We had a chance to speak with Dr. Michael Dor, Chief Medical Consultant in the Israeli Health Ministry Medical Cannabis Unit, about the challenges he has faced implementing the country’s medical cannabis program.
In the video below, Dr. Dor says physicians in Israel are resistant to prescribing cannabis, but it’s not because there is not enough medical evidence. It’s just because they are very conservative. As he says, “It is very difficult to teach physicians new things”, and “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks.”
Fortunately, Dr. Dor is working on educating the next generation of medical professionals on the benefits of medical cannabis. Last year, he opened the country’s first academic course about cannabis medicine at Ariel University. Dr. Dor also addressed the issue of patients treating their condition with cannabis in the hospital setting. Patients are allowed to use cannabis, but only if the treating physician approves and the patient can use the cannabis in private with no other patients in the room.
In our discussion with Dr. Dor, he also spoke about the pressure he receives from the media and lawmakers who want him to comment on recreational cannabis. His response when they ask is, “I am a physician. I am in charge of the medical problem. Recreational is a social issue.”
However, he does say in the video, “I can tell you cannabis will have less problems than alcohol or nicotine. But once again, it is not a medical decision.”
Although Israel is ahead of the United States when it comes to implementing a national medical cannabis program, Dr. Dor believes they are only beginning to learn about the subject. “With more teaching, learning, and research, this is something with a very very interesting future,” he said.
We look forward to Dr. Dor sharing more of his experience implementing Israel’s medical cannabis program at CannMed 2018. Buy your CannMed 2018 ticket today before June 1 and you could win a VIP Package that includes a free hotel suite, facetime with our speakers, meals, and more. Buy before June 21 to take advantage of Early Bird Pricing!