Overview

1. Thirty (30) community members who are currently using opioid agonists methadone or suboxone.
2. Following informed consent measures participants will meet with a member of the Health team for an intake and interview and assessment followed up with an Individualized care plan and counselling.
3. Physicians will prescribe a low dose of medical cannabinoid concurrent with the Opioid Agonists Treatment. (OAT)
4. Data related to pre-cannabinoid OAT as well as baseline quality of life measures will be collected.
5. Objective is to determine if this combined medical approach helps people reduce and/or replace OAT medication while determining the impact of the cannabinoid on the treatment, recovery, and quality of life for the participants.

Structure & Care Programs

Each participant (sample size 30) in the Program will meet with a member of our medical team (i.e., a physician, a registered clinical nurse, and/or a licensed practical nurse) for an intake interview and assessment. The medical team will collect narrative information through open and closed- ended medical questionnaires. Then, as the medical team prescribes, an individualized personal care plan will be created. Care plans will include information on medical cannabinoid dosing for each participant.

These personalized care plans are built upon harm reduction principles. Our focus is to help improve the quality of life of patients while simultaneously reducing polypharmacy and any potential harms from substance misuse to potential medical cannabinoid side effects.

Data related to pre-cannabinoid treatment methadone and suboxone use, the current opioid agonists treatment. (e.g., frequency of clinic visits, amount of methadone prescribed) and well as baseline quality of life measures will be collected following informed consent measures (e.g., sleep, diet, exercise, social patterns, etc.)

At the onset of treatment, a low-dose cannabinoid product will be medically prescribed and will be administered along with each prescribed methadone and/or suboxone dose of methadone and/ or suboxone. The cannabinoid will be administered orally using E.C.O. proprietary formulated medical products. The Harm Reduction Program will create personalized care plans for every patient who has a consultation. Care plans will include information on dosing, preferable type of administration, the form of medical cannabinoid products to utilize, and more.

Throughout participation in this study, participants will have the same opportunity to access prescribed methadone and/or suboxone, however, during the treatment phase, they will also have access to medical cannabinoid as described above, under the supervision of our medical team. Data related to methadone and/or suboxone use and quality of life measures will be collected at least bi-weekly throughout both baseline and treatment phases of the study.