Health committee  Of course marijuana is an addictive drug. No one can debate that. We need clinical practice guidelines on physicians using it safely. The best I know of are by Dr. Mel Kahan from Toronto, who is planning to release a paper in Canadian Family Physician to guide physicians on how b

Health committee  Yes, I would. I've been in the area of opiate addiction treatment for 12 years and I was initially opposed to supervised injection sites, but 12 years in the field has changed my mind. I think when someone starts treatment right away that is obviously the best outcome. I'll rei

Health committee  Perhaps I can start. We have a most excellent Canadian Guideline for Safe and Effective Use of Opioids for Chronic Non-Cancer Pain. That is a definitive authoritative source for striking that balance. I think it's good medicine to take a good history and to monitor your treat

Health committee  I would say, decide who owns the issue of opioid safety. We have road safety, which is a big and complicated issue, but I can't see.... There are lots of people who own a little piece of the opioid safety issue, but figure out who owns the issue and then make them accountable.

Health committee  I would ask you to forgive my naïveté and ignorance, but does Health Canada not have a stake in opioid safety as a public health issue?

Health committee  Sure.

Health committee  What I will say is that in medicine nothing is black and white; it's not all or nothing. We strive in medicine to do the best we can with what we have. I think that we reduce harm in medicine all the time, by whatever means we can, and wherever that patient is at.

Health committee  Yes, sir. I failed to come in under 10 minutes. Thank you for your patience.

Health committee  Thank you. I'll strive to stay within that limitation. Ladies and gentlemen, honourable members, it is an honour and a privilege to be invited to speak to you today. Thank you for this opportunity. I also want to thank Marc-Olivier Girard for arranging for me to come here today.