Medical Marijuana Minute

BY LEA HOLZ

How to Avoid a Negative Dispensary Experience

Recently, a friend told a disturbing story: On her first trip to a dispensary, his 80+ year old grandmother came home with a large bag. The budtender had encouraged her to buy every vape cartridge and tincture product in the store. Despite the many containers of tincture, and vaporizers that spilled from her bag, the patient had left the dispensary with very little product knowledge, or directions. Alarmed, her family struggled for answers. They turned to a family member who had attended FGCU’s first WEED course last semester. They asked if it was normal for grandma to purchase so many products on the first visit? He was shocked to see a new patient receiving so many products, and most of them not what the recommending doctor had suggested for the patient’s conditions.

I have heard my share of disparaging dispensary stories over the years. I learned just how valuable a kind, knowledgeable, and communicative budtender really is. Thankfully, the stories of blatant patient disregard and manipulation have been fairly isolated.

Hopefully, the majority of faces in the cannabis industry are here to help, and with a little awareness and preparation, you can make your dispensary visit the best possible.

Read on for three facts to keep in mind when purchasing from your local dispensary. Hopefully, they will keep you and your loved ones from falling victim to a negative dispensary experience.

HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?

WHY WAS A PATIENT TAKEN ADVANTAGE OF?

HOW COULD THEY PREVENT THIS FROM HAPPENING IN THE FUTURE?

A DISPENSARY IS A RETAIL STORE.

Patient be wary: while cannabis dispensaries promote themselves as medical centers and often offer rich opportunities for education, they are retail stores. Retail stores, by design, thrive on their ability to sell as much product as possible.

In structure, dispensaries are no different than your local Target or Publix, and if you’ve ever found yourself working the frontlines of a busy retail store, you know how it works. A store purchases (or produces) a product, with an expectation of how much will be sold. If these items don’t sell, the product is marked down to encourage sales, and salespersons on the floor will be encouraged (and incentivized) to sell as much of the product as possible.

This structure works well when you’re selling bags of chips and skinny jeans, but when applied to something like cannabis and human health, risks come into play, and unfortunately, all of the risks are to the patient.

A quick search of dispensary job reviews on Indeed.com will yield multiple accounts of former dispensary workers being pressured to sell patients unnecessary products in the face of declining demand.

The problem with this model is obvious: How can a budtender provide ethical care when their superior’s instruction directly conflicts with the patient’s needs? What if a CBD vape pen is on sale, but what the patient really needs is CBN tincture? Can you trust your budtender to proceed ethically? In cases like this, the patient is at the will of the budtender’s judgement, and when judgement is influenced by industry demands, patient satisfaction is put at risk.

The solution? Be informed of your dispensary’s return policy, practice logic, and make sure you research all products you plan to buy before entering the store. Use your budtender as a reference, but have your own backup information on hand. Also, don’t be shocked by the fact that…

YOUR BUDTENDER HAS NO CERTIFICATION.

The cannabis industry is young. Medical cannabis programs vary in structure and policy, but all have one thing in common: there is no governing body for, no nationallyrecognized standards for, and, in almost all states, no state training or certification required of those who sell your medicine in a cannabis dispensary. That’s right—it is easier and less expensive to become certified to advise medical cannabis patients on a dispensary floor than it is to apply makeup at a beauty counter or cut someone’s hair.

While some impressive private education programs are available throughout the US and online, most are not regulated by a governing body. Many offer private certifications in cannabis education and budtending, but no national standard or testing is currently recognized or required in the US to sell medically-infused products as a dispensary worker. Background checks are often required, and each state writes its own policy on licensing mandates—but of those licensed to sell cannabis, most require no cannabis education either.

Now, that’s not to say that there aren’t passionate, well-informed industry professionals out there eager to provide good patient care. There certainly are, and the dispensary is one of the best places to find them! However, many new patients mistakenly assume that the same certifications and education required of your nurse, doctor, or pharmacy are also held by your local dispensary workers.

Like any retail store, most dispensaries require their employees to undergo some training on product knowledge and sales, but not all require budtenders to understand how and why these products work. This is why, prior to entering a dispensary, it is essential to remember that…

YOU NEED TO KNOW THE ROPES.

It never feels good to be taken advantage of, but it happens to the best of us. To avoid this experience, practice the same caution you would in any retail store.

Do your research before speaking with a salesperson.

Read up on what cannabinoids, terpenes, and strains may be of most benefit to your individual condition.

Enter with the knowledge of what to ask is a good way to ensure your budtender has the resources he or she needs to help you. It will also help you recognize who has the education and experience best suited to assist your needs.

When you do choose to work with someone, choose an individual who can answer your questions with ease.

And never feel pressured to leave the store with a product you’re unsure about. The dispensary will still be there tomorrow after you’ve had time to sleep on it.

How can a patient tell the difference between good and not-so-good service?

Ask plenty of questions and prepare yourself with basic working knowledge of cannabis and your body.

Listen to the answers and proceed accordingly.

Your budtender may be able to talk about the cannabinoids and terpenes present in a vape cartridge, but can they tell you how those terpenes were derived and what they do?

An educator may be able to talk about the ratios of THC to CBD in a product, but can they explain the Entourage Effect?

Most importantly, does the person working with you have an obvious interest in helping you feel better?

By assuring you are informed about your condition, which products work for you, and have made your choice for routes of administration, you can be assured your trip to the dispensary will be rewarding instead of overwhelming.