Skip to main content Skip to main navigation Skip to page-level navigation Go to the Disability Resource Centre Website Go to the DRC Booking Accommodation Portal Go to the Inclusive Technology Lab Website
The University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia Okanagan campus
UBC Okanagan News
  • Research
  • People
    • Student Profile
    • Faculty Profile
    • Alumni Spotlight
  • Campus Life
    • Campus News
    • Student Life
    • Teaching & Learning
  • Community Engagement
  • About the Collection
    • Stories for Media
  • UBCO Events
  • Search All Stories
Home / 2020 / May / 22 / Exploring therapeutic uses of medicinal cannabis
Faculty Profile, People

Exploring therapeutic uses of medicinal cannabis

Shifting attitudes around cannabis allow Dr. Zach Walsh and his team to contribute to a scientific explosion that explores therapeutic uses of medicinal plants

May 22, 2020

About

Name
Zach Walsh

Role
Associate Professor

Program
Psychology

Faculty
Irving K. Barber School of Arts and Sciences

Campus
Okanagan (Kelowna, BC)

Education
BA (Psychology), University of Winnipeg

Bachelor of Education, University of Winnipeg

MS (Psychology), Chicago Medical School/Rosalind Franklin University

PhD (Clinical Psychology), Chicago Medical School/Rosalind Franklin University

Hometown
Winnipeg, Manitoba

“What better place to study an issue like the therapeutic uses of medicinal plants than in Kelowna, Canada, where tolerance and freedom are valued and celebrated?”

SOMETIMES SCIENCE leads to discoveries that change society. Sometimes societal changes open the door for scientific advancement.

Zach Walsh, Associate Professor of Psychology, studies medicinal cannabis use. He says we are at an historic turning point in the public perception and use of medicinal plants, and our understanding of how to use them to help people suffering from a variety of issues.

Why Psychology?

“We are at an extraordinary intersection of a social-change movement and scientific explosion that will directly affect the lives of people around the globe,” he says. “Canada and British Columbia are leading the way in the acceptance of using cannabis for therapeutic purposes. Canada was among the first countries in the world to have a medical cannabis program.”

CONNECTING TO THE COMMUNITY

Dr. Walsh, who is a registered clinical psychologist and co-director of the Centre for the Advancement of Psychological Science and the Law at UBC’s Okanagan campus, balances his work as a clinical psychologist with his active research program.

“Researching the medicinal use of cannabis allows for a mix of applied and theoretical perspectives, and gives people in the community answers to pressing issues. The place where community engagement and high-quality science mix is a rewarding place to be as a researcher and an educator.”

 

 

SUPPORTING STUDENT OPPORTUNITIES

Since joining UBC Okanagan in 2009, Walsh has supervised students through the Irving K. Barber School Undergraduate Research Award program, which gives undergraduate students the opportunity to pursue innovative and original research.

He also believes in the importance of students working in the community to see the “big picture science” and experience one-on-one contact with practitioners and patient. Students see how research directly affects the lives of people who rely on plant-based medicines.

Walsh’s students have visited local seniors groups to discuss the benefits of medicinal cannabis for ailments such as arthritis, and have presented work at international conferences and to the House of Commons in Ottawa.

UNTANGLING MISCONCEPTIONS

“There is so much we don’t know about the use of medicinal plants,” he says. “Refining medicines derived from cannabis and other plants will have a dramatic effect on the health of Canadians and people worldwide. How do we make the best use of these plants and combine them with other therapies to create better outcomes for people who are suffering?”

Walsh believes British Columbia and UBC Okanagan are perfect places to conduct this type of research. “Our campus is small enough that undergraduates can work closely with faculty and senior researchers, and be involved in high-level research at one of the top research universities in the world.

“And, what better place to study an issue like this than in Kelowna, Canada, where tolerance and freedom are valued and celebrated?”

—by Deanna Roberts

Content type: Profile
More content from: Irving K Barber School of Arts and Sciences (prior July 2020), Psychology

Trending Stories

  • Reducing the side effects of cancer therapy
  • Putting community, students and research on the same track
  • Psychedelic mushroom microdoses can improve mood, mental health
  • UBCO’s largest graduating class marks 20 years of growth
  • Made in Canada breakthrough is a gamechanger in heart valve technology
All Stories
UBCO Events

About UBC Okanagan

UBC’s Okanagan campus is an innovative hub for research and learning founded in partnership with local Indigenous peoples, the Syilx Okanagan Nation, in whose traditional, ancestral and unceded territory the campus resides. The most established and influential global rankings all consistently place UBC in the top five per cent of universities in the world, and among the top three Canadian universities.

The Okanagan campus combines a globally recognized UBC education with a tight-knit and entrepreneurial community that welcomes students and faculty from around the world in British Columbia’s stunning Okanagan Valley. For more visit ok.ubc.ca.

Discover more about UBC Okanagan

Find a Program Admissions Book a Tour UBCO Facts
UBC Okanagan Campus News, University Relations

Innovation Precinct Annexation 1 (IA1)
3505 Spectrum Court
Kelowna, BC Canada V1V 2Z1

We respectfully acknowledge the Syilx Okanagan Nation and their peoples, in whose traditional, ancestral, unceded territory UBC Okanagan is situated.

 

Search all stories

Subscribe to receive news by email

Visit UBC's Vancouver news room

Global and Admin Messages

News

Okanagan Campus

TikTok icon Linkedin icon

UBC Okanagan News
Okanagan Campus
3333 University Way
Kelowna, BC Canada V1V 1V7
Find us on
  
Back to top
The University of British Columbia
  • Emergency Procedures |
  • Terms of Use |
  • Copyright |
  • Accessibility