Medical cannabis in schools: The experiences of caregivers
Date
2023-05
Authors
Mansell, Holly
Zaslawski, Zina
Mbabaali, Sophia
King, Patricia M.
Kelly, Lauren E.
Lougheed, Taylor
Anderson, Jennifer
Huntsman, Richard J.
Alcorn, Jane
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Oxford University Press
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Article
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Abstract
Abstract
Objectives
Implementing medical cannabis (MC) into a child’s daily routine can be challenging and there is a lack of guidance for its therapeutic use in schools in Canada. Our objective was to learn about the experiences of caregivers of school-aged children who require MC.
Methods
Qualitative description was used and caregivers were interviewed about MC in schools and in general. The transcripts were entered into Dedoose software for qualitative analysis and content analysis was performed. Sentences and statements were ascribed line by line into meaning units and labelled with codes, and organized according to categories and subcategories.
Results
Twelve caregivers of school-aged children who take MC participated. The most common reasons for treatment were drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE), autism, or other developmental disorders. Approximately half of the participants’ children (n = 6) took MC during the school day and most (5/6) perceived their experiences to be positive or neutral but reported a lack of knowledge about MC. While data saturation was not reached regarding MC in schools, rich dialogues were garnered about MC in general and three categories were identified: challenges (subcategories stigma, finding an authorizer, cost, dosing, and supply); parents as advocates (subcategories required knowledge, attitudes, skills, and sources of information); and caregiver relief for positive outcomes.
Conclusions
Caregivers demonstrate remarkable tenacity despite the many challenges associated with MC use. Education and practice change are needed to ensure that children using MC can benefit from or continue to experience its positive outcomes within the school environment and beyond.
Description
© The Author(s) 2022. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Canadian Paediatric Society.
This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial License (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/), which permits non-commercial re-use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. For commercial re-use, please contact journals.permissions@oup.com
Keywords
Caregiver, Education, Medical cannabis, School
Citation
Holly Mansell, Zina Zaslawski, Sophia Mbabaali, Patricia M King, Lauren E Kelly, Taylor Lougheed, Jennifer Anderson, Richard J Huntsman, Jane Alcorn, Medical cannabis in schools: The experiences of caregivers, Paediatrics & Child Health, Volume 28, Issue 2, May 2023, Pages 102–106, https://doi.org/10.1093/pch/pxac099
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DOI
10.1093/pch/pxac099