Vancouver alumni learn about UCalgary research study on students' use of cannabis

Just over 20 UCalgary alumni and guests gathered in Vancouver in April to connect and learn more about recent exciting developments in the Faculty of Nursing. This year, the faculty’s annual trek west was opened up to UCalgary alumni from different faculties in order to share the thought-provoking research of Jacqueline Smith (BN'09, PhD'15).

Dean Dianne Tapp brought greetings from the university and was followed by Smith who spoke about her nine years working with families with addictions and her research into the gaps experienced in health care in this area. 

“Families with mental health issues are showing up more and more in emergency units and we need to figure out how we can better help them,” she said. “Complex problems such as adolescent addiction and its impact on the family require complex solutions.”

In advance of the legalization of cannabis, one of Smith’s current studies surveyed 4,000 UCalgary students about their use of the drug. “Canadian youth have the highest rates of usage in the western world,” explained Smith, who is principal investigator of the University of Calgary's Campus Experience with Cannabis Survey.

“We want to survey our students, pre-legalization, to understand how they perceive the risk and what services they would access if their use became problematic. We hope to use our results to inform existing or new student wellness initiatives on the UCalgary campus.”

Smith also presented at an alumni event the previous evening in Victoria.