Conhecimento e Opinião dos Profissionais de Saúde de Centros de Atenção Psicossocial acerca da Cannabis.

Cannabis sativa has been the subject of several worldwide discussions regarding its legalization and its therapeutic use. The medicinal use of this plant is possible because it has an extensive medicinal potential that occurs as a result of the large number of chemical substances present in it, with resistance from health professionals prescribing its derivatives. Thus, the present study sought to analyze the knowledge of health professionals, linked to Psychosocial Care Centers, about the use of Cannabis. This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study, through data collection through an electronic questionnaire divided into two parts. The first addressed the sociodemographic aspects of the professionals and the second contained 29 statements with answers in the Likert scale format, to identify the level of technical knowledge and opinion of health professionals about Cannabis and the use of the drug. 21 professionals participated in the study, where it was noticed that some sociodemographic characteristics interfered in their opinions in relation to some statements. Professionals who have used illicit drugs, tobacco and non-religious people have more "liberal" and favorable opinions regarding the use of Cannabis, with the knowledge of health professionals about the use of Cannabis influenced by their sociodemographic characteristics, i.e., of personal variables. Therefore, public health measures must be implemented in order to disseminate scientific information to promote a clear distinction between the therapeutic use of cannabis-based products for some diseases and the non-medical use of Cannabis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]