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 the state’s largest private employer, serves patients across northern New England. Dartmouth Health provides access to more than 2,000 providers in almost every area of medicine, delivering care at its flagship hospital, Dartmouth Hitchcock Medical Center (DHMC) in Lebanon, NH, as well as across its wide network of hospitals, clinics and care facilities. DHMC is consistently named the #1 hospital in New Hampshire by U.S. News & World Report, and is recognized for high performance in numerous clinical specialties and procedures. Dartmouth Health includes Dartmouth Cancer Center, one of only 57 National Cancer Institute-designated Comprehensive Cancer Centers in the nation, and the only such center in northern New England; Dartmouth Health Children’s, which includes the state’s only children’s hospital and multiple locations around the region; member hospitals in Lebanon, Keene, Claremont and New London, NH, and Windsor and Bennington, VT; Visiting Nurse and Hospice for Vermont and New Hampshire; and more than 24 clinics that provide ambulatory and specialty services across New Hampshire and Vermont. Through its historical partnership with Dartmouth and the Geisel School of Medicine, Dartmouth Health trains nearly 400 medical residents and fellows annually, and performs cutting-edge research and clinical trials recognized across the globe with Geisel and the White River Junction VA Medical Center in White River Junction, VT. Dartmouth Health and its more than 13,000 employees are deeply committed to serving the healthcare needs of everyone in our communities, and to providing each of our patients with exceptional, personal care.