Real World MediCannabis Virtual Summit

Healthcare Colleagues,

I’ll be presenting at the Real World MediCannabis Virtual Summit, which begins tomorrow evening, December 3rd. I’ll be sharing practical considerations for the use of cannabinoid medicine in long-term care and touch on how this class of medication can be of particular benefit in addressing some of the unique challenges associated with the pandemic (i.e. increased anxiety, sleeplessness, behaviours associated with dementia, etc.) 

I’ll also share some data about how cannabinoids can be used to reduce opioids, antipsychotics, antidepressants, sleep aids and overall polypharmacy.

To register, visit http://www.realworld.events/.

If you are unable to attend during the set times, once you register, you should be able to access the presentations on-demand at your convenience. 

Reefer MEDness Podcast - Discussing Dementia & Autism Spectrum Disorder

It’s always such a privilege to be invited onto any podcast to share my experience...but I have to say this was a uniquely awesome experience to be welcomed onto one founded by a nurse and pharmacist, that is dedicated to furthering the conversation around medical cannabis, AND is grounded in science. 

In this episode we talked about the challenges of managing dementia in long-term care, as well as managing behaviours associated with autism, where other treatments have failed. We don’t have a lot of good options in our standard medicine toolbox for either of these - but I’m seeing results with cannabinoid-based medicine.

Thanks so much to Trevor and Kirk at Reefer MEDness for such a great conversation. 

Full episode available here.

Medical Cannabis Week - Discussing Education w/ Jay Rosenthal

Earlier this week I had the opportunity to share my observations about training and educating fellow physicians in cannabinoid-based medicine.

As part of Medical Cannabis Week, we talked about the changes I’ve seen in physicians’ acceptance and readiness to learn about medical cannabis, how more practitioners are prescribing proactively vs. only after being asked by a patient, and the ongoing barriers to integrating cannabinoids into daily practice. 

We also discussed the similarities and differences that practitioners face around the world, and how our team works with international medical colleagues to share learnings and best practice. 

Huge thanks to Jay Rosenthal for the opportunity. I hope you’ll all check it out!

Medical Cannabis Awareness Week in the UK

This week marks the beginning of Medical Cannabis Awareness Week in the UK - and boy is this needed. Forgive the long-winded post, but I have a lot of thoughts on this one as it’s something I feel very passionate about.

Medical Cannabis has been legal in the UK for two years, but the country has been lagging behind in providing true access to patients. Since its introduction, only a small number of prescriptions have been issued by the UK’s National Health System (NHS), forcing patients to turn to the illicit cannabis market to treat chronic conditions. Not only is this expensive, but it’s extremely dangerous and completely avoidable. 

I had high hopes that the UK would take the learnings from their Canadian cousins and avoid some of the challenges we faced in the early days. There’s always room for improvement, but our system generally works well, and provides significantly greater patient access than the UK.

Lack of quality medical cannabis education and a cumbersome & bureaucratic prescribing process are two of the major issues preventing British patients from accessing cannabinoid therapy. 

With strong evidence indicating its efficacy in treating chronic pain, treatment resistant epilepsy, sleep disorders, chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, etc.--and a lower risk of harm--medical cannabis should be part of every physician’s toolbox, where there is a legal system in place. 

With quality virtual training options that connect experienced cannabinoid medicine physicians with practitioners that require upskilling, it has never been easier for practitioners to advance their knowledge in this field. I’ve personally had the privilege of working 1:1 with hundreds of physicians around the world who felt their current knowledge was too limited to prescribe. Lack of education and “not feeling comfortable” are no longer valid excuses--especially in a healthcare system as well-respected as the NHS.

More information available here: https://bit.ly/3euU2Dn.