Opinions of Hospital Pharmacists in Canada Regarding Marijuana for Medical Purposes

Abstract

<p><strong>ABSTRACT</strong></p><p><strong>Background: </strong>Canada’s most recent Marihuana for Medical Purposes Regulations have changed the way in which patients access marijuana. Furthermore, if authorized by the person in charge of the hospital, a pharmacist practising in a hospital may now place orders with licensed producers for dried marijuana for in-hospital use by patients. As use of this product increases, hospital pharmacists may have an increased role in the care of patients who are using marijuana for medical purposes.</p><p><strong>Objectives: </strong>The primary objective of this study was to determine the opinions of hospital pharmacists in Canada regarding marijuana for medical purposes. The secondary objective was to assess the factors influencing these opinions.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>An online survey was made available in early 2015 to licensed hospital pharmacists in Canada through individual provincial and territorial pharmacy regulatory bodies, pharmacist associations, hospital pharmacy directors, the Canadian Society of Hospital Pharmacists, and the Association des pharmaciens des établissements de santé du Québec. Responses were based on a 5-point Likert style scale, ranging from “completely agree” to “completely disagree”.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>A total of 769 valid survey responses were received. Among the respondents, 44.6% (333/747) agreed that marijuana is safe, whereas 55.2% (411/745) agreed that it is effective. Only 17.2% (129/748) agreed that they were knowledgeable about marijuana for medical purposes, and about 65% of respondents reported no formal training in this area. Factors that influenced respondents’ opinions were age, education, area of clinical practice, province of work, and personal experience.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>Many Canadian hospital pharmacists agreed that marijuana for medical purposes is safe and effective, yet few considered themselves knowledgeable about this substance, with more than half reporting no formal training on the topic.</p><p><strong>RÉSUMÉ</strong></p><p><strong>Contexte : </strong>Le Règlement sur la marihuana à des fins médicales récemment mis en vigueur au Canada a changé la façon dont les patients ont accès à ce produit. En outre, s’il est autorisé à le faire par la personne à qui est confiée la charge de l’hôpital, le pharmacien qui exerce dans un hôpital peut maintenant commander auprès de producteurs autorisés de la marihuana séchée destinée à une personne qui reçoit un traitement comme patient hospitalisé. Au fur et à mesure qu’augmente l’utilisation de cet agent, les pharmaciens d’hôpitaux pourraient avoir un rôle plus important à jouer dans les soins aux patients qui consomment de la marihuana à des fins médicales.</p><p><strong>Objectifs : </strong>L’objectif principal de la présente étude était de sonder l’opinion des pharmaciens d’hôpitaux du Canada sur la question de la marihuana à des fins médicales. Le second objectif était d’évaluer les facteurs qui influencent leur opinion.</p><p><strong>Méthodes : </strong>Un sondage en ligne a été mis à la disposition des pharmaciens d’hôpitaux du Canada avec la participation des organismes provinciaux et territoriaux de réglementation de la pharmacie, des associations de pharmaciens, des directeurs de pharmacie hospitalière, de la Société canadienne des pharmaciens d’hôpitaux et de l’Association des pharmaciens des établissements de santé du Québec. Inspirés de l’échelle de Likert à cinq points, les choix de réponse s’étendaient de « fortement en accord » à « fortement en désaccord ».</p><p><strong>Résultats : </strong>Au total, 769 réponses valides au sondage ont été obtenues. Parmi les répondants, 44,6 % (333/747) ont affirmé que la marihuana est sécuritaire et 55,2 % (411/745) ont déclaré qu’elle est efficace. Seuls17.2 % (129/748) ont affirmé être renseignés sur l’utilisation de la marihuana à des fins médicales et environ 65 % ont indiqué n’avoir aucune formation officielle sur le sujet. L’âge du pharmacien, sa formation, son domaine de pratique clinique, sa province d’exercice et son experience personnelle étaient des facteurs influençant son opinion.</p><p><strong>Conclusion : </strong>Bon nombre de pharmaciens hospitaliers canadiens ont affirmé que l’utilisation de la marihuana à des fins médicales est sécuritaire et efficace. Or, peu considéraient être renseignés à propos de ce produit et plus de la moitié ont indiqué n’avoir aucune formation officielle sur le sujet.</p>

Motivations and expectations for using cannabis products to treat pain in humans and dogs: a mixed methods study

“…Due to a lack of standardization of products as well as constant changes in legislation and regulation, it is difficult for patients, dog owners, health care providers, and veterinarians to acquire accurate information about the pain relief potential of cannabis products (Kogan et al 2019a(Kogan et al , 2019bMitchell et al 2016). As a result, people are choosing cannabis products even though very few reported that their health care professional or veterinarian recommended them.…”

Health professional beliefs, knowledge, and concerns surrounding medicinal cannabis – A systematic review

“…[21–46] A flow diagram of study selection is shown in Fig 1. Of the 26 studies included, 13 were conducted in the United States (US),[22, 25–28, 30, 33, 37, 38, 40–43] four were conducted in Canada,[23, 32, 39, 45] three were conducted in Australia[34–36] and Israel,[21, 31, 46] two were conducted in Ireland,[29, 44] and one covered an international sample. [24] There were 18 studies that sampled medical practitioners,[21, 24–26, 28–32, 34, 36, 37, 40–42, 44–46] and three studies that sampled pharmacists.…”

“…[24] There were 18 studies that sampled medical practitioners,[21, 24–26, 28–32, 34, 36, 37, 40–42, 44–46] and three studies that sampled pharmacists. [33, 35, 39] An additional five studies included in this review were grouped according to the high proportion of nursing professionals sampled. [22, 23, 27, 38, 43] One study sampled exclusively nurse practitioners[23] while the other four studies sampled a mixed cohort of medical and allied health professionals of which nurses were the predominant population.…”

“…Mitchell et . al [39] reported that 55% of Canadian hospital pharmacists agreed that overall, medicinal cannabis was effective. Beliefs were not reported in relation to a specific indication.…”

“…Overall, pharmacists’ self-reported knowledge was quite low. [33, 35, 39] Hwang et . al [33] reported that pharmacists considered themselves to be lacking knowledge surrounding the pharmacology, pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of medicinal cannabis.…”