NEWS
TODDLER FROM NORTHERN
IRELAND BECOMES FIRST CHILD
TO BE PRESCRIBED MEDICAL
CANNABIS IN THE UK
Vapouround CBD spoke to the child’s father, who
described going through an emotional rollercoaster
to obtain the prescription.
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VAPOUROUND CBD MAGAZINE
“We’ve spent well over 50 trips in the back of an ambulance
in Jorja’s short life.”
The story rings true for several other families in the UK,
with the Billy Caldwell and Alfie Dingley cases making
headlines throughout 2018.
For families like Jorja’s, a one month supply of the medication
is said to cost close to £1,000. Her father says it is worth
every penny, as just three weeks in, her condition is
better than expected. However, he hopes the NHS will
eventually help in supplying repeat prescriptions.
Speaking to this magazine three weeks into the first month
of the medication, Robin Emerson said: “We weren’t
expecting signs of improvement until five weeks. Her
seizures have already reduced, and she is in great form.”
The NHS takes the stance that all other treatment options
must be exhausted prior to medicinal cannabis being
prescribed. It adds that medicinal cannabis treatments can
be prescribed in cases of children with rare and severe
forms of epilepsy, adults with vomiting or nausea caused
by chemotherapy and adults with muscle stiffness caused
by multiple sclerosis (MS).
Speaking to Northern Ireland’s News Letter, Jorja’s father
told reporters:
“We are letting bureaucracy get in the way of saving children’s
lives. Jorja is entitled to her medication and it’s legal.
A two-year-old girl from Northern Ireland with severe
epilepsy is believed to have become the first child in the
UK to be prescribed medical cannabis.
In January, after months of disappointment and frustration,
Jorja Emerson’s father Robin collected the first month’s supply
of her whole plant medication, since the government made
medical cannabis legal on November 1 last year.
Robin announced the news on Facebook, having built
a growing international interest on the social media
platform with families around the world amidst similar
struggles supporting Jorja’s case.
It’s a landmark moment for the toddler and her family,
and the many other UK families with children suffering
from severe epilepsy, in which this news will no doubt
instil hope.
In December, Jorja was given a prescription at a private
hospital in London after a specialist agreed to prescribe
the medicine which is made by a Canadian company.
Jorja’s father said it only came about once the NHS
gave written assurances that the specialist’s professional
career would not be jeopardised in helping his two-year
old and writing her that first prescription.
The Emerson family come from Dundonald, Co Down,
and say the toddler has often suffered up to 30 seizures a
day, one of which dad Robin said lasted 17 hours.