The Pulse of Progress: An Open Letter Calling for the Recognition of Cannabis Nursing in Canada
Currently, there are Cannabis Nurses transforming health across Canada. Individually, these specialty Nurses have expanded their clinical knowledge and judgement by integrating evidence-informed Cannabinoid science to the population health needs of Canadians. While the American Cannabis Nurses Association celebrates a 15-year anniversary, this level of expertise goes unnoticed by the Canadian Nursing Profession. With the many discoveries being made regarding Cannabinoid science, it is quickly becoming an ethical concern to have health professionals unaware of the Endocannabinoid System (ECS). It is time for the health sector to change its relationship with Cannabis. It is time for the Canadian Nurses Association (CNA) to recognize the Cannabis Nurse as a speciality and it is time for the Canadian Association of Schools of Nursing (CASN) to ensure accredited nursing schools are teaching the ECS.
What is it called when individual clinicians do not apply evidence-informed best practices? What should we call it when health-affecting science is ignored by practitioners? The Canadian Nursing Profession needs leadership from the CNA and CASN. The Canadian medical cannabis program has been running for two decades plus there is the 8 years of legalization of recreational Cannabis yet, Manitoba Nursing students report poor knowledge of the basic demographic use of Cannabis. Nursing schools continue to disregard the ECS which has been studied since 1988, and our future clinicians graduate without knowing the very basics of Cannabis use. It is wrong for the ECS, a complex neuro-transmitting network, to be ignored; this behaviour is simply unprincipled. Our clients/patients have expectations. By respecting the benefits and individual improvements achieved by Cannabis Nurses our profession demonstrates the power of nurses to transform health.
Consider how when treated as a substance of misuse, cannabis added more than $2 billion to the Canadian economy in 2020. Cannabinoid therapies has decreased the use of opiates which directly lowers pharmaceutical costs, moderate seizure disorders improving the lives of children and their families, manages nausea in cancer therapies, provides pain relief for neurological disorders, and assists with PTSD in those with high stress careers. Cannabis kills microorganisms on surfaces and improves the very soil in which it grows. When used as a medicine, the risk management considerations of cannabinoid therapy are minimal. The Canadian health sector’s continued focus on Cannabis as a substance of misuse is wasting a needed resource.
Evidence-based research points to cannabis creating healthier work and living environments. The use of cannabinoid therapy improves the work environment of nurses in long term care environments by lowering the risk management of polypharmacy in patients medicated for sundowning behaviours. The farming practices needed to grow cannabis has positive effects on population health as very few pesticides and or fertilizers are needed generating a smaller carbon footprint. When used in construction, Cannabis has been shown to create healthier communities by making healthier homes. Essentially, those who research Cannabis recognize how one plant offers opportunities across the economic landscape. A certified Cannabis Nurse will be on the forefront of all future research and application of Cannabis science putting nurses at the head of the curve with improving population health.
When certifying Cannabis Nursing competencies, the Nursing Profession begins to acknowledge the peer reviewed evidence placing the ECS as the master of homeostasis. The Cannabis Nurse assists their clients with regulating vital processes like sleep, mood, appetite, immunity, memory, pain sensation, reproduction, and general well-being. The Cannabis Nurse works to activate the ECS by applying specialized knowledge of how Cannabis science affects human health. This body of knowledge will become standardized through certification.
If Nurses are to be the leaders of wellness based care models, then Nurses need a better understanding of the risk/benefits of Cannabis use. By creating the Cannabis Nurse certification specialty, the CNA puts Cannabis Nurses as the wellness trailblazers across all the health care sectors. By ensuring accredited nursing schools teach the ECS, the CASN moves the nursing profession toward a better understanding of human wellness and well-being.
Evidence-informed cannabis practitioners will speak to the power of activating the ECS. Research points to cannabis augmenting and quite possibly reshaping allopathic medicine. Cannabis and Nursing science both are focused on the wellness of individuals, communities, and populations. Ensuring Nurses are properly informed about cannabis demonstrates the leadership needed when exercising our power to transform health. As the healthcare landscape evolves, the gap between available cannabinoid science and nursing education becomes a matter of professional accountability. My question is not if, but rather when will the CNA and CASN step forward to lead this transformation?
KN/KK