DOCTORS CAUTIONED NOT TO PRESCRIBE POT

It's been legal for years. But just try to get a prescription.

Medical marijuana has become a kind of oxymoron in most of Canada.

The recreational, non-medical kind may be available in almost any
town across the country. But patients say finding a doctor to
prescribe the medical kind legalized across Canada more than a decade
ago is far more difficult.

While some physicians in other provinces are willing to support its
use, patients say Alberta's doctors are particularly reluctant.

In Edmonton, a spokesperson for the College of Physicians and
Surgeons of Alberta says members are cautioned not to prescribe
marijuana and medical purposes. They're free to disregard that
advice, says communications manager Kelly Eby.

"But if they do, they should follow the guidelines outlined by Health
Canada," she adds.

On its public website www.hc-sc.gc.ca Health Canada outlines how
patients can qualify for a prescription, and how much doctors should provide.

"Current available information suggests most individuals use an
average daily amount of 1 gram to 3 grams of dried marihuana for
medical purposes," it notes "whether it is taken orally, or inhaled
or a combination of both."

But patients need written authorization, based on an assessment of
their patient's illness. And Tamara Cartwright, a Taber resident,
says even when a southern Albertan is living with a condition that
Health Canada agrees would be improved by medical marijuana, very few
local physicians will prescribe it or sign papers to help provide access.

While doctors in larger provinces like British Columbia and Ontario
are better-informed about the medical benefits, she says the
profession's Alberta organization stands strongly opposed to
prescribing it. But it goes still further, Cartwright claims.

"They harass and bully any doctor who signs the papers."