Available for the next year on BBC iPlayer, Cannabis: Prescription or Pot Luck features Hannah Deacon and Alfie Dingley, cannabis expert Professor David Nutt, Dr David McCormick, a Consultant Paediatrician from Kings College London, and patients Amanda Lowe and Conor Ryder.
In 2018, there was a shift in legislation permitting expert consultants to prescribe whole-plant cannabis treatments. However, as the film highlights, while it's legal, the NHS doesn't widely offer it. Whole plant cannabis hasn't been included on any NHS Trust's list of sanctioned medications, leading to many prescriptions being denied.
This BBC cannabis documentary by Alastair Fee highlights the inequality in access to this life changing treatment, which sees Alfie benefit from an NHS prescription, while countless other families of children in the same position are denied. Many have no choice but to either turn to the private sector, often bearing steep costs, or go without the treatment altogether.
This BBC documentary features a morning with Alfie, his parents Hannah and Drew, and sister Annie, showing how through his NHS funded whole-plant medical cannabis treatment, Alfie has managed to stay seizure-free for over three years.
Watch the documentary on iPlayer now.