Marijuana legalization has caused controversy in every area where it has been passed or even considered. While medical marijuana has received a great deal of attention recently due to its proven medical benefits, many people still see the drug as solely the property of the streets. How can doctors, dispensaries and other health care team members keep cannabis products intended for medical use in the hands of deserving patients and out of the pockets of those who might abuse it?
Provision by Prescription
Marijuana dispensaries in the United States and Canada that service medical marijuana patients require that prescriptions be presented at the time of purchase for their products. Either it’s ordered by your doctor, or it’s not going home with you. Additionally, some companies such as Tamarack Dispensaries in Alberta require buyers of medicinal marijuana to become store members before allowing any sales to take place. This enables purchases to be tracked and users to be monitored the same way pharmacies track use of prescription opiate drugs and other potentially hazardous medications.
Precautions Across the Board
While there are marijuana-derived products that are perfectly legal to purchase almost anywhere, any product containing the active ingredient THC must be closely regulated. Laws in some areas are laxer than others, but dispensaries in most states and provinces are still required to enforce prescription or membership regulations on buyers of everything from cannabis oil to marijuana edibles used for the treatment of pain. The inconsistency of marijuana legalization has created a mixed bag of social and political climates in which marijuana therapy is used, but seeing that precautions are taken in every one of these areas to prevent abuse allows all members of patient care teams to contribute to safer, better usage of these products.
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