"But my doctor recommended pot": medical marijuana and the patient-physician relationship

J Gen Intern Med. 2011 Nov;26(11):1364-7. doi: 10.1007/s11606-011-1840-4. Epub 2011 Aug 24.

Abstract

As the use of medical marijuana expands, it is important to consider its implications for the patient-physician relationship. In Colorado, a small cohort of physicians is recommending marijuana, with 15 physicians registering 49% of all medical marijuana patients and a single physician registering 10% of all patients. Together, they have registered more than 2% of the state to use medical marijuana in the last three years. We are concerned that this dramatic expansion is occurring in a setting rife with conflicts of interest despite insufficient scientific knowledge about marijuana. This system diminishes the patient-physician relationship to the recommendation of a single substance while unburdening physicians of their usual responsibilities to the welfare of their patients.

MeSH terms

  • Cannabis*
  • Colorado
  • Humans
  • Physician-Patient Relations*
  • Physicians / ethics*
  • Physicians / legislation & jurisprudence
  • Phytotherapy*
  • Plant Preparations / therapeutic use*
  • Practice Patterns, Physicians' / ethics
  • Practice Patterns, Physicians' / legislation & jurisprudence

Substances

  • Plant Preparations