the TLC provider just by looking. I must say, I didn’t mind the hats. There was something very comforting in seeing a nurse in uniform, hair tucked neatly under her cap and having a clean smell about her, unsullied by perfume, hair spray, or offensive deodorants.

I was interested to read your comments on a use for the BC HealthGuide [BCMJ 2001;43(6):316].

My daughter who had been holidaying in the USA came home and happened to see and read the BC HealthGuide. She remarked that if she had just had that with her, she would have saved herself US$300.

—G.I. Theal, MD 
Courtenay

Dr Ray Baker, as chair of the Committee on Addiction Medicine, argues forcefully against the legalization, decriminalization, and medicalization of marijuana in “More reefer madness” [BCMJ 2001;43(6):362].