Despite Marijuana Legalization Trend, Licensure Pitfalls for Nurses Remain

Voters in still more states opt for marijuana legalization.

THC-infused gummies

If there’s a chance something you’re doing, even if it’s legal in your state, could nevertheless endanger your nursing license or cost you your job, are you likely to risk it? This is the quandary many nurses find themselves in when it comes to the use of medical or recreational marijuana or even cannnabidiol (CBD) oil.

During the November presidential election, five more states voted on ballot initiatives to legalize either recreational marijuana (Arizona, New Jersey, and South Dakota), medical marijuana (Mississippi), or in one case (Montana) both at the same time. Every year more states legalize medical and/or recreational marijuana.

And CBD, a hemp-derived compound that in certain formulations contains trace amounts of the main psychoactive ingredient in marijuana, THC, has rapidly become available in stores, cafes, and online and in multiple forms.

Whether prescribed by a physician and obtained at a medical marijuana dispensary, purchased legally in a state that allows its sale for recreational use, or obtained through other means, marijuana is increasingly being used by Americans for a wide range of problems major and minor, including chemotherapy-induced nausea, insomnia, epilepsy, and certain types of chronic pain. CBD oil in various forms is also being widely used for multiple health conditions.

Marijuana is […]

Medical Marijuana: A Nurse’s Primer

Julianna Paradisi, RN, OCN, is an oncology nurse navigator and writes a monthly post for this blog.

Illustration by J Paradisi. Illustration by J Paradisi.

Since I wrote “Marijuana Legalization and Potential Workplace Pitfalls for Nurses Who Partake” in July 2014, a few things have changed. For one, Measure 91 passed in Oregon, making it the third state to legalize recreational marijuana. Medical marijuana, however, has been legal since 1998 in Oregon, currently one of 23 states nationwide.

Also, when I wrote the earlier post, I was an infusion nurse—now, as an oncology nurse navigator, I’m asked about medical marijuana often, and I need to know the answers, as do all nurses practicing in states with legalized medical marijuana. Nurses working in oncology, emergency departments, pain management, infusion clinics, and pediatrics have high exposure to patients with medical marijuana cards.

By ‘knowledge,’ I don’t mean knowing everything, but knowing where to find what you need to know. In Oregon, for example, information about medical marijuana is found at the Oregon Medical Marijuana Program (OMMP). The Web site includes qualifying diagnoses, a downloadable handbook, an application packet with instructions, and a list of approved dispensaries. While retail issues surrounding recreational marijuana are still being sorted out, medical dispensaries in Oregon sell recreational marijuana to clients aged 21 and older.

Patients using medical marijuana are […]

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