Doctor faces sanctions following review
By MEDICINE HAT NEWS on March 11, 2022.
https://www.medicinehatnews.com@MedicineHatNews A Medicine Hat doctor faces sanctions after a professional body found he prescribed marijuana as a treatment for pain five years ago without following proper protocol or follow-up treatment. That was determined at a hearing held by the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Alberta last October, from which the result was published this week. It was alleged that in at least one case, Dr. Gaylord Wardell, a local pain management specialist, failed to consider more conventional therapies when he prescribed marijuana as a treatment, though that did not constitute unprofessional misconduct. Another section of the specific charge, that he follow up with patients within three months, was contravened, the College found, and that was misconduct. Potential sanction will be announced at a later date. The College began an investigation after being made aware of social media posts from an Ontario man (a patient of Wardell’s) regarding how to obtain a permit to grow marijuana for medicinal use. Two other allegations – that he failed to communicate back findings to the referring doctor and that he failed to consult prescription histories of 30 patients – were dismissed. At the hearing, Wardell argued he felt putting patients again through conventional treatments that had previously failed was a waste of resources. A summary of testimony from the board states Wardell felt the patients he provided cannabis growing permits to were mostly on low income and sought to lower their costs of medication by growing their own cannabis rather than purchasing it from dispensaries. 10-9
