The Medical Cannabis Access Programme in Ireland¹ currently provides access to cannabis to patients with one of three conditions when other treatments have been unsuccessful. The three conditions are spasticity (stiff and/or rigid muscles) associated with multiple sclerosis, nausea and vomiting associated with chemotherapy, and severe epilepsy.

An evidence review was conducted by the Health Research Board (HRB) to inform a Department of Health review of the current Medicinal Cannabis Access Programme on the suitability of cannabis-based products for medical conditions.

Background

In January 2022, Ireland introduced minimum unit pricing (MUP) at EUR 1.00 per 10 grams of alcohol as per Section 11 of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018.¹ The Act was introduced in response to the high level of alcohol use and related harms in Ireland. Alcohol-related hospital discharges are collected through the Hospital In-Patient Enquiry (HIPE) Scheme; however, the burden of alcohol-related harm in emergency departments (ED) in Ireland is largely unknown, as this information is not routinely collected.² One study in 2018 estimated that 6% of ED presentations are alcohol related.³ A study by Maharaj et al. in 2024 sought to determine the impact of alcohol on ED presentations and hospital admissions and to investigate if the introduction of MUP impacted such presentations or admissions.⁴

Suicide is a complex, major public health issue globally. While people who use drugs (PWUD) are known to be at increased risk of suicide, there is limited information on the specific candidate risk factors for this group, which could help to inform targeted interventions to reduce their risk. To this end, a scoping review was conducted with three aims: (1) to map the extent, range, and nature of available evidence on factors associated with death by suicide among PWUD; (2) to identify knowledge gaps and limitations in this body of evidence; and (3) to inform suicide prevention policy and best practice guidelines for working with PWUD, where appropriate.¹

Methods

The aim of scoping reviews is to systematically search for and then map all the evidence in relation to the research question. Scoping reviews encompass all available literature, both published and grey, with stakeholder consultation an important component. Unlike systematic reviews, this method in general does not include a quality appraisal of the literature.