Cannabis as a Medicine: A GP's Honest Experience

Featuring:

Dr Katherine Fitch, Releaf Consultant & GP

Graham Woodward, Chief Medical Officer @ Releaf

About This Episode:

In this episode of Beyond the Script, our Chief Medical Officer Graham Woodward sits down with Dr Katherine Fitch, a practising GP who also consults at Releaf, to talk about what really changed when she started prescribing medical cannabis to her patients. From the preconceptions she carried from medical school to the life-changing results she's seen at Releaf firsthand, this is an honest look at what happens when a doctor opens the door to a different kind of medicine.

In This Episode:

• How Dr Fitch's experience at Releaf challenged everything she was taught about cannabis

• The Releaf patient stories that shifted a GP's perspective

• Why up to 80% of the UK still don't know medical cannabis is available on prescription

• What's missing from medical school training when it comes to cannabis

• Why patients aren't telling their GPs about their medical cannabis prescriptions, and why that matters

• How Releaf's doctors went from "I'll try 8 hours a week" to working full-time

About Releaf

Launched in 2024, Releaf is the UK's fastest-growing and one of the most-trusted* medical cannabis clinics, serving patients through its advanced healthtech platform.

With a prescriber network of over 60 specialists, we deliver evidence-based cannabinoid care directly to patients' homes through tailored treatment plans.

Fully integrated with NHS systems, Releaf has transformed access to medical cannabis treatment in the UK and is now expanding internationally.

*According to Trustpilot.

Learn more at https://releaf.co.uk/

EP6 - What does purpose-driven leadership look like inside a fast-growing medical cannabis clinic?

In this special edition of the Business of Cannabis Podcast, Tim Kirby, CEO of Releaf, sits down with Professor Chris Shambrook, renowned performance psychologist and long-time advisor to the British Olympic rowing team. Together, they unpack how high-performance principles drawn from elite sport can translate into more intentional, human-centred healthcare leadership.

From scaling teams with clarity to balancing compliance with compassion, this episode explores how Releaf is redefining what good leadership looks like in modern medicine, and why purpose can’t be an afterthought when the stakes are this high.

Chapters:

00:00 Beyond The Script with Chris Shambrook

00:51 High Performance Frameworks and Cultures

02:55 Results vs. Performance

06:32 Behaviour Commitment and Performance

09:30 Consistency and Marginal Gains in Sport

18:31 Leadership and Management in Growing Organisations

21:35 The Single Patient Focus

22:56 Spreading Confidence and Knowledge

25:05 Autonomy, Mastery, and Purpose

27:10 Creating a High-Performance Culture

31:47 Practical Steps for Development

36:34 Wrap Up

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releaf.co.uk

EP5 - Join COO of Releaf, Graham Woodward, and Dr Anne Katrin Schlag, Head of Research at Drug Science, as they explore how the UK can move from anecdotal patient stories to real-world evidence, and why this shift is vital for expanding safe, trusted access to cannabis-based medicines.

Let's rethink healTHCare.

Chapters:

00:00 Beyond The Script with Anne Schlag

00:19 Meet Anne: Pioneering Medical Cannabis Research

01:00 The Role of Drug Science in Medical Cannabis

02:30 T21 Real World Data Registry Insights

03:29 Key Findings and Patient Outcomes

07:05 Challenges and Future Directions in Medical Cannabis

09:56 Educational Efforts and Policy Changes

15:17 International Perspectives and Best Practices

20:25 The Importance of Patient Stories and Public Outreach

24:58 Wrap Up

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releaf.co.uk