This ECHO will bring together multiple stakeholders to explore how to manage cannabis concerns in a way that supports safe and healthy workers and workplaces.
Seddon R. Savage, MD, MSCannabis use is widespread in the United States and can impact workplace performance. While it is illegal under federal law, many states allow recreational and therapeutic use. Employers face challenges due to varying state laws, different effects of cannabis products, and the limitations of testing to assess impairment.
An upcoming Dartmouth Health Project ECHO (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) virtual series will explore how to address the complexity of cannabis issues facing employers who are committed to maintaining a safe workplace and protecting their clients and public safety. Health, legal, and business perspectives will all be considered, and input from participants is welcome. Employers and their teams, organizational leaders, human resource professionals, employee assistance, health and wellness personnel, occupational health and safety professionals, worker advocates and representatives, and all others with interest are encouraged to attend.
“Cannabis in the Workplace: An ECHO on Health, Safety, and Management” will span seven sessions:
- June 11 – Pharmacology of cannabis and impact on individuals
- June 25 – Impact of cannabis on workplace
- July 9 – Cannabis testing
- July 23 – Assessing impairment in the workplace
- August 6 – Intervention, management of leave, treatment, re-entry into the workplace
- August 20 – The legal and regulatory landscape
- August 27 – Development of workplace policies
“Cannabis can impair performance and safety in work situations and regular use can present serious health problems for individuals, yet testing does not routinely distinguish current from more remote use nor occasional from regular use,” said Seddon R. Savage, MD, MS, education director of Dartmouth Health’s Project ECHO program. “For Dartmouth Health and other employers based in states like New Hampshire, where recreational marijuana is illegal, further complications arise from it being legal in all surrounding states. In addition, some employees may be certified by the state for therapeutic use. These factors create a bewildering array of health, legal and policy issues for employers and employee health personnel to navigate when concerns about cannabis use arise in the workplace. This ECHO will bring together multiple stakeholders to explore how to manage cannabis concerns in a way that supports safe and healthy workers and workplaces.”
All seven sessions will be held from 12-1 pm. Registration is required and free of charge. To register for this Project ECHO series, visit bit.ly/4dXfI9X.
Project ECHO is a program of the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center.
About Dartmouth Health
Dartmouth Health, New Hampshire’s only academic health system and largest private employer, serves patients across New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,300 providers in nearly every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH. Its network of hospitals, outpatient centers, clinics and home care facilities, spans a broad geographical area. Year after year, DHMC is named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is consistently recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, northern New England’s only National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers and one of less than than 60 total nationally; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital (Children’s Hospital at DHMC/CHaD) and more than 20 locations around the region; eight member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont, Hampstead, and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Dartmouth Health Home Care; Dartmouth Health Connected Care Center for Telehealth, serving patients as far away as Texas; and more than 30 primary and multi-specialty clinics across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its partnership with Dartmouth College, Dartmouth’s Geisel School of Medicine and the White River Junction VA Medical Center, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials with international impact. Dartmouth Health and its more than 16,000 employees are committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in the communities it serves and to providing every patient with exceptional, state-of-the-art, personalized care. Learn more at dartmouth-health.org.