Tokes in the throat: Health practitioner education on the effects of smoking cannabis in the upper airway

Cannabis was legalized in Canada with the introduction of the Cannabis Act in 2018. This rapid legalization has led to a knowledge gap in doctors. Although most users smoke cannabis, few doctors know the health effects of smoking cannabis in the upper airway. In previously funded work, our team has reviewed the scientific literature and summarized these health effects, both positive and negative. During the COVID19 pandemic, innovative knowledge translation activities are needed. We propose a two-part initiative to educate health practitioners about cannabis, targeting family doctors who are the patient’s gateway to the Canadian health system. First, we will co-design a webinar with the research users on our newly launched provincial ENTCME.org platform. This event will be recorded for asynchronous access. Second, we will co-create infographics to summarize the information and launch a social media campaign on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. Reach and effectiveness will be assessed by registration for the webinar and pre- and post-engagement surveys. Performance data from each social media platform will also be analyzed. Our goal is to help doctors guide patients to make informed, evidence-based choices on cannabis usage.

Team members: Brenna Lynn (UBC); Andrew Thamboo (UBC); Emily Deane (UBC); Joel Howlett (UBC); Jobanjit Phulka (UBC); James P. McCormack (UBC); Dinusha Peiris (BC Cancer Agency); M-J Milloy (British Columbia Centre on Substance Use and UBC); Christie A Newton (UBC)