cannabisnews.com: Prescribing Marijuana Risky





Prescribing Marijuana Risky
Posted by FoM on November 13, 2001 at 09:41:57 PT
By Sharon Kirkey, The Ottawa Citizen 
Source: Ottawa Citizen 
The largest medical malpractice fund in the country is warning Canadian doctors they could expose themselves to lawsuits and disciplinary action if they prescribe marijuana to patients without "detailed knowledge" of the drug's risks, benefits and appropriate dose.The problem, the Canadian Medical Protective Association (CMPA) says, is that such information "is simply not available," making it nearly impossible for the vast majority of doctors to comply with new federal regulations for medicinal marijuana.
"Given the consequences that may befall physicians with respect to their licensing body, or potential medico-legal liability, physicians will want to be very careful when determining whether to assist a patient in making an application under these regulations," the CMPA says in a letter being mailed to 60,000 doctors. The insurance group represents about 95 per cent of Canada's practising doctors.The warning could cast a chill over the medical profession and leave thousands of Canadians without a doctor willing to sign the medical declarations needed to ease the symptoms of illness with marijuana legally.In an accompanying letter to Health Minister Allan Rock, the CMPA says the new regulations "place an unacceptable burden on member physicians to inform themselves as to the effectiveness of medical marijuana in each patient's case, as well as the relative risks and benefits of the drug and what dosage would be appropriate."This information is simply not available," secretary treasurer and chief executive officer Dr. John Gray writes. "Given the fact many physicians would not have the knowledge about the effectiveness, risks or benefits of marijuana, we believe it is unreasonable to make physicians gatekeepers in this process."The new regulations, which came into force this summer, allow certain patients with chronic or terminal illnesses to apply to Health Canada for permission to use marijuana. The regulations apply to patients who have less than a year to live; those suffering from AIDS, cancer, multiple sclerosis, spinal cord injuries, severe arthritis or epilepsy; and to patients suffering from other conditions, if marijuana is recommended by two specialists.In each case, the application must be signed by a doctor, who must, among other things, agree that the "benefits from the applicant's recommended use of marijuana outweigh any risks associated with that use."But in the information package to doctors, the CMPA warns that before doctors could agree the benefits outweigh the risks, they would need "detailed knowledge of the effectiveness of marijuana for the patient's particular condition."In an interview, Dr. Gray said that puts most doctors "in an impossible situation ... Little or no" scientific evidence exists about the use of medical marijuana for various medical conditions, or the risks to patients in terms of, for example, drug interactions or their fitness to drive while using marijuana. That dearth of research, he said, could leave doctors "very vulnerable to either a future lawsuit or a complaint to a licensing authority, that somehow the patient down the road may (experience a complication) and say, 'if the doctor had properly advised me three years ago, I never would have used the stuff.' That's a very real risk," Dr. Gray said. The CMPA urges doctors to proceed with "extreme caution." The group says no doctor should feel compelled to sign a declaration for a patient if they don't feel qualified to make a judgement, and should refer patients instead to a doctor with more experience using medical marijuana. Alternatively, doctors, "out of compassion for their patients," could fill out only the forms identifying the patient and the medical condition and symptoms for which they're seeking marijuana, leaving Health Canada "to decide whether or not to process an incomplete application."The directive means patients will likely "either have difficulty finding a doctor to complete the forms or difficulty accessing the appropriate specialists," Dr. Gray said."What we're saying to the government is there has to be a different way to get marijuana into the hands of these patients who may believe in good faith that they can benefit from marijuana."Groups that support legalizing medicinal marijuana worry the warning could deny patients access to a drug that has been used for years to ease symptoms of disease. It's been estimated as many as 400,000 Canadians use marijuana for medical purposes."I'm glad to see that they didn't out and out say, 'No, you should not prescribe this,'" said Eugene Oscapella, a lawyer and founding member of the Ottawa-based Canadian Foundation for Drug Policy. He said Canadian doctors have for years been prescribing "unproven" drugs through the government's special drug access program.Source: Ottawa Citizen (CN ON)Author: Sharon Kirkey, The Ottawa Citizen Published: Tuesday, November 13, 2001Copyright: 2001 The Ottawa CitizenContact: letters thecitizen.southam.ca Website: http://www.ottawacitizen.comRelated Articles & Web Site:FTE's Canadian Linkshttp://freedomtoexhale.com/can.htmDocs Leery of Prescribing Pothttp://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11322.shtmlMarijuana Under the Microscope http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11312.shtmlSenators Pay a Visit To The Compassion Club http://cannabisnews.com/news/thread11304.shtml 
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Comment #17 posted by FoM on November 14, 2001 at 10:01:26 PT
Shishaldin
I wanted to mention something odd at least for me. I have only been connecting at 21 and if I was lucky 24 but I have tried connecting while on the link you left and I have been getting a 28 connection which I've never been able to get. I don't know why but I am zippy today or at least my computer is. LOL! Yippie and thanks! 
