Baccalaureate nursing students’ knowledge, attitudes, educational needs, and use of medical and non-medical cannabis at five institutions in Manitoba, Canada: A cross-sectional analysis

Background: With the legalization of non-medical cannabis in Canada, cannabis is commonly used in the community and nurses and nursing students are likely to engage in clinical practice discussions around cannabis use for both medical and non-medical purposes. However, whether having previous experience using cannabis influences nursing students’ knowledge and attitudes towards cannabis remains unclear.

Objective: The aim of this study was to describe nursing students’ knowledge, attitudes, educational needs, and use of cannabis.

Design: Cross-sectional survey.

Setting: Five academic undergraduate nursing programs in Manitoba, Canada.

Participants: Nursing students in Manitoba.

Methods: Students were asked about their use of cannabis, knowledge and attitudes regarding cannabis, clinical experiences and educational needs related to cannabis. Students’ current knowledge was compared to their desired knowledge using paired t-tests. Using t-tests, attitudes towards cannabis were compared between students who had ever taken cannabis versus those with no experience. Descriptive statistics were utilized for all other questions.

Results: A total of 327 nursing students participated in the survey with 220 students (67.3 %) reporting they had used cannabis in the past, and 123 students (37.6 %) reporting monthly use of cannabis. Students who previously used cannabis held more positive attitudes towards both medical and non-medical cannabis use in comparison to those with no experience. Students recognised that their current knowledge around cannabis was insufficient and indicated the need for greater knowledge on both medical and non-medical cannabis-related topics. Only 37.7 % of students reported receiving any education on cannabis in their nursing program. Nearly all students (92.2 %) agreed if they had more education on medical cannabis use that they would feel more comfortable discussing this in their clinical practice.

Conclusion: Education on both medical and non-medical cannabis is needed to support future nurses addressing cannabis use in their clinical practice. Nursing institutions must implement and evaluate curricula to ensure nursing students are adequately prepared to address cannabis use in their clinical practice and their own fitness to practice.