What’s All the Fuss about Medicinal Cannabis use in Australia?

Associate Professor Kylie O’Brien PhD has been involved in the tertiary education sector for almost 20 years, holding senior academic positions in universities and private education institutions. She has been responsible for the development of five postgraduate courses, three in Chinese medicine, and previously worked for the Victorian Department of Human Services on the implementation of the Chinese Medicine Act when Chinese medicine became regulated in 2000. She has been driving the education of healthcare practitioners in medicinal cannabis in Australia, and developing the first medicinal cannabis course to receive Category 1 CPD points from the Royal Australasian College of General Practitioners. She is currently involved in research into medicinal cannabis and hemp. Her first book, A Clinician’s Guide to Integrative Oncology, was published in the U.S. in 2017.

What is Cannabis?

Cannabis is a plant from the Cannabaceae family, with one species () and two main subspecies: C sativa subspecies sativa and C sativa subspecies indica. Cannabis sativa has more than 750 different active constituents, including cannabinoids, terpenes and other plant nutrients which are responsible for its beneficial actions, including pain relief, anti-nausea/vomiting, anti-inflammatory,