Managing Medical Cannabis in Hospitals & Inpatient Care Settings

Managing Medical Cannabis in Hospitals and Care Settings is a free introductory course for clinicians and healthcare teams who may care for patients already prescribed cannabis-based medicinal products, also known as CBPMs.

As more patients in the UK are prescribed medical cannabis, hospital, hospice, and care teams are increasingly likely to encounter these medicines during admissions, planned procedures, inpatient stays, and longer-term care. This course explains what to do when a patient arrives with a legal medical cannabis prescription, how to manage it safely, and when to escalate concerns.

The course supports clinicians to move beyond common uncertainty, such as “Is this allowed?” or “Do we need to stop it?”, and instead approach CBPMs as prescribed Schedule 2 controlled medicines that require standard medicines management, clear documentation, appropriate risk assessment, and respectful patient-centred care.

Learners will be guided through the legal and prescribing framework, patient rights, identifying and documenting CBPM use, managing patient-owned medicines, storage and controlled drug governance, clinical cautions, perioperative considerations, and practical challenges such as vaping, unfamiliar packaging, impaired capacity, and patients who cannot self-administer.

The course is designed to accompany the MCCS practical guide, Managing Cannabis-Based Medicinal Products in UK Hospitals and Care Settings, and is suitable for hospital doctors, nurses, pharmacists, anaesthetists, surgeons, hospice teams, care home teams, and any healthcare professional involved in inpatient or residential care.

By the end of the course, participants should feel more confident responding safely, lawfully, and professionally when a patient in their care is prescribed medical cannabis.