Doctors Open Clinic Doors to Talk Opioids and Marijuana

Clayton-based CannaTherapyMD will be opening its doors on November 7 to have a discussion about opioids.

Dr. Hari Khalsa said the clinic is hoping the event will provide a safe environment for people to ask the questions they need in order to feel more comfortable assessing if medical cannabis is right for them.

“Our goal with this event is to give people some background related to opiates and chronic pain, and help people understand the role cannabis can play in pain control,” Dr. Khalsa said. “We want to help people understand the evidence behind all of this, and address some common myths related to cannabis, opiates and chronic pain. Overall, we want people to have enough information to be able to decide if cannabis is something that may be right for them.

“We want to get the message out there that medical cannabis is not about pot or the stigmas attached. Medical cannabis is about patients, especially those who feel they have nowhere else to turn.”

Dr. Khalsa said she and her clinic partner, Dr. Rad, are seeing more people that are looking to reduce or eliminate the opiates that they are using and cannabis can help with this. “We feel it is another option that can work well for people that struggle with chronic pain.”

Missouri is one of several states that has declared an “opioid crisis,” between pain killer addiction and illegal drug overdoses. The state sees a rate of 16.5 opioid-related deaths per 100,000 – higher than the national average. Missouri’s Attorney General has sued pharmaceutical companies producing opioids, accusing opioid producers of a “campaign of fraud and deception.” A report from the U.S. Senate found that over the past 6 years, over 1.6 billion opioid doses were sent to Missouri, breaking down to 260 pills per resident.

Chronic pain, a qualifying condition for certification by a physician, causes many questions for certifying physicians. Some common questions CannaTherapyMD’s physicians are asked are “Can marijuana help my pain?”, “I don’t want to be high all the time, is there a way I can use it without being high?”, and “I have heard it will make my opiates less effective, is this true?”

Questions like these and more can be answered at the open event, titled Opiates, Chronic Pain and Cannabis. The evening will take place at the CannaTherapyMD offices in Clayton at 950 Francis Place, Suite 213, at 6:00 p.m. Dr. Khalsa will be present to answer questions about marijuana as it related to chronic pain.

For more information, contact CannaTherapyMD. See the event flyer below.