Specialization for physicians wishing to be treated with cannabis.
Because modulation of the endocannabinoid system is important in improving people's quality of life and symptoms in those with pathologies (from glaucoma to epilepsy, chronic pain to Alzheimer's disease), an estimated 1/3 of the Italian population can benefit from cannabinoid-based therapies. We are talking about 20 million people. It is clear that in order to cope with these numbers, there is a need to establish a solid path that allows healthcare professionals to update their knowledge, with increased synergies, the use of trained professionals and cannabinoid-based therapies, while optimizing the supply of medical cannabis in domestic quantities (beyond demand, supply and moderately high costs).
As we know, Italian cannabis was legalized by Italian law about a year ago, allowing any doctor, be it a specialist, a pediatrician or a family doctor, to prescribe cannabinoids and their derivatives for any medical condition for which there is sufficient scientific evidence. Currently, only a few Italian universities of chemical and pharmaceutical technology, pharmacy and agriculture offer lessons on cannabinoids and / or the endocannabinoid system, but no medical faculty has courses, classes or examinations on this subject, leaving specialists without basic resources. Doctors are faced with choices for which they are not sufficiently prepared. Medical cannabis is distributed in galenic pharmacies through the preparation of masterful preparations. It follows that not only doctors but also preparatory pharmacists need different training, regulations and preparation methods. Of the 19,000 Italian pharmacies currently operating, about 600 manufacture cannabinoid-based medicines, leaving many geographical areas uncovered, causing inevitable inconvenience to patients. To address this problem in the 2017/2018 academic year, the Department of Neuroscience at the University of Padua opened a one-year population development course on the medical, botanical and legal aspects of cannabis. The classes are conducted by a large group of doctors and researchers from different sectors, and students end the year with a discussion. As of 2018/2019, some lessons are ECM accredited. 2018/2019. Also available from the academic year are the courses developed by the scientific society Kanepi Teadus - a socially private limited company, prepared by the same researchers involved in UniPD full-time study and offering distance learning (FAD) - integrated and localized scientific dissemination combining e-learning, symposia ( both daily training and webinars) and publications related to different cannabis professional opportunities and needs. Courses at the Cannabis Science Society are sponsored by various Italian universities, such as the National University of Milan, the University of Campania Vanvitelli, the University of Eastern Piedmont and the CNR (National Research Council), as well as associations of doctors (Provincial Order of Macedonia) Milan doctors, surgeons and dentists. Federation) and research (Luca Coscioni Association, Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies).
Unlike the specialization course at the University of Padua, the Cannabis Science Society offers courses designed for different professions as well as for the general public, equipped with study texts, final exams, bibliography, supplementary materials and practical galeno video lessons. In the academic year 2020/2021, ECM credit will be awarded for the two courses offered. Combining the results of these two realities, UniPD and the Cannabis Science Society, hundreds of specialists are now trained in the endocannabinoid system and the cannabis plant, giving them the opportunity to prescribe (doctors) and prepare medicines (pharmacists). Of these, 40% are registered nurses, social workers and doctors, and 31% are pharmacists and biologists. In addition, many other professionals benefit from the training, from chemists and pharmacology to extraction and analysis laboratories (around 12% of members), sociologists, psychotherapists and lawyers (17%), herbalists and nutritionists. Together, these two platforms will literally change the level of knowledge of medical professionals in Italy. However, much remains to be done to recognize and integrate endocannabinology specialization. The use of distance learning, as in the Covid-19 distress period, has reassured us that it is vital to ensure that scientific knowledge spreads throughout the territory. It is hoped that more and more academic realities will recognize the value of the knowledge disseminated by these two institutions, integrating their teachings and making it possible to reduce the knowledge gap that still plagues the country.
