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Open Letter to the Medical Marijuana Community from Patients Out of Time

Daily Dose 2010-10-09 0 comments

Dear Friend, Colleague, Patient, or Contact person,

I am writing to you to seek your financial help.  Please hear me out.  Patients Out of Time is now in its 15th year and we have  never sent out a general letter of request for funding.  We are a non-profit 501c3 educational charity and have worked hard to  earn our reputation as the leading source of evidence-based science on the efficacy of cannabis as medicine.  Please visit our  website www.medicalcannabis.com to learn about Patients Out of Time and to learn about medicinal cannabis if you haven’t  already done so.

Since 2000 we have co-sponsored a biennial (every 2 years) accredited conference series that features leading researchers  and clinicians in the cannabis field from throughout the world.  They have all been filmed and are available in DVD sets  (and the more recent conferences are now online for continuing medical education credits). Patients Out of Time worked with filmmaker Len Richmond who just released What if Cannabis Cured Cancer, an excellent documentary on cannabis and the endogenous cannabinoid system.  This noteworthy film presents the science in an easy to follow story and was recently praised by Dr. Andrew Weil. (Patients Out of Time is the only link to cannabis science on Dr. Weil’s website).

There are now 14 states and Washington DC with medical marijuana laws that allow patients access to cannabis, with other states considering similar legislation.  This past July the Under Secretary of Health for the Veterans Administration (VA) issued a Directive to all VA providers that (in effect) acknowledged cannabis as medicine.  Since VA physicians are federal employees they cannot recommend cannabis but, per the new directive, if a Veteran gets a recommendation from a healthcare provider in a medical marijuana state, the VA physician is to treat cannabis as any other medicine.  Cannabis can be a lifesaver for many of our combat Veterans.  As I read the news stories and debates about medicinal cannabis in the U.S. the opposition continues to present old lies and myths and seems to be oblivious to the new science on the endocannabinoid system (ECS).  There is an emerging body of science on the ECS that helps explain how and why cannabis is so safe and effective for such a wide variety of illnesses and conditions.  It appears that some of the autoimmune diseases may be the result of an ECS deficiency and cannabis is the only plant that provides the extra cannabinoids the body may need to function properly.

Patients Out of Time is an all volunteer organization and we need your help to disseminate this new science to healthcare providers, patients, politicians, and others so that this unjust, unfounded and cruel cannabis prohibition can finally end.  We all have our interests and causes that we support, but we are at a critical time right now.  I’m asking that you make Patients Out of Time your favorite (if not only) charity for the next two years.  Patients need this medicine now. The science is clear, but most healthcare professionals remain ignorant of the evidence.  We can end the prohibition.  Whether you can donate $10, $100, $1000 or more, every dollar will go towards our mission, which is to educate health care professionals and the public about the therapeutic use of cannabis.    Do this for your parent, your child, your sibling, your friend or yourself.  I’m asking you on behalf of all of the Patients Out of Time.

Sincerely,

Mary Lynn

Mary Lynn Mathre, RN, MSN, CARN

President and Co-founder

Patients Out of Time

1472 Fish Pond Rd.

Howardsville, VA 24562

434-263-4484

434-263-6753 fax

www.medicalcannabis.com

mlmathre@hughes.net

Patients Out of Time Donation

You may donate by check made out to Patients Out of Time or by going to our website and use your credit card through PayPal.  Donations are tax deductible.  You may specify that your donation be used for a specific project or otherwise we will prioritize its use.

__Upgrade our website to allow for streaming video and easy access to our library of videos

__Send expert speakers for testimony to state or federal legislators

__Provide experts from our Speaker’s Bureau to speak to organizations, clinics, other groups

__Provide educational DVD packages to legislators, health care professionals, community leaders

__Design site-specific educational programs regarding the safety and efficacy of cannabis or the                ECS

__Basic costs for printing, postage and general overhead

If you cannot afford to make a donation, you can still help.  ŸLearn about medicinal cannabis on our website and tell your friends to visit and learn.  ŸBuy cannabis books through our bookstore tab to Amazon (a portion of the $ goes to Patients Out of Time) or buy our DVDs through our website.  ŸBuy the film, What if Cannabis Cured Cancer, and show it to your friends and family.  ŸAsk you local public, school or college library to buy our conference DVD sets.  ŸAsk your healthcare provider to take our online conference courses through a direct link to the University of California San Francisco’s School of Medicine’s online CME program.  ŸIf you are a healthcare provider, I urge you to take the course so that you will understand the science that supports cannabis and learn about the newly discovered ECS that is vital to good health.  ŸIf you are a healthcare provider and belong to a specialty organization, ask to have a presentation on cannabis at the next conference or get the organization to pass a resolution supporting medicinal cannabis – Patients Out of Time can provide the speaker(s) or help in drafting a resolution.  ŸIf you have any questions or suggestions, please contact me through email or phone.

Send check to: Patients Out of Time, 1472 Fish Pond Rd., Howardsville, VA 24562 or pay online at www.medicalcannabis.com (lower left side of home page).