Patients now able to access specialist consultants and cannabis medicines without ever having to leave their homes

– Grow Pharma partner with Cannabis Access Clinics to launch new end-to-end service launched in response to Covid-19 crisis

– Includes free initial screening call, specialist consultation via online video and next-day home delivery

– Overall price has significantly dropped thanks to wider selection of medicines, clinics and consultations

– CEO of Grow, confirms strength of supply chains and stocks of cannabis medicines in the UK

LONDON, April 13, 2020 /PRNewswire/ — The medical cannabis industry in the UK has quickly adapted to the challenges to patient access posed by the current COVID-19 outbreak by implementing the rapid roll-out of remote access and online services for medical cannabis patients, dramatically improving patient experience – meaning patients won’t have to leave their home at any point to get their medicine.

Previously patients were required to meet specialists in person for consultations in order to receive prescriptions, repeating the visits every 28 days in order to renew their prescription. This was often physically taxing, especially for chronic pain patients, adding to anxiety and costs associated with obtaining their medicine.

In direct response to these challenges, Grow Pharma, a subsidiary of Grow, has partnered with Cannabis Access Clinics to launch a brand new end-to-end service that will allow patients to obtain medical cannabis without ever leaving their home. This service will walk the patient through every step of the way, from an initial free consultation, through to a consultation with a specialist doctor via online video link, to a next-day delivery to the patient’s doorstep.

One such patient is Sharon Dunne, a mental health professional from Devon and long-term chronic pain patient. She recently came across the new online services offered by The Cannabis Access Clinic through Grow, and decided to try it for the first time.

“The ability to do this through video link was very helpful; if you are in constant pain it is more difficult to make a long journey to see a specialist. I had been wanting to attend a clinic but a six or seven-hour return journey just to check eligibility made that too difficult,” Sharon said, demonstrating the immediate impact that these online services are having on patient access.

This does not mean that safety standards have been lowered. Sharon noted that, “The process was very rigorous and I had to demonstrate the failures of mainstream medicine to treat my pain, which I was able to do since I have all my medical records here at home. I now hope that medical cannabis will help me reduce my reliance on opioids.”

Dr Samuel Murray, the general manager of Cannabis Access Clinics, said, “Improving patient access to medical cannabis in the safest way possible is our number one priority at Cannabis Access Clinics UK. For many patients, particularly those who suffer from chronic pain and decreased mobility, it just doesn’t make sense to journey into central London needlessly. It’s often much safer that they stay at home, now more than ever, and see the specialist via video consultation.”

According to a 2019 YouGov poll, 1.4 million people in the UK self-medicate using cannabis bought on the black market. It is important that patients who have begun treatment via legal routes do not return to the black market due to the perceived lack of supply during the current crisis.

On a positive note, Alex Fraser, Patient Access Specialist at Grow noted that, “This move towards remote-access is a trend that has been seen in other sectors and will continue to shape how we provide care for patients in the future. Ease of access to medicines thanks to creative uses of technologies combined with a rapidly falling cost of care will greatly improve patients’ experiences.”

Grow is one of the largest importers and distributors of medical cannabis in the UK and is continually working to reduce costs associated with cannabis medicines. This includes measures such as increasing the range of available medicines, removing barriers to access, aiding in clinical trials and shared care initiatives.

Addressing the public’s concern about a potential future shortage in stocks of medical cannabis in the UK, Grow’s CEO Ben Langley, said, “There is an abundance of cannabis medicines available in the UK and we have been working tirelessly with our partners to ensure that these medicines get to the patients for whom it is a crucial element of their doctor’s prescribed treatment.

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