ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the history of cannabis in order to understand how the current complexities of medical cannabis evolved. It then explores the ethical dimensions of the issue and the challenges that persist. In Canada, regulated access to medical cannabis already exists. There is now the plan for regulated access to non-medical cannabis in the very near future. In the context of mental health and substance use, this means a complex and fluid policy and practice environment that requires simultaneous attention to a variety of laws, emerging research data, treatment approaches and fundamental ethical considerations that may appear to conflict more often than align. Equally, approaches to care in mental health and substance use embrace the philosophical perspectives of 'recovery' and 'harm reduction' in addition to other arguably conventional goals, often framed as abstinence and cure. Medical cannabis does not yet undergo the same approvals as regular pharmaceuticals and rigorous safety and quality considerations have not yet been established.
