Medical Cannabis: Breaking the Grass Ceiling for Inpatient Care and Use

September 24th, 2024

Medical cannabis has attracted national public attention in recent years, and it has started to become accepted as a treatment for patients in acute care. Due to federal constraints, individual state laws, and societal controversy, implementation of a safe medical cannabis program in acute care has been limited. However, many states are enacting laws to not only enable the use of medical cannabis but even mandate its allowance! Thus, it is imperative that facilities develop policies to facilitate medical cannabis for safe patient outcomes. This talk will showcase the novel approach developed at SHC, and the patient impact it has had.

Chris Tofanelli

Chris Tofanelli has been a Clinical Nurse Specialist at Stanford Health Care in California since 2022 and covers the Colorectal/Urology/Hepatobiliary/Surgical Oncology service lines. His expertise includes cardiac surgery, emergency medicine, pain management, and trauma. Chris received his Master’s degree in Nursing from CSUDH in 2022 with a focus on improving quality outcomes for surgical patients. Chris has held many positions in his 10+ year career as a nurse including clinical practice, assistant patient care manager, preceptor, and project manager. Chris also has a previous career as a high school math teacher for 10 years before becoming a nurse.