New England has seen rapid and numerous changes in marijuana policy. All six states have medical marijuana laws. Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts have passed laws legalizing adult-use marijuana while New Hampshire, Connecticut, and Rhode Island see many policy proposals to join them. This ever evolving policy landscape can create challenges for prevention professionals. How do we create and implement effective prevention strategies in this policy climate?
The New England PTTC develops and offers a full array of training and technical assistance services and products in this area of marijuana science, policy, and prevention. This includes regular live and recorded webinars. Here is what is available this month!
Available trainings:
Presenter: Karen E. Simone, PharmD, Director of the Northern New England Poison Center
In this webinar, Dr. Karen Simone, Director of the Northern New England Poison Center, will provide an overview of factual information about today’s marijuana products. They are stronger, often times contain no or less CBD in relationship to THC, and are vastly available in edible and other forms. Information is plentiful, while facts are difficult to extract with confidence. People using marijuana are confused regarding the safety of driving. CBD is promoted as a cure for everything and anything. Learn what is known and unknown.
Contact hours: 1.5 hours
Karen E. Simone, PharmD. Dr. Karen Simone is the Director of the Northern New England Poison Center, which serves the States of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont. She is an Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at Tufts University School of Medicine. Karen began poison center-related work at the Cincinnati Drug & Poison Information Center in 1989. She became a Certified Specialist in Poison Information in 1993, received her Doctorate in Pharmacy from the University of Cincinnati in 1994, and joined the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology (AACT) before becoming a Diplomate of the American Board of Applied Toxicology (ABAT) in 1998 and a Fellow of the American Academy of Clinical Toxicology in 2011.
Presenter: Scott M. Gagnon, MPP, PS-C, Director, New England Prevention Technology Transfer Center
This webinar provides an overview of the evolution of marijuana policies in the New England states and where prevention fits into the overall picture and conversation. The training discusses the importance of policy and the different layers of policy that need to be considered: federal, state, municipal, and organizational. Participants will learn about unintended consequences that can arise from policy not informed by the science of marijuana, addiction, and public health. Participants will learn the importance of educating the public and influencers with the science of today's marijuana. Participants will be introduced to how to use the prevention tools we already have at our disposal as commercial marijuana sales begin in some of our states and communities.
Contact Hours: 1.5 hours
About the Presenter
Scott M. Gagnon, MPP, PS-C is a Certified Prevention Specialist and the Director of AdCare Educational Institute of Maine, Inc., and Director of the New England Prevention Technology Transfer Center. Scott has a Master’s Degree in Public Policy from the Edmund S. Muskie School of Public Service. Appointed by the Maine Speaker of the House, Scott serves as the public health representative on Maine’s Marijuana Advisory Commission. Scott chairs the marijuana prevention advocacy & education group, Smart Approaches to Marijuana, Maine and has also served as Co Chair of the Prevention Task Force for the Maine Opiate Collaborative. Scott currently serves on the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services, Center for Substance Abuse Prevention National Advisory Council. In addition to his role as Director for the New England PTTC, Scott has been a marijuana science trainer for the New England ATTC.
Scott was the 2017 recipient of the Patrick J. Kennedy Outstanding Advocate Award from Smart Approaches to Marijuana. In 2015, Scott was awarded the Maine Public Health Association's Ruth S. Shaper Memorial Award and Healthy Androscoggin's Will Bartlett Award and is also the 2013 recipient of the Maine Alliance to Prevent Substance Abuse Prevention Award. Scott trains and presents both in New England and nationally on marijuana science and policy, as well as on prevention workforce development.
