Doctor’s License Revoked After Cannabis-Related Misdiagnosis

[dropcap class=”kp-dropcap”]A[/dropcap] physician’s medical license was revoked after recommending cannabis to control a child’s tantrums, which were falsely linked to attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). While the medical license was revoked, it wasn’t because the doctor recommended cannabis, but rather because the boy didn’t in fact have ADHD.

Los Angeles Times reports that Dr. William Eidelman, a Hollywood, California doctor, is accused of misdiagnosing a 4-year-old boy with ADHD and recommending that he take cannabis-infused cookies in order to control his tantrums. The boy was brought to the doctor in September 2012, when the crime allegedly took place. Later it was determined that the boy was misdiagnosed, and for that reason, should have never been recommended the medical cannabis.

“Tantrums alone do not support either diagnosis,” the medical board stated in a decision. “Being agitated and having trouble sitting still hint at ADHD, but could simply hint at a preschooler not happy to have driven many miles to a doctor’s appointment.” Normally, there is a fairly complex process that doctors should follow when diagnosing a child or an adult with ADHD. Symptoms must be present in more than one sitting, and generally the patient is observed for 6 months or more.

The board admitted that the misdiagnosis was the crime, and not the recommendation for medical cannabis. “It has not been established, by clear and convincing evidence, that the recommendation of medical marijuana to (the boy), with his father’s consent, violated the standard of care,” the decision reads.

Eidelman ran a business that offered medical cannabis recommendations since 1997, only a year after California legalized medical cannabis. The boy’s father was also a patient at the clinic and received a recommendation for medical cannabis. Eidelman has been reprimanded in the past after he recommended medical cannabis to undercover police officers in 2000 and 2001, during a time when cannabis doctors were at risk. It’s unclear whether or not the doctor will be able to get his license back, as he claims that his practice is still open for business.