On Wednesday, April 17th a group of five expert cannabis nurses participated in a panel moderated by SCC Board Member Dr. Windi Muraszka to discuss The Future of Cannabis Nursing.
The conversation centered around the panelists background in medical cannabis, potential ways to get compensated as a cannabis nurse, how nurses can integrate medical cannabis into their practice, and ways to de-stigmatize medical cannabis as it becomes more present in the current healthcare setting.
Keep reading to learn about the important takeaways from this incredibly informative and eye-opening conversation.
Important Takeaways from The Future of Cannabis Nursing Webinar:
- Cannabis nurses come from very diverse backgrounds. They include those who had a prior relationship to cannabis, those who discovered cannabis through a sick loved one, and those who were skeptics before learning about the supporting research.
- Now that cannabis has been recognized as a specialty by the American Nurses Association there will have to be massive teaching campaigns even in the lower levels such as high school and nursing school.
- Be a cannabis nurse right where you are. Nurses should stay in their current nursing positions and use cannabis education to make a difference in patients lives through their current roles.
- There needs to be a regulatory framework to bring cannabis into a traditional setting. Because nurses have touched every area of patient care, they are going to play a key role in building that framework.
- Nurses and non-certifying providers can be the bridge between certifying providers and dispensaries to help guide the patient on their medical cannabis journey.
- It is important to patients to see for themselves how cannabis can improve their quality of life. Putting it into practice where you can, safely, can make an incredible difference. Doing so is how we get the acceptance of the mainstream medical community.
- The best way to de-stigmatize cannabis is by educating on the science of the endocannabinoid system. That science is how we bring it into the medical world.
- Be honest and unafraid about being labeled as a “cannabis nurse” and use correct terminology like “cannabis” to de-stigmatize and help bring it into traditional healthcare.
- De-stigmatizing can be as big as passing and enforcing legislation such as Ryans Law, or as specific as going straight to the hospital association in your state or your local long term care facilities to talk directly to the stakeholders about creating a policy they can implement in small increments.
SCC Members can access the full recording of the event HERE by logging into our members-only online community. Not a member? Click HERE to join our growing community and stay tuned for more events in our Cannabis Nurses Corner.
Thank you again to all of our panelists and participants for such an amazing event. We can’t wait to expand our cannabis nursing offerings and hold similar events in the near future!
*If you would like to get in touch with any of the nurses on the panel, please reach out to Erin at erin@cannabisclinicians.org.
