Social Welfare

The possible medicinal uses of cannabis are growing, yet research on how patients use medical cannabis facility services remains scarce. This article reports on the Cannabis Care Study, in which 130 medical cannabis patients at seven facilities in the San Francisco Bay Area ...

The possible medicinal uses of cannabis are growing, yet research on how patients use medical cannabis facility services remains scarce. This article reports on the Cannabis Care Study, in which 130 medical cannabis patients at seven facilities in the San Francisco Bay Area were surveyed to gather information about demographics, personal health practices, health outcomes, service use, and satisfaction with medical cannabis facilities. The study was modeled after Andersen's Behavioral Model of Health Services Use. Results show that patients tend to be males older than 35, identify with multiple ethnicities, and report variable symptom duration and current health status. Nearly half the sample reported substituting cannabis for alcohol and illegal drugs; 74% reported substituting it for prescription drugs. Satisfaction did not differ across study sites and was significantly higher than nationally reported satisfaction with health care. Implications for the medical cannabis communi...

Policies in the United States regarding personal responsibility and deviant behavior often follow an underlying moral philosophy. This paper examines the philosophies in American social policy, and how beliefs about personal responsibility, definitions of deviance and the role of the social welfare system shape current policies.