DirecTV has this offer: http://www.callingneeds.com/dsl.htm
 
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Comment #16 posted by Jose Melendez on November 14, 2001 at 07:34:53 PT:
text surfing
Time Warner cable modem runs at 1300 kbps in my area, and is very fast even when things are "slow"... 
If you really need to surf efficiently on a slow connection try turning off graphics on your browser. In Internet Explorer, usually you can click Tools>Internet Options>Advanced, then scroll down to multimedia and turn off (uncheck) Play animations Play videos, and Show pictures.
You might have to click on Multimedia to open it, while you are there try turning on Show image download placeholders. 
Then, when you get to the page you want to see images on, go back and turn things on again. It does take a bit of time, but I've found that as long as I remember to turn on the images for others using the computer, things go quicker overall, and I'm not waiting for goofy ads when what I really want to do is read text anyway. 
Turning on the place holders makes things line up the way they would have if the pictures were "on", and if the web master needs you to know what was on the picture they usually put some text info on the ALT tag.
Matt Drudge says on his pages that Bin Laden might be captured soon. I clipped this quote from:
http://www.drudgereport.com/flash.htm
because it seemed applicable to drug warriors.Hopes for a rapid collapse of the Taliban in Kandahar increased after an uprising against the militant group in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad. Most Afghan experts expected the opposition forces to face some resistance in Jalalabad as it is a Pashtun city and most Taliban rulers are also Pashtuns. "But such events show that the Taliban were not popular anywhere. People were just afraid of them.empahasis mine - jm That page changes very often, but I think people like Ashcroft and Hutchinson know they are wrong, yet they feel rewarded for seeming to take a hard line on drugs. Everyone responds to rewards. That old saying, "You can catch more flies with honey than with vinegar." applies to our case with Cannabis. If we say what we are for and demonstrate how it will benefit all, I think we have a better chance at arresting the drug war. 
Peace,
Air Jose 
narcosoft.com
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Comment #15 posted by CorvallisEric on November 13, 2001 at 23:16:25 PT
Back to Canada
I think the fear of liability is legitimate. I'm not a lawyer, but... What if a doctor prescribes something which doesn't come with a package insert listing a hundred dire warnings and the patient gets into an accident which MIGHT have been INFLUENCED by the drug? If Canada is anywhere nearly as litigious as USA then you might have a problem.Now, look at the bright side. Consider the possibility that this warning - and the attitude of its author"What we're saying to the government is there has to be a different way to get marijuana into the hands of these patients who may believe in good faith that they can benefit from marijuana."may help the courts decide that the whole stinking Health Canada scheme is unworkable and thereby help end prohibition.
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Comment #14 posted by FoM on November 13, 2001 at 22:18:28 PT
Thanks Dankhank
I checked and I don't think it is available in our area yet. Heck they still deliver the mail on horse back. No just kidding! LOL! I will try to find out more about the satellite. I have Direct TV and I could call them and find out more I think. 
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Comment #13 posted by Dankhank on November 13, 2001 at 21:56:16 PT:
DSL ... ADSL ...whatever, it rocks ...
The phone company hooks you to a clean line back to the main switch and then you hook up a dsl modem to your phone line. Put filters on all the other jacks on your phone line for phones. You do the internet stuff on a higher frequency range on that same phone line, so you can still make phone calls on the same line, even while surfing. Most hookups are actually ADSL, meaning Asychronous Digital Subscriber Line, as described earlier by Shishaldin, that being different upload speed from download speed. True DSL is the same up and download speed.I can download a 5M file, that's megabyte, :-), in a couple of minutes on a good connect. Five Meg is about the size of the typical 5-minute-128-bitrate-encoded-MP3.http://www.altelco.net/dsltest.html is a site to go to to test your speed on the net, I usually come in right under the T1 connection mark.ADSL or DSL is most people's introduction the that most coveted of net goodies, high bandwith, a "fat pipe" as it were, quite the thing we all like for a couple of reasons ... a phat pipe with a fat pipe is something to behold ... :-)
HEMP n STUFF
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Comment #12 posted by goneposthole on November 13, 2001 at 17:35:40 PT
didn't work
Type marijuana in the search and it will take you there.
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Comment #11 posted by goneposthole on November 13, 2001 at 17:32:56 PT
medical cannabis information
Office of Medical Cannabis
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/hecs-secs/ocma/index.htm
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Comment #10 posted by FoM on November 13, 2001 at 13:57:12 PT
Shishaldin 
Thanks! I bookmarked the site and Jose thanks for the heads up on a new debate! 
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Comment #9 posted by Jose Melendez on November 13, 2001 at 12:23:03 PT:
nice work
Nice rapid response teamwork, Doctor Russo, dankhank and FoM...
Communication and education seems the only real way to win this or any "war". Nobody asked, just my opinion...
By the way, another debate is coming up between New Mexico Governor Gary Johnson and DEA Chief Asa Hutchinson:
from: http://www.dea.gov/advisories.html
    November 9, 2001
    FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
    
    FOR ADDITIONAL INFORMATION, CONTACT:
    Michael L. Chapman, Chief, Public Affair, (202) 307-7977
   DEA ADMINISTRATOR 
    ASA HUTCHINSON
    TO DEBATE GOVERNOR GARY JOHNSON ON DRUG POLICY REFORM
   On Thursday, November 15, 2001, at 8:00 pm, Asa Hutchinson, Administrator 
    of the Drug Enforcement Administration, will debate New Mexico Governor 
    Gary Johnson on drug policy reform. This debate, sponsored by the Yale 
    Law School Federalist Society, will take place in the Yale Law School 
    Main Auditorium, 127 Wall Street, New Haven, CT, and is open to the public.
   The discussion is entitled “The War on Drugs: A Debate on its Past, 
    Present, and Future.” This is the second debate between Administrator 
    Hutchinson and Governor Johnson. The first took place at the University 
    of New Mexico on September 10, 2001. 
   Administrator Hutchinson has emphasized a balanced anti-drug strategy 
    that encompasses education and treatment in addition to law enforcement. 
    He views this debate as an important opportunity to deliver a positive, 
    anti-drug message and help educate Americans to the dangers of drug legalization 
    and drug use. 
   For last minute information, contact Mike Shumsky, Vice-President, Yale 
    Law School Federalist Society, at (203) 787-5587.
   Information 
      concerning the first debate can be found at: www.dea.gov/latestnews_npr.html
Drug War is TREASON
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Comment #8 posted by Shishaldin on November 13, 2001 at 12:12:21 PT:
I want my DSL! 
FoM-Here's more info about DSL from my own ISP:
http://gate.cruzio.com/dsl/dslfaq.htmlI just found this if you're interested in a satellite hookup for DSL (Digital Subscriber Line). This would get around the remote area availability issue. DirecTV has this offer:
http://www.callingneeds.com/dsl.htmpeace and strength,
Shishaldin
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Comment #7 posted by FoM on November 13, 2001 at 12:09:01 PT
Shishaldin 
Thank you and I will check it out. I have four articles posted today and I'm tired. Sometimes I think I could go do a load of laundry while I wait for a page to load. No, it isn't that bad Yet! LoL! I have a new zippy zippy computer too so it isn't that. I sit and sing la la la la la la while I'm waiting. Just kidding.
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Comment #6 posted by Shishaldin on November 13, 2001 at 12:03:20 PT:
Fax to the max....
Dankhank-I've got DSL, and faxin' is no prob. I found a utility on http://www.winfiles.com that allows for faxing w/o having to use a dial-up. Check it out:
http://download.cnet.com/downloads/0-10016-100-6777302.html?tag=st.dl.10001-103-1.lst-7-6.6777302FoM-DSL rox! Check with your local phone company regarding DSL hookups in your area. If you're in a remote area, it may not be available. Mine costs me around $50/month, but the speed improvement is well worth the cost. I used to get about 42 kilobytes per second max downloading with my 56k modem, but now I get up to 30x that with DSL. Uploading speed improvement isn't as dramatic (it's limited to 128kbps), though. Shoot me an e-mail if you need more info. I'd be more than glad to help out CNEWS any way I can.You all are an inspiration to me. Keep fighting the good fight...peace and strength,
Shishaldin
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Comment #5 posted by FoM on November 13, 2001 at 11:30:39 PT
Dankhank
You have DSL. What's that? Can I get it too? My isp or phone line makes it almost impossible for me to get around. Thanks for any advice and for making that call!
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Comment #4 posted by Dankhank on November 13, 2001 at 11:25:23 PT
I just did what I suggested ...
I just called the CPMA via the 800 number and spoke to a person who politely listened to me as I assured her that there was a wealth of information available regarding the efficacy of medical Cannabis. She explained that they have NO e-mail for confidentiality reasons, but they hoped to have something by the end of the year.In the meantime they have a fax and here it is.1-613-725-1300 Attn: Case Managemant
this is for info regarding the efficacy of medical Cannabis. I have DSL and apparently there is no fax program for me.If anyone knows different, let me know.Peace ...
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Comment #3 posted by dankhank on November 13, 2001 at 10:55:16 PT:
No Info?????????
http://www.cmpa.org/is the web address of the idiots in the Canadian Medical Protective Association ...Everybody feel free to contact them and show them the errors of their ways ..."For members and the general public outside of the National Capital Region, please call us toll-free at (800) 267-6522."No e-mail, figures, since they are obviously ancient fools not in this century yet, either digitally or mentally. 
Hemp n Stuff
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Comment #2 posted by FoM on November 13, 2001 at 10:09:03 PT
Dr. Russo
I got my copy of Journal of Cannabis Therapeutics yesterday. I'm thinking of loaning a couple of them to our local Doctor that I had the nerve to mention about medical marijuana. What a shame to be afraid but he was actually funny when I talked to him. 
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Comment #1 posted by Ethan Russo MD on November 13, 2001 at 09:59:15 PT:
Wrong
It is completely inaccurate to claim that there is no useful information for physicians asked to recommend cannabis for qualified patients. Certain people have not looked hard enough.May I suggest starting here:http://www.cannabis-med.org/english/home.htmI would be happy to provide information and article citations to any Canadian physician who requests them.
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