I'm 52 and I've been in one form of psychological counseling or another since I was 14. I have two Axis I mental disorders, one of which is schizo-affective disorder, so there's co-morbidity involved in my case. I haven't had a drink or a drug since 2001, so that's not why I came here. I came here for sensitive, understanding psychotherapy and psychoanalysis. You must understand that this is just a Medicaid Mill - a lousy community mental health clinic. You have to punch a clock when you get there, because after a certain number of minutes, 10 or 15 minutes I think, they're unable to bill Medicaid for the whole session. So they take a coercive and accusatory attitude if you're late for a session. I had to travel one hour and take 3 different trains to get there, for a mere 40 minute session, with LCSWs, or Licensed Clinical Social Workers - I had three different ones in my 2 years there - who were not only indifferent and incompetent but downright mean and spiteful, hostile, aggressive, and coercive. They have a couple of psychiatrists who prescribe meds once a month but you can talk to your psychiatrist for only about 10 or 15 minutes a month. THEY HAVE ZERO PSYCHOLOGISTS, PSYCHOTHERAPISTS OR PSYCHOANALYSTS OF ANY SCHOOL. ONLY SOCIAL WORKERS. THEY WEREN'T QUALIFIED TO TREAT ME FROM DAY 1, BUT THEY DIDN'T ADMIT TO THAT OR GIVE ME A REFERRAL TO A QUALIFIED MENTAL HEALTH PROFESSIONAL. BECAUