Medical Cannabis Use: Exploring the Perceptions and Experiences of Older Adults with Chronic Conditions

ABSTRACT

Objectives: Although the rate of cannabis use by older adults is increasing more quickly than all other age groups, little is known about the reasons older adults use cannabis and the outcomes they experience. With this research, we investigated older adults’ perceptions and experiences of medical cannabis use to treat and/or manage chronic conditions, specifically as a substitute for prescription drugs.

Methods: Researchers relied on qualitative inquiry in the form of semi-structured, one-on-one interviewing to investigate the phenomenon of medical cannabis use for the management of chronic conditions.

Results: Our findings suggest that older adults are open to medical cannabis as an alternative to pharmaceutical drugs, hopeful with regard to the management of symptoms and pain, and aware of and astute at managing issues related to stigma both from their physicians and family and friends. Furthermore, older adults describe the frustrations with education, awareness, and lack of support with dosing.

Conclusions: Participations found medical cannabis use to be beneficial in managing chronic conditions and alleviating symptoms such as chronic pain. Findings are presented as an interpretation of the participants’ perceptions of their medical cannabis use. Implications for putting medical cannabis use into everyday practice as well as policy implications are considered.

Clinical Implications: This information will help clinicians better support older adults desiring to use medical cannabis. This research will help clinicians learn more about factors impacting medical cannabis use, and the types of information and assistance that may aid older adults in their health and well-being with the use of medical cannabis to treat chronic conditions.

KEYWORDS:

• Aging
• health
• medical cannabis
• qualitative methods

Clinical implications

• Older adults need better information and assistance from clinicians about the use of medical cannabis (including products, packaging, use of dispensary).

• Physicians must be prepared to understand how medical cannabis use impacts current treatment protocols and document use accordingly in the medical record.

• Physicians should counsel on variability of quality and concentration of medical cannabis and related dosing and potential drug interactions (e.g., delayed time to effect after ingestion of oral cannabis).

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.