Impacts of chemical modification on the toxicity of diverse nanocellulose materials to developing zebrafish.

Cellulose is an abundant and renewable resource currently being investigated for utility in nanomaterial form for various promising applications ranging from medical and pharmaceutical uses to mechanical reinforcement and biofuels. The utility of nanocellulose and wide implementation ensures increasing exposure to humans and the environment as nanocellulose-based technologies advance. Here, we investigate how differences in aspect ratio and changes to surface chemistry, as well as synthesis methods, influence the biocompatibility of nanocellulose materials using the embryonic zebrafish.

Healthy workplaces and effective teamwork: viewed through the lens of primary healthcare renewal.

This commentary reviews the content of the lead papers through the lens of primary healthcare renewal (PHCR). Although PHCR has been on the national agenda for decades, only since the turn of the century has real progress been made with emerging new practice models based on inter-professional team care. While much is expected, relatively little is known of the function and effectiveness of such teams in Canada.

Effectiveness of an enhanced peer assessment program: introducing education into regulatory assessment.

Introduction: The College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario developed an enhanced peer assessment (EPA), the goal of which was to provide participating physicians educational value by helping them identify specific learning needs and aligning the assessment process with the principles of continuing education and professional development. In this article, we examine the educational value of the EPA and whether physicians will change their practice as a result of the recommendations received during the assessment.

Methods: A group of 41 randomly selected physicians (23 general or family practitioners, 7 obstetrician-gynecologists, and 11 general surgeons) agreed to participate in the EPA pilot.

Family physician/nurse practitioner: stories of collaboration.

Aims: This paper presents the experiences of nurse practitioners and family physicians working in collaborative practice at four Canadian rural primary care agencies. It focuses on the qualitative segment of a larger study examining the impact of an educational intervention on interprofessional practice.

Background: Growing awareness of the importance of health promotion and disease prevention, the increased complexity of community-based care, and the need to use scarce human healthcare resources, especially family physicians, far more efficiently and effectively, have resulted in increased emphasis on primary healthcare renewal in Canada.

Preterm delivery among Inuit women in the Baffin Region of the Canadian Arctic.

Objective: To evaluate the rate and causes of preterm (before 37 weeks gestation) and very preterm (before 32 weeks gestation) delivery among a population of Inuit living in Canada.

Study Design: Three-year retrospective cross-sectional review of charts for patients delivering in the Baffin Region of Canada.

Results: There were 938 births over the study period; 95% to Inuit women.