Continuing the Conversation: Medical Cannabis in Long-Term Care

I wanted to continue the conversation about cannabinoid therapy in long term care this week by sharing some insights from my colleague Kim Van Dam, Administrator at Steeves & Rozema’s Trillium Villa. 

Here she talks about the outcomes we’ve seen in successfully reducing narcotic and antipsychotic use amongst residents living with chronic pain and dementia.

Trillium Villa is one of Ontario’s first LTC residences to introduce cannabinoid therapy and the first home that I worked in several years ago. I continue to work with Kim and the forward-thinking & dedicated S&R team to this day and have been excited by the number of like-minded long term care organizations and in-house physicians who have reached out to learn more about whether it could benefit their residents/patients.

Medical Cannabis and Long-Term Care

When assessing under what circumstances the Government and private insurers should #CoverCannabis, residents living in long term care facilities would be a great place to start. These people have been through so much over the last year--particularly those living with dementia, as the prolonged isolation and disruption to their routines can lead to increased behavioural and psychological symptoms. 

Medical cannabis offers a safe & effective multimodal medication that can improve quality of life amongst LTC residents in a range of medical scenarios, including dementia, chronic pain, insomnia and mental health--but the cost is precluding too many seniors from accessing this treatment. We must do better for our most vulnerable citizens.

Special thanks to my colleague Kelly Batson, Manager, Resident Care, Education and Operations at Steeves & Rozema’s Trillium Villa for her vision, leadership and sharing her experience.

The #CoverCannabis Project: Another Day, Another Patient Unable To Afford Medical Cannabis

Another day, another e-mail from a patient who can no longer afford to continue on a medical treatment that is safer and more effective than anything else they’ve been on because they can’t afford it. This should make everyone who believes in universal healthcare furious.

The #CoverCannabis Project: Business of Cannabis Interview

I’m so grateful for the outpouring of support The #CoverCannabis Project has been receiving from all of you! It’s going to take a lot of noise and debate on this topic to make change happen - but I know we’re up for the challenge!

If you haven’t heard about The #CoverCannabis Project yet - or want more info - check out this quick conversation I shared with Jay from Business of Cannabis earlier this week. I really appreciate all the media who have been helping us to spread the word about this movement to a larger audience - thank you! Now everyone, please share, share, share! Let’s keep the momentum going.

Have an awesome day!