# Knowledge, Attitudes, and Beliefs Regarding Medical Cannabis Among Patients and Providers in Florida’s Long-Term Care Facilities

## TL;DR

This study explores the knowledge and attitudes of Florida LTC providers and patients toward medical cannabis, highlighting barriers to its use and access.

## Contribution

The study identifies specific barriers and gaps in knowledge among LTC providers and patients regarding medical cannabis use.

## Key findings

- Most providers believe MC is a viable treatment, but lack of training and guidelines hinders recommendations.
- Only 37.2% of providers felt adequately trained on MC, and 16% of patients reported ever using it.
- Patients expressed interest in MC for symptom relief but reported it is rarely recommended by providers.

## Abstract

Objectives: Medical cannabis (MC) has been found effective in treating multiple symptoms commonly experienced by older adults; however, residents in long-term care (LTC) often lack access to MC products. This study seeks to identify patterns and barriers to recommending MC to patients and to explore the knowledge and attitudes toward MC use among patients and providers.

Methods: The quantitative portion of this study employed a survey to assess the knowledge of, attitudes toward, and barriers to MC among 126 providers in Florida LTC. Frequencies were reported, bivariate associations were analyzed, and a final regression model predicting MC knowledge was tested. In-depth interviews were conducted with 25 LTC patients, and content was analyzed using the RADaR method.

Results: The age of the providers ranged from 21 to 74; 74% were female, 18% were Black/African American, and 17% reported Hispanic ethnicity. Less than half (37.2%) felt they received adequate training on MC. Having accurate knowledge about MC was associated with greater confidence in answering patients’ questions (p=0.002). Although most providers (94.2%) felt MC is a viable treatment option, the main barriers to recommending it to patients were a lack of proper training or clinical guidelines. Regarding patients, 16% reported ever using MC, and less than half (32%) had knowledge of MC or how to obtain products. Many believed it could help with symptoms and would consider its use if recommended by a doctor. However, they reported that MC was rarely recommended by providers and that they knew little about the use of this therapy.

Conclusion: This study underscores access challenges among seniors in LTC who might benefit most from MC’s therapeutic properties. Complex MC policy implementation issues are discussed. State and federal policy issues around cannabis contribute to limited research on the therapeutic uses of cannabis, as well as the MC access problem addressed in this study.