Module 4: Non-Opioid Pain Management

4.1 Medical Cannabis

• Review the pharmacology and mechanisms of action for cannabis
• Review the pharmacology and mechanisms of action for cannabis
• Discuss risks and benefits of medical cannabis
• Discuss patient assessment and cannabis dosing
• Review considerations for safety and monitoring of medical cannabis

• Identify pain generators, pathophysiology, and then assign a pain type category.
• Manage pain based on pain type category
• Determine how prognosis affects pain management plan

• Understand indications and dosing of non-opioid adjuvant pain medications
• Apply best practices in de-escalating analgesics and adjuvants with symptom improvement
• Understand the causes and potential harms of polypharmacy and develop strategies to decrease
polypharmacy

• Review characteristics of cancer-related and non-cancer-related pain
• Evaluate various treatment options for cancer-pain and non-cancer pain in serious illness
• Evaluate interventional options for cancer-pain and non-cancer pain in serious illness
• Understand sample cancer-pain treatment algorithms