Is This The Socially-Distanced Dispensary Of The Future?

What do dispensaries look like in the new pandemic world?

One family-owned medical cannabis storefront in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania, has been built out to keep its customers and employees as safe as possible—not just temporarily, but for the long-term.

Enter the third location of Keystone Canna Remedies (KCR), a dispensary that serves the medical community in the Poconos, the first in the region. The Poconos is famous for its lush mountains, rivers, and weekend travelers. Keystone Canna Remedies have two other medical storefronts in the state in Allentown and Bethlehem.

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For the Guadagnino family of entrepreneurs who run the medical cannabis space, the pandemic made its necessity to open even more critical for local patients. Access is extremely limited for cannabis consumers in remote areas.

“We felt it was necessary to open as soon as possible to make MMJ more accessible to patients in the Pocono area," says Joan Guadagnino, KCR co-founder and Chief Operating Officer. "Driving distance will no longer be a deterring factor for patients considering medical marijuana.”

“Once people heard that our third location was going to be in Stroudsburg, we had patients ask us every day when we will be opening. Right now, patients travel at least 45 minutes to our Allentown or Bethlehem locations, this will cut their commute down to 5 to 10 minutes,” says Guadagnino.

Ryan Welty of RGW Architecture designed and built the space, with the goal of fostering "social distancing without negatively impacting overall patient experience." 

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KCR Stroudsburg offers extra layers of safety in both its design and policy measures, which include efficient use of space to expedite patient flow, tempered glass partitions, physical distancing markers, pharmacy consultation rooms designed to accommodate 6-foot distancing, pre-order options, designated parking for curbside transactions, patient limits within indoor waiting, and more.

It is a medical cannabis store, as Pennslyvania laws do not yet have adult-use in place, so be certain to check the regulations for the state in order to receive your license. Pennsylvania has 23 qualifying conditions for medical cards, so far, which include Autism, epilepsy disorders, anxiety disorders, cancer, among other critical health conditions medical marijuana can offer relief from.

The KCR Stroudsburg dispensary is located at 1523 North 9th Street in Stroudsburg, Pennsylvania.

"Public safety is enmeshed with the design philosophy for the new at Stroudsburg location, where patients can expect seamless social distancing along with the premium products and superior service that has made KCR one of the state’s leading dispensary systems," a representative at the company explains.

There are blue markers on the ground to indicate to consumers where they are required to stand in line. The company wanted to offer clear physical distancing markers to indicate appropriate spacing throughout indoor and outdoor waiting areas. This clarity in design is helpful, as patients generally are happy to follow safety regulations when they are informed of them.

The waiting room encourages people to remain 6 feet apart, as chairs have been spread out around the space.

"Patient safety is a top priority for us at KCR,” says Victor Guadagnino, co-founder and Chief Business Development Officer. “We knew it was necessary to include social distancing in our designs for the Stroudsburg location especially since we are opening two weeks after Monroe County moved to the yellow phase. We want our patients to feel comfortable entering our facilities knowing that we are taking these extra measures.”

The company offers medical consultations for prospective cannabis patients, so private rooms work for socially-distanced pharmacy consultations with a comfortable cushion of 6 feet of space. KCR is one dispensary that helped advocate for the expansion of Pennsylvania’s MMJ Caregiver Program so immunocompromised patients do not need to visit the dispensary.

The counters inside the storefront have been built with tempered glass barriers between the patients and the employee. It is common in dispensary settings to see partitions for safety, especially at check-in counters, but those barriers have not often been extended to the budtender's role at the cannabis counter itself. It is a familiar extra layer of precaution that has become even more critical in the COVID era.

Another view of the tempered glass partitions that exist in the space to separate patients from sale counters. In addition to the glass barriers, all employees and patients are required to wear PPE (personal protection equipment) both masks and gloves. These are provided to patients who enter the space, so no stress if you forgot yours at home.

A familiar sight, the slotted metal speakers in the tempered glass barriers allows for easier communication between budtenders and medical patients. It's a helpful addition, and makes the experience low-risk for those patients in Pennsylvania who need cannabis.