The monitoring of medicinal cannabis and the use of primary care data across the globe in international collaborative studies was among the recently presented research at the WONCA Asia-Pacific Conference in Singapore (August) and at the WONCA Europe Conference in Dublin (September). These topics reflect ongoing research initiatives at the Department of General Practice and Primary Care (DGPPC).
Co-investigators included:
- Dr Christine Hallinan, Senior Research Fellow at the DGPPC, The University of Melbourne
- Prof Yvonne Bonomo from St Vincent’s Department of Addiction Medicine;
- Dr Karen Tu Family Physician Toronto Canada;
- Ms Rebecca Wang MDRS student Melb Medical School;
- Ms Sophie Cooling DGPPC Honours Student;
- Ms Alexa Dinant MClinSc student Melb Medical School;
- Dr Andrew Donald DGPPC;
- Dr Jo-Anne Manski-Nankervis;
- Dr Rachel Canaway DGPPC.
At the WONCA Asia-Pacific Conference in Singapore, Dr Christine Hallinan presented findings from a narrative review investigating the prevalence and scope of global surveillance systems established to monitor the effects and side effects of medicinal cannabis. (Wang, Bonomo, Hallinan).
At the WONCA Europe Conference in Dublin, presentations included findings from research papers on medicinal cannabis and osteoporosis:
- Medicinal cannabis in mental health, where a quantitative analysis of the exponential rise in Australian prescribing of medicinal cannabis for the management of conditions like anxiety and PTSD highlighted the importance of the need for robust post-marketing surveillance (Cooling, Bonomo, Hallinan).
- Use of medicinal cannabis during pregnancy, where a comprehensive scoping review was undertaken to investigate the prevalence of medicinal cannabis use during pregnancy and the potential impact of its use on the unborn child (Dinert, Bonomo, Canaway, Hallinan).
- Exploratory findings from the Australian arm of the INTRePID Consortium showed changes to osteoporosis presentations in primary care during the pandemic. The presentation reported on the potential to expand the study using primary care data across six continents to understand the global impacts of the pandemic on osteoporosis care (Hallinan, Donald, Lapadula, Westfall, Manski-Nankervis, Tu.)
Central to the messaging at both conferences was the need for safe, prudent and ethical prescribing of medicinal cannabis, supported by rigorous and systematic monitoring. The INTRePID presentation highlighted the value of global partnerships in establishing consistent and safe practices worldwide.
