BANGKOK, June 22 (TNA) – After the decriminalization of cannabis 11 days ago, nine people were admitted to three hospitals for either eating food with cannabis content or smoking cannabis, according to the Department of Medical Services.
Dr Manus Potaporn, deputy director-general of the department, said the nine cases were admitted to three hospitals under the jurisdiction of the department. They are Rajvithi, Lerdsin and Nopparat Rajathanee hospitals.
The patients either smoked cannabis for recreation or had cookies, papaya salad and coffee with cannabis as an ingredient, he said.
Cannabis smokers were hesitant to admit their cannabis use for recreation because they were worried about possible prosecution. Dr Manus said that hospital staff did not take any legal action on the patients but were focusing on offering them medical treatment.
He warned against cannabis use among people with cardiovascular diseases or underlying illnesses, children, pregnant women and breast-feeding mothers.
Dr Manus said there would be application software for users to initially assess the impacts of cannabis use and determine if users were addicted to cannabis. Besides, the department operated the hotline number 1165 to give relevant advice.
Earlier King Chulalongkorn Memorial Hospital reported that three people were admitted there after eating food with cannabis content. (TNA)
