Painaustralia is seeking financial support from the industry to conduct a consumer sentiment survey on medicinal cannabis access and affordability and help boost discussion of the medicine in Canberra and beyond.
The report will provide a snapshot of what pain patients experience when they seek medicinal cannabis treatment from GPs and other healthcare professionals.
To be unveiled in Canberra, it will be delivered to every political office in the federal parliament and backed by a national media campaign to raise awareness of the medicine and the issues faced by those seeking to use it.
Painaustralia represents and lobbies on behalf of the 3.4 million Australians living with chronic pain.
The survey will identify the systemic improvements needed to improve access to affordable, legal medicinal cannabis and establish why people still turn to the illicit market in significant numbers.
Painaustralia CEO Giulia Jones said: “We are keen to take a deep dive into this issue and launch a conversation about the day-to-day experience of patients seeking this treatment with federal politicians, the national media and around the country.
“What we have found through our work is that the number and types of treatments for pain allowed by government have actually reduced over the past several years, while many of those that are available are not well known and are often cost prohibitive.
“People fought hard for this treatment to be legal and available, now we need to see if consumers are getting the affordable access they are seeking.”
While the survey will be conducted anonymously online, Painaustralia will ask permission to tell participants’ stories in order to grab the attention of politicians and the media.
Jones added: “The best way to make this a point of discussion and to change the status quo is to insert the consumer voice into the conversation and tell their personal stories.”
The size and scope of the survey – which the body hopes to launch in August – will depend on the level of financial support forthcoming from the industry.
For more information, email admin@painaustralia.org.au before Friday March 17.
