Shantal Arroyo: Clinique La Croix Verte

Introduction to Shantal Arroyo

Shantal Arroyo is the founder of Clinique La Croix Verte, a medical cannabis clinic in Montreal. Actively involved in the field of cannabis since 2007, Shantal brings years of knowledge and experience to the cannabis industry. Shantal has expertise in consultative sales, and the production and processing of cannabis and derivatives.

As a militant pro-cannabis advocate, Shantal has opened and operated a number of “compassion clubs” in Quebec for people seeking medicinal cannabis. Through her clinics, she has helped thousands of patients with different pathologies.

As the spokesperson for the Association of Interveners in Medical Cannabis, Shantal has been on the front lines of cannabis advocacy with governments at every level. The AQICM offers professional training, cannabis expertise, workshops and more for cannabis professionals.

OCN spoke with Shantal about her personal experiences with cannabis, and how she came about to opening a large and successful medicinal cannabis clinic in Canada’s second largest city.

OnlyCannabisNews: Tell me about your history with cannabis.

Shantal Arroyo: Ever since I was a teenager I have always had a soft spot for cannabis, and at the time it was hash. Alcohol was not my thing at all. I didn’t like its effects but smoking hashish allowed me to relax and stopped my brain a bit from running at 100 miles an hour all the time!

OCN: What pushed you to fight for legalization, to get involved as much for the cause?

SA: It seemed like everyone was consuming cannabis in secret. People of all ages were using pot, but at the same time risking getting caught and being charged with a criminal offence. Consuming cannabis isn’t really that serious, so why were we risking so much?

OCN: Did something motivate you personally?

SA: Everything changed for me while I was walking my dog in a park in Montreal during the summer of 2000. I accidentally stepped on a bag of drug-infected needles and syringes. I had to do tri-therapy (HIV – Hep) for several months because the syringes tested positive for Hepatitis C.

I was 27 years old. I really didn’t have a choice. The side effects of the medication quickly made me really sick. I was so sick I wanted to stop the treatment. Whispering in the hospital corridor, my doctor told me the benefits of “smoking”!

I nearly fainted! My doctor was telling me to smoke pot?!?!

OCN: What did you do?

I immediately went to join the first compassion club opened by Caroline Doyer and Louise Caroline Bergeron on Rachel Street in Montreal. I finished the treatment a few months later thanks to my “pot.” Fortunately, I contracted nothing from the needle stick. But it opened my eyes to the people who need cannabis to survive and to the essential work of the compassion clubs of the time.

A Cannabis Activist

OCN: What led you to open a clinic?

SA: I became a militant cannabis activist after my treatment. I began participating more actively in the pro-cannabis marches in the early 2000s.

OCN: How did you do this?

SA: In 2008, we opened a compassion center in Quebec City. We came up with the idea with the team on site to make a clinic more specialized in cannabis. We witnessed the popularity of the plant and we realised we needed a rigorous and serious organization, with more competent people and stakeholders.

In June 2010, we were raided by the provincial police due to the abuse of certain “clubs”. As a result, all of the compassion centers and clubs were closed. Except that we re-opened the one in Montreal 3 weeks later. My partner Mike and I continued operating in a clandestine manner for three years. Eventually, all 17 employees received an absolute discharge.

We were back at square one. This allowed us to see the flaws of our operation and we worked on the development of the “clinical” project.

Unfortunately, during our presentation of the improvements we thought essential to the Montreal compassion centre in July 2013, several conflicts of interest appeared. To our dismay we were thanked for our services to the Compassion Centres of the Marijuana Foundation. We were six employees and another four followed us.

Worth It At All Costs

OCN: What’s the history of the clinic? Have you made any mistakes along the way?

SA: We nearly threw in the towel following the mishap with the Compassion Centres. I was extremely disgusted with the whole business environment of cannabis. The lure of cash was put in front of patient well-being. And I can say that I learned everything that should not be done during this period! We had a lot of contracts with licensed producers from here and from western Canada to develop production greenhouses or set up patient bases but each time we saw that it was always the profit rather than the patient.

Our experiences with a variety of Canadian cannabis companies has been that profit has always been put before the patient experience. We are a “patient focused” enterprise and service. — Shantal Arroyo

OCN: Who were some of the key people who helped you?

It was during this hardship that we unexpectedly met key people who pushed us to open our own place with our own vision. Consider this: Opening the clinic is Quebec City lasted less than a year. We lost a fortune of money and time. Trafficking charges were laid. We were in court for four years. And eventually everything was dropped. Despite all of these costs, this allowed us to forge a solid friendship with key people and a strong confidence with our partners and associates.

OCN: What would you do differently?

SA: Nothing. I did exactly what I thought was the best thing to do at the time. I don’t believe in perfection. Maybe I didn’t always make the best choice when choosing employees… but other than that, nothing major.

A Growing Business

OCN: Has your business grown?

SA: In 5 years we have gone from 4 employees to 35 including 25 health professionals. Our clinic has grown from a small 900 square foot office to more than 6400 square feet over two floors. And, most importantly, our active patient list has grown from a few dozen patients to more than 5000.

OCN: What were the biggest obstacles?

SA: Legalization (laughs) Yes, it seemed ironic but from the moment that the government declared the medicinal plant as a recreational product they destroyed 30 years of militant work. You have to understand that before legalization cannabis was considered a medicinal plant, with restricted access to its medicinal use. With recreational legalization came regulation, and POOF! The stock market and CEOs looking for profits invaded the medicinal cannabis market. All of those people who used to look down on us suddenly became interested in the “potheads.”

OCN: What do you think about the legislation of cannabis?

SA: Absolutely EVERYTHING that Quebec has proposed as regulations is dictated by the well-meaning morality of baby boomers who love red wine rather than the science and history of this fascinating plant. We are just beginning to see the extent of its properties. In 25 years we will be ashamed of how we closed our eyes to its virtues and how we let bureaucrats prevent us from accessing one of the greatest riches of nature has provided.

Clinique La Croix Verte Offerings

OCN: How does the clinic work? What can we find there?

SA: First of all, we are a bridge between doctors and patients. We are there to support patients who want to supervise medicinal use and who want to successfully relieve certain ailments and certain conditions thanks to well-dosed cannabis. We work with hundreds of doctors in Quebec but also internally with nurses, social workers, scientists and researchers. Our products are custom made with certified, tested products. We have a database of thousands of patients with their symptoms, medications, side effects, success stories, recipes, testimonials. We also have data on animals and cannabis, different products, varieties of cannabis and extracts. We are developing observational and qualitative clinical research. We have a community with support, and a training center for health professionals. Our scientific director has a doctorate in molecular biology and is working with the research chair at the University of Moncton. It is also an association of professionals who wish to integrate cannabis into their therapy or into their training program.

OCN: Do you think there will be any changes after the COVID-19 crisis?

SA: I think we already had the protocols in place to respond well to COVID-19 because we already had procedures for cleaning and contamination since we have been working with sick people for a long time. The only thing that would be desirable is to have a better acceptance of our services and to be able to offer it everywhere in Quebec as is currently the case in Montreal. The proximity of an expert who does not judge you and who can sincerely support you with your cannabis use can really change the effectiveness of a treatment.

OCN: Will these changes affect your business and if so, how?

SA: I hope the micro cannabis production market will be opened in Quebec. We have excellent local expertise and everything you need to create a profitable and local industry. We have everything at the clinic and at the national cannabinoid institute to help entrepreneurs and for those who are equipped, our unique expertise must be put to use for Quebecers.

OCN: What’s your opinion on the use of the word “marijuana” in the industry?

SA: Do you have twelve hours? To really explain my point, you must have American history in mind. Let’s say that the documentary “Grass is Greener” (available on Netflix) explains the context very well. Basically it’s a racist word used to define the undocumented Mexican people who worked in the USA. They were the ones who consumed “weed” with black people. The hippies then took over the words to give it a more feminine appearance. Again a source of sexism and cultural appropriation. In fact what bothers me the most is that by changing the name of a plant we are appropriating its definition. The plant is called cannabis sativa. Period. All other names are pejorative or descriptive nicknames created to call it anything except its real scientific name. This takes away its credibility and its scientific definition and propels it to the level of esoteric and nebulous beliefs.

OCN: How do you see the future?

SA: Green 😉 I believe that the next generations will make fascinating discoveries about this plant and all that it can bring. I believe that in 10 years we will begin to see the extent of its influence on us.