Doctors criticize hashish interim report Ekocan | FAZ | EUROtoday

When the second interim report of the analysis venture on the results of the Consumer Cannabis Act (Ekocan) was introduced originally of April, one discovering was significantly remembered by the general public: a rise in hashish consumption in reference to partial legalization in Germany was not but noticeable, it was mentioned, and that there had been shifts between the authorized and unlawful hashish market, however general there was no important improve available in the market itself. The hashish consumed in Germany “increasingly comes from fundamentally legal sources; an increase in consumption that would compensate for these market shifts is not yet apparent.”

Addiction researchers, baby and adolescent psychiatrists and psychotherapists don’t need to let this impression go unchallenged. The German Society for Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Psychosomatics and Neurology (DGPPN), the German Society for Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy (DGKJP) and the German Society for Addiction Research and Addiction Therapy (DG-Sucht) at the moment are warning in a joint assertion that the Ekocan interim report paints an excessively optimistic image. They worry that the report might be misunderstood as a minimum of a short lived all-clear after partial legalization.

Mathias Luderer, head of the dependancy medication division within the Clinic for Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy on the University Hospital Frankfurt, explains the explanations for his or her joint criticism to the FAZ.

On the one hand, there may be the quick time period that has solely been in a position to be evaluated to date. The legislation got here into power in April 2024. “Two years is not meaningful enough for such an evaluation. We see in other countries, for example Canada, that it takes five to ten years before the effects of legalization are reflected in an increase in consumption,” says Luderer. A dependency solely develops over an extended time period. The issues brought on by hashish consumption solely come up steadily. Intoxications and psychotic sicknesses specifically can solely be detected after longer intervals of time. Despite the quick interval since 2024, there are already clear warning indicators, for instance extra cannabis-related admissions in hospitals.

The improve in problematic consumption patterns amongst youngsters and younger adults can be not said clearly sufficient within the interim report, says Luderer. “At the same time, we see that over a longer period of time, a normalization of perception occurs. If one person out of 100 people smokes cannabis, you perceive it as unusual, but if ten or 20 people do it, you get the impression that it is probably not dangerous or unusual after all.” The Ekocan report states: “According to the available information, the consumption prevalence of cannabis (i.e. the frequency of consumption, editor’s note) among young people is stable or even slightly declining after partial legalization.” There has additionally been “so far no decline in the risk perception of cannabis use among young people”.

The venture coordinator for the analysis of the hashish legislation, Jakob Manthey from the Center for Interdisciplinary Addiction Research on the University of Hamburg, advised the FAZ that the three specialist societies had been invited to take part within the information assortment and had now sought dialogue – to date with out success. Ekocan is now rejecting the criticism of the database specifically and is making ready a response that must be printed quickly.

However, the three skilled societies are significantly involved about one circumstance that can be critically famous within the Ekocan report: fewer and fewer adolescents and younger adults are profiting from dependancy counseling and early intervention applications. The Ekocan report states in two passages: “According to the specialists, the number of participants in the early intervention programs has declined sharply because there have been no referrals through the judiciary”; Almost half of the younger adults surveyed mentioned they “did not take advantage of any cannabis-related prevention services.”

The motive for that is that hashish consumption is now not lined by the Narcotics Act and subsequently the requirement for dependancy counseling is now not required. “This creates a gap in care in a high-risk group of all places,” says the joint assertion from the psychiatrists and dependancy researchers.

On this level, the Ekocan report additionally notes that Section 7 of the Cannabis Consumption Act (“KCanG”), which was meant to shut this hole, “so far does not meet the expectations of the legislature”. According to the brand new legislation, native youth welfare suppliers ought to solely “work to ensure” that early intervention measures are used if the well-being of the kid or younger particular person is in danger. From the perspective of psychiatrists and psychologists, that is too obscure and solely voluntary. “Prevention was promised as an important component in advance of the law,” recollects Luderer. In mixture with nonetheless clearly seen internet advertising for medical hashish, the result’s “a very unfavorable mix”.

In addition, the Dietrich Bonhoeffer Clinic in Ahlhorn is anticipated to shut on the finish of June. With 60 of virtually 100 locations, it’s the largest rehabilitation clinic for addicted kids and younger folks in Germany. Given all these developments, one can’t wait to see what occurs subsequent. “The evaluation reports on the Cannabis Consumption Act were established in order to be able to quickly counteract any undesirable developments,” says Luderer, “that must happen now.”