Re: Issue 21

I am responding to a couple of articles in the Feb. 26 issue of The Uniter, the “Sex and Relationships Special Issue.” For the most part, the articles were very interesting and informative.

It is unfortunate that it was not mentioned either in the article about contraception, or in the article about sexually transmitted infections, that there is a clinic right here on the U of W campus, called Klinic Student Health Services, (phone 786-9496; it is located at 14-380 Spence St. N) Students can see a nurse practitioner to get information and prescriptions for contraception, as well as testing, treatment and prevention for sexually transmitted infections.

The article by Sandy Klowak, “The pill – revealed” did not cover all the available options for contraception. The “Making sense of prevention” box failed to mention the contraception patch or the vaginal ring, which are generally considered safer hormonal contraceptive options, as they bypass the gastrointestinal system and the liver. The vaginal ring was mentioned in the body of the article only in terms of one person’s negative experience. Also, although the website mentioned at the end of the article is a good site (the Centre for Menstrual Cycle and Ovulation Research, located at the University of B.C.), there is an excellent Manitoba website that is a little more user friendly. It is the Sexuality Resource Centre for Manitoba, www.serc.mb.ca, which has excellent information on all aspects of sexuality including contraception (also excellent information on fertility awareness methods) and sexually transmitted infections.

The article by Steve Currie, “Sexual education needs bigger reach” focused mainly on the lack of adequate sexuality education in public schools and the youth that are outside of the school system. A helpful resource would have been a listing of the Teen clinics throughout the city and province, where all youth can get health information and treatment on a walk-in basis.. This information is also on the SERC website.

– Gela Stach, RN Klinic Student Health Services, University of Winnipeg

Published in Volume 63, Number 22 of The Uniter (March 5, 2009)