Perceptions of quality and safety in cannabis acquisition amongst young gay and bisexual men living with HIV/AIDS who use cannabis: Impact of legalisation and dispensaries

Alon, Leigh; Bruce, Douglas; Blocker, Olivia; Bouris, Alida; Reirden, Daniel; Schneider, John A.

doi:10.1016/j.drugpo.2020.103035

Cited by 5 publications

(2 citation statements)

References 41 publications

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“…First, the diversity and accessibility of products offer more options for means of ingestion, allowing those concerned about adverse respiratory effects to choose from a wide range of edible and other non-inhaled products. Second, participants appreciated transparency in product labeling which afforded PWH the opportunity to screen for and select product attributes and ingredients before purchase, a finding echoed elsewhere (Alon et al, 2021). These attributes included a selection of THC/CBD dosage and potency, cultivars (e.g., indica, sativa, hybrid), and product types with particular physiological or psychoactive effects (e.g., pain relief, reducing anxiety), and allowed participants to tailor use to their unique goal.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Changes in marijuana use and associated attitudes and health behaviors among patients in HIV care in the U.S. in the post-legalization era: a qualitative study

Rob¹,

Emma²,

Maksim³

et al. 2023

J. AIDS HIV Res.

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We sought to understand the impact that state-level marijuana policy changes had on marijuana use behaviors among people with HIV (PWH), including patterns of use (e.g., frequency, modality), access, goals for use, use of other substances, and perceived health effects. We conducted 1:1 interviews at 3 U.S. HIV clinics with PWH aged ≥18 reporting weekly or more marijuana use; 2 clinics were in states that legalized recreational marijuana use. We coded interviews based on sub-topic areas of clinical interest. Among PWH (n=29, 80% cisgender male; mean age=50; 66% non-white), one-third reported increased use of marijuana products since legalization in their state, primarily related to exploring products for therapeutic needs. In legalized states, PWH reported easier product access. The mostcited therapeutic goals for use included relaxation/sleep (66%), appetite stimulation (41%), stress/anxiety relief (31%), and pain relief (28%), among others. Additionally, some reported marijuana helped maintain sobriety from other substances. In legalized settings, increased product diversity and attribute labeling facilitated decision-making, allowing individuals to tailor use to specific goals. Concern over the long-term impact of smoking marijuana was limited to respiratory effects, with no concerns regarding potential cognitive impacts of use, or effects from using edible formulations. Among a sample of PWH who use marijuana, the broad variety and availability of products following legalization increased use for a third of participants from affected states and was consistently described as offering a means for facilitating decision-making for targeted therapeutic use, including as an aid for sleep, anxiety, appetite, and pain, as well as minimization of craving alcohol and 'harder' substances. While the short-term benefits of using marijuana were clearly described, concern over long-term health effects was limited.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 97%

Changes in marijuana use and associated attitudes and health behaviors among patients in HIV care in the U.S. in the post-legalization era: a qualitative study

Rob¹,

Emma²,

Maksim³

et al. 2023

J. AIDS HIV Res.

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“…Legal non-medical cannabis sources are not permitted to explicitly offer products and services that address medical use, including providing information or advice about strain selection for symptom management, which may impact the quality of service for medical cannabis users. In Colorado, where there are both legal medical and recreational retail storefronts, medical cannabis patients consider information provided by medically focused storefronts to be of higher quality than information provided by recreational storefronts (Alon et al 2021). A national cross-sectional study of legal cannabis retail storefronts in the USA found that individuals working at retail storefronts in states with more medicalized programs vs. less medicalized programs were significantly more likely to provide recommendations to customers using cannabis for medical purposes based on training provided by employers and physician input (Merlin et al 2021).…”

Section: Sourcesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Reasonable access: important characteristics and perceived quality of legal and illegal sources of cannabis for medical purposes in Canada

2023

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Background Throughout the past two decades of legal medical cannabis in Canada, individuals have experienced challenges related to accessing legal sources of cannabis for medical purposes. The objective of our study was to examine the sources of cannabis accessed by individuals authorized to use medical cannabis and to identify possible reasons for their use of illegal sources. Methods Individuals who participated in the Cannabis Access Regulations Study (CANARY), a national cross-sectional survey launched in 2014, and indicated they were currently authorized to use cannabis for medical purposes in Canada were included in this study. We assessed differences between participants accessing cannabis from only legal sources versus from illegal sources in relation to sociodemographic characteristics, health-related factors, and characteristics of medical cannabis they considered important. A secondary analysis assessed differences in satisfaction with various dimensions of cannabis products and services provided by legal versus illegal sources. Results Half of the 237 study participants accessed cannabis from illegal sources. Individuals accessing cannabis from illegal sources were significantly more likely to value pesticide-free products, access to a variety of strains, ability to select strain and dosage, ability to observe and smell cannabis, availability in a dispensary, and availability in small quantities than did individuals accessing cannabis from only legal sources (all p < 0.05). Additionally, participants gave significantly higher satisfaction scores to illegal sources than to legal sources on service-related dimensions of cannabis access (all p < 0.05). Conclusion Our findings contribute to an understanding of reasonable access to medical cannabis from a patient perspective and how to assess whether it has been achieved. Characteristics of cannabis products and services valued by patients and appropriate to their needs should be incorporated into legal medical cannabis programs to promote the use of legal medical sources. While pertaining specifically to medical use of cannabis in Canada, the findings of this study may also be instructive for understanding the use of illegal cannabis sources for non-medical purposes in Canada and provide insight for other jurisdictions implementing cannabis regulations for both medical and non-medical purposes.

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Attitudes and Cannabis Legalization

Ellis¹,

Resko²

2022

Handbook of Substance Misuse and Addictions

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Perceptions of quality and safety in cannabis acquisition amongst young gay and bisexual men living with HIV/AIDS who use cannabis: Impact of legalisation and dispensaries

Cited by 5 publications

References 41 publications

Changes in marijuana use and associated attitudes and health behaviors among patients in HIV care in the U.S. in the post-legalization era: a qualitative study

Changes in marijuana use and associated attitudes and health behaviors among patients in HIV care in the U.S. in the post-legalization era: a qualitative study

Reasonable access: important characteristics and perceived quality of legal and illegal sources of cannabis for medical purposes in Canada

Attitudes and Cannabis Legalization

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