Dr. Mimi Vo: Best Leader in Medical Education of 2019
Dr. Mi Vo has been practicing internal medicine since 2003. She graduated from the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Medicine and worked as a hospital doctor for many years before joining her father in his outpatient practice. She now practices Cannabinoid Medicine, is Board Certified in Internal Medicine and Obesity Medicine and practices Cannabinoid Medicine.
As a Board Member and Chair of the Healthcare and Education Training committee for MoCannTrade, Vo has been educating doctors around the state about cannabis. Vo is also a Board member of the Society of Cannabis Clinicians, a group that was founded 20 years ago to advocate for physician education while dedicating themselves to furthering cannabis research.
Vo was voted the “Best Physician – Leader in Medical Education” in Missouri by Greenway’s readers. Volunteering her time to speak and educate over the past two years, she has inspired many with her unwavering compassion for helping to support and educate patients throughout their healthcare journeys — despite the judgment she sometimes receives from other doctors as she works to deconstruct the negative stigma around this plant.
“I tell doctors that whether you are pro, neutral, or against medical cannabis, patients are already embracing it,” Vo said. “And though we don’t have the high-quality studies we would like, there is enough proof of the benefits with minimal risks, that we need to learn about it, be open-minded, and above all, be non-judgmental.”
Vo says her patients are grateful to meet a physician who embraces cannabis as medicine. “I have helped young children with epilepsy control their seizures, cancer patients manage their pain, to seniors in there 90s using cannabis for the first time for insomnia. It has been a pleasure to help patients navigate their healthcare journey using cannabis, all the while reducing the number of medications they take.”
This year, Vo is taking her passion for cannabis education to a new venture, the Cannabis Learning Center at 1650 N. Warson Road in St. Louis, MO. There, Vo plans to hold classes live in-person to educate patients, healthcare workers, and those looking to enter the Cannabis industry, all while keeping her patients’ needs in mind: “As a mother I know how hard it is to find time to learn, so we will have ‘Mommy Mondays’ where childcare will be available for mothers looking for a job or interested in more information in the exciting new cannabis community,” Vo said.
Her service work doesn’t stop there. Because Vo owns her own practice, she often sees patients who are unable to pay at no charge, and she is usually mentoring at least one high school or college student seeking a career in medicine. “I give back to my community because I want to live a life of service which I believe is the essence of life,” Vo said. “It is clear that lending a hand is what allows meaningful positive changes, just like planting a single tree every day creates a forest.”