A majority of respondents to a Women In Optometry Pop-up Poll said they would not prescribe marijuana if they were legally able to do so. Although more women ODs responded to the poll, the responses of men and women ODs were distinctly differently. While 60 percent of women ODs said they would not prescribe marijuana if they legally could, the plurality of male ODs who responded said they would prescribe it if they could.
Less than 9 percent of respondents said that their policy manuals address the use of medical marijuana by employees. However, more than 26 percent said that they plan to update their policy manuals soon. Several people noted that their policy specifies no tolerance for employees to come to work under the influence of marijuana.
Another shares that the signage at the facility where he works says, “Currently, no providers participate in the State Medical Marijuana Program and will not certify that you have a condition that would lead to you receiving medical marijuana.”
And another OD commented on how the concentration of THC in marijuana is much higher today, increased from as low as 15 percent in the past to ranging from 40 percent to 100 percent now. The OD notes that this higher concentrate is enough to cause overdose and death. The OD wrote, “There are better meds for glaucoma. There is no medical evidence showing benefits, and many showing the dangers of it. Why do you think they call it dope?”
