Colorado School of Public Health News and Stories

Among health experts, the jury is still out on THC, CBD and the use of marijuana in general, as those in medical and research fields weigh the benefits and risks. "This is the big challenge with cannabis: How do we facilitate the beneficial medical applications, allow for what society has determined is acceptable recreational use and also guard against the very real harms?" Gregory Tung, Ph.D., an associate professor at the Colorado School of Public Health, tells USA TODAY. "This is difficult and will likely require a mix of policy, rules, regulations and education."

USA Today | July 09, 2024

At the intersection of art, science, and health, BRDG Project Gallery at 3300 Tejon St. in Denver hosting “Hear/Say”, a groundbreaking art exhibition exploring the effects of high-concentration cannabis. Sponsored by the Colorado School of Public Health, the show is a science-based examination that encourages conversation and open-minded understanding of a controversial subject through the artistic lens of local and national artists. The public is invited to view the exhibition from June 14 through July 14, 2024 during regular BRDG Project gallery hours. 

The Denver Post | June 11, 2024

In 2023, some of the nation’s top public health researchers at the Colorado School of Public Health tackled a variety of the largest public health questions facing us today.

Colorado School of Public Health | December 19, 2023

Today, a research team assembled by the Colorado School of Public Health (ColoradoSPH) in response to the 2021 Colorado House Bill HB21-1317, “Regulating Marijuana Concentrates,” delivered its mandated review to Colorado legislators on the scientific evidence related to the physical and mental health effects of high-concentration THC (delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol, the main psychoactive compound in cannabis products). This review was requested as the marketplace shifted towards high-concentration products. The health implications of this change are not well understood. In a comprehensive scoping review, the team screened approximately 66,000 studies and ultimately identified 452 published through late 2022 that are relevant to understanding the health effects of high-concentration cannabis products. The ColoradoSPH team also created a first-of-its-kind interactive and publicly available evidence map of the 452 cannabis studies, which makes the studies searchable and accessible.   

Colorado School of Public Health | April 19, 2023

With rising numbers of fatalities involving impaired drivers, Ashley Brooks-Russell, ColoradoSPH associate professor and director of Injury & Violence Prevention Center, discusses how the mixing of cannabis and alcohol may be contributing to this increase.

Westword | March 05, 2022

The commercial cannabis industry continues to grow in Colorado and nationwide, demanding the need for a new workforce to be trained in occupational safety and health (OSH). In 2016, educators at the Center for Health, Work & Environment designed and delivered a full-day, in-person workshop for cannabis cultivation workers—one of the first learning experiences in the country of this kind. The course was an overview of OSH hazards and topics critical to the industry including chemical exposures, repetitive motion disorders, lockout/tagout, machine guarding, and personal protective equipment. A total of 208 people attended the two full-day trainings. 

To ensure we continue to provide high-quality educational offerings, our center evaluates all of its continuing education activities. Our recent paper, published in the Annals of Work Exposure and Health, describes how we evaluated this specific training. We wanted to know what attendees thought about the training, whether their knowledge about OSH in the cannabis industry improved, and how their OSH concerns changed after the training. 

Our evaluation discovered that:

91% of attendees rated the training as “very good” or “excellent.”
76% of attendees reported increased knowledge.
Attendees planned to implement changes in the workplace such as conducting more safety trainings, changing safety programs and policies, improving hazards, increasing OSH communications, and performing ergonomic and hazard assessments. 

Our evaluation demonstrates that OSH concerns of attendees shifted before and after the training, reflecting a better understanding of the musculoskeletal and respiratory hazards that exist in cannabis cultivation work. The training increased workers’ awareness of OSH issues that are more concerning and hazardous in their work than issues they previously thought were the most pressing. 

A significant takeaway from this training and its evaluation is that cannabis cultivation workers are highly interested in OSH training specific to their industry. Based on the rapidly expanding legalized cannabis landscape, the industry will continue to need updated information to keep its workforce safe and healthy on the job. Our center offers an online version of this training through its continuing education platform and is in the process of developing a more extensive training in the next year.   

If you are interested in occupational safety and health training for your cannabis cultivation employees, please reach out. 

Carol Brown | April 06, 2020