Charlie Booras, MD

Hi. I’m Charlie Booras, MD, FAAFP. I was born and raised here in Jacksonville, the 2nd of 5 children. Here’s a little information about my medical training and background.

I graduated from the USF Medical School in 1981 with honors. It was a 3-year accelerated program and I finished in the top 5% of my class.

In 1984, I completed a 3 year Family Medicine residency at St. Vincent’s Medical Center-Riverside (“Resident of the Year” in 1982 and Chief Resident in 1983).

I joined my father, Dr. William “Pete” Booras, MD, in August 1984 and we worked together in the Southside area for 16 wonderful years up until his retirement after 38 years in practice. He was the perfect partner and taught me a lot about the Art of medicine. I reciprocated by keeping him up to date about the ever-evolving Science of medicine.

I have always enjoyed research and became a Clinical Trialist at the Jacksonville Center for Clinical Research (JCCR) in 1996, helping to establish the Diabetes research arm of that highly respected group. I was both a Principal and Sub-Investigator for many studies. I have also been on the JCCR Board since 1998.

From 1998-2008, I was recruited to join the newly formed Medical Advisory Council (MAC) of Healthways, a world leader in the field of Disease Management. I was able to work alongside many outstanding doctors from Johns Hopkins, Vanderbilt and other prestigious institutions. It was during this time that my practice evolved to focus primarily on preventive care. This was based on the groundbreaking concepts advocated in the book, “Crossing the Quality Chasm”, from the Institute of Medicine. Although the MAC dissolved in 2008 when Healthways was bought out, my emphasis on quality care continued for my entire career until I formally retired in July, 2020.

I joined the Baptist Primary Care (BPC) panel in 2008 until my retirement in 2020.

I first became interested in cannabis as medication in 2013, when Dad was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS). My younger brother, Peter, had spent countless hours learning the science of how cannabis works in the human body and clued me in on what he had learned. After Dad was diagnosed with this terrible disorder, I immersed myself in learning as much as I could about the science of medical cannabis. Peter became highly regarded in the world of medical cannabis forums and shared his knowledge with everyone who was interested. Peter later earned certification as a Medical Cannabis Educator and has been instrumental in helping many people get the most out of their cannabis treatment. He is my partner in BoorasMD, Inc and provides consultative services following a consult and State-mandated brief exam from me.

I initially completed the Florida Physicians Medical Marijuana Certification in November 2017 and again in September 2019 and March 2021. In early 2019, I approached BPC administration with a recommendation to allow cannabis certified physicians to provide medical cannabis evaluations for patients in the BPC network. I wrote all of the educational literature for both patients and physicians in addition to creating the electronic record notes for these appointments. I provided certification for patients for about 8 months prior to my retirement. I was very impressed with how well multiple clients with very challenging problems responded to medical cannabis after failing to adequately improve using traditional medical therapies. I saw many people who were able to reduce or eliminate risky medications with addictive potential (opioids, anxiety meds, sleeping pills, etc). I also saw that patients had improvements in metrics of cardiovascular risk, such as blood pressure, diabetes and obesity.

As a lifelong science nerd, I am fascinated by the knowledge that humans, and in fact all mammals, possess an extremely complex system of self-repair/healing and prevention, called the Endocannabinoid system (ECS) that exists to maintain our bodies in a state of balance and homeostasis. Our bodies make relatively few endocannabinoids (only 2 are talked about), but the cannabis plant contains over 500 compounds that interact with the Endocannabinoid system to keep us healthy. We are clearly healthier when the ECS is actively working.

Back to “Dr. Pete” Booras, our father. Although ALS is universally fatal and more than half will pass within 3 years, Dad clearly responded to treatment with medical cannabis and survived for almost 7 years. Dad passed away on June 23, 2020, one month shy of his 89th birthday. We buried him with military honors at the Jacksonville National Cemetery on the same day that I retired, July 2, 2020.

After much thought and soul-searching, Peter and I have created BoorasMD.com to provide the following 3 Primary strategies to help people treat disease and improve health outcomes using medical cannabis.

We dedicate BoorasMD, Inc to the memory of our father, Dr. Pete Booras, MD.

1. WELLNESS.

My preferred definition of Wellness is to “strive for existing in a state of optimal mental and physical health”. We want to help individuals achieve Wellness through proper use of medical cannabis to augment function of the Endocannabinoid System.

2. EDUCATION.

Knowledge is Power! Peter and I feel there are ample opportunities to instruct people how to get the most out of medical cannabis. No one should have to figure out how to use medical cannabis on their own. Dispensaries are a useful source of information but should not be the sole resource for Education as dispensary personal do not have formal medical training. We want to provide adequate Education for people to best understand the different types of cannabis products on the market and provide guidance on exactly how to use these products. We also provide support after the appointment in order to answer questions and provide ongoing advice if the desired effect has not been achieved.

3. RESEARCH.

I am trained in the rigid science of the “randomized clinical trial” (RCT), which provides evidence-based physicians with a foundation for making treatment recommendations. However, these studies are typically funded by Pharmaceutical companies. Medical Cannabis lacks traditional study via RCT’s since it is classified as a Schedule 1 compound and thus can not be studied in the usual manner. Our Research will include collecting reports from our clients to determine outcomes after starting treatment with medical cannabis. These subjective metrics of Pain, Functional Impairment, Sleep, Anxiety, Depression and Quality of Life will help us better assess your response to treatment. We are also interested in determining if cannabis treatment has helped you reduce any medications or other treatments.

I have little doubt that medical cannabis will prove beneficial for the majority of individuals that meet criteria for certification. It is important to keep in mind that expectations should be realistic. Do not expect for your medical condition to be 100 percent resolved with cannabis, or any other treatment for that matter. For many problems it is realistic to expect 25-75 percent improvement. We have seen many people enjoy well over 50 percent improvement, but I typically do not set the goal higher than that high in order to avoid disappointment.

We look forward to working with you to achieve your goals, so please keep in touch.

Warm regards,

Dr. Charlie Booras, MD, FAAFP