Introduction: Cannabis (Cannabis sativa L.) has been used for centuries for food, industrial and medicinal purposes. With prohibition in the last century, its use declined significantly, but this is changing rapidly in the 21st century. Many countries around the world have regulated its use in medicine, including Slovenia Since 2017, the use of cannabis for medicinal purposes has been allowed in Slovenia, following an amendment to the Regulation on the classification of illicit drugs. This has already made nursing students, during their studies and as future health professionals, an important link in the management of patients using cannabis for medical purposes. Purpose: The aim of the study is to investigate the attitudes of nursing students at the Faculty of Health Sciences of the University of Ljubljana towards the use of cannabis for medical purposes. Methods: We used an integration of quantitative and qualitative methods. Quantitative data were obtained by questionnaire, which was fully completed by 124 undergraduate and postgraduate nursing students. Given the unbalanced representation of nursing students according to the year they attended, the sample was not entirely representative. The data were statistically analysed using SPSS Statistic 27. To collect qualitative data, we used a semi-structured interview conducted with 13 nursing students. To analyse the qualitative data, we used a qualitative content analysis, which was carried out in Word Results: The quantitative analysis showed that nursing students' knowledge on the medical use of cannabis is still insufficient and they are not very interested in the topic. Four themes emerged from the qualitative content analysis, namely Perceptions and attitudes towards medical cannabis, Acceptability of medical cannabis, Problematics of medical cannabis and Factors that shape students' attitudes towards medical cannabis. The students interviewed still associate cannabis used for medical purposes with the drug, but nevertheless support its use for medical purposes, provided that the treatment is supervised. They also identified the factors that they believe shape their attitudes towards the medical use of cannabis. Discussion and conclusion: Social prejudice and stigma about cannabis used for medical purposes is reflected among students at the Faculty of Health, as in addition to approval of its use, there were also many unverified opinions and unfounded fears, reflecting wider social opinion.In conclusion, Nursing students need to be educated much more on this topic, as only with (evidence-based) knowledge will they be able to reduce the stigma attached to the use of cannabis for medical purposes and, as a consequence, provide better quality care to patients who (already) use cannabis for these purposes.
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