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Medical cannabis clinic set to open in Lethbridge

Jul 7, 2017 | 2:45 PM

LETHBRIDGE – Two years after starting in Calgary, medical cannabis clinic, Natural Health Services (NHS), is set to open a new location in Lethbridge.

The clinic – which you can visit on your own or with a referral from your doctor – will open its doors on July 17, at 719 4 Ave South, Unit 110.

Kait Shane, Director of Patient Care, says they will have doctors on site, and that their services are free, as part of your provincial health care coverage.

“The doctor would recommend whether or not cannabis was right for whatever is troubling you,” stated Shane, while speaking with Lethbridge News Now. “It is great for a huge [range of issues] from seizures to migraines, insomnia, anxiety, depression, PTSD. Anecdotally speaking, there is huge evidence on all of those. Scientifically speaking, there’s animal evidence behind it.

“Our doctor can pretty much gear you towards what they think is best in generalities in terms of consumption methods, whether it be oil or maybe vaporizing the herb, or CBD – which is non-psychoactive completely – or THC, or a combination thereof. Of course, you’re going to have a big part in determining what’s best for your individual system,” she continued.

After getting a prescription, Shane says patients move to their education centre, where they will connect you with a licenced Canadian producer.

From that point, she says the paper work generally takes about two weeks to process, and the medication will be delivered to your home, meaning there won’t be any cannabis at the clinic.

“If there’s any brick and mortar involved, or any exchange of the product, then it’s technically illegal,” explained Shane. “It does have to go through a doctor, the prescription has to be faxed to a licenced producer, and that licenced producer has to make sure that they are delivering that product to your assigned address.”

For those who are still new to the concept of using medical cannabis, Shane says they have live, interactive sessions every Tuesday night on the NHS Facebook page, and a series called ‘The Cannabis Show’ every Wednesday on YouTube.

“We’re constantly doing things to try to make it easier for the patient to feel more comfortable, and more able to make educated choices.”

The new Lethbridge location will be the fifth for NHS, joining Calgary, Edmonton, Medicine Hat and Saskatoon. Shane noted that they also plan to open another four clinics across Canada over the next three to four months.

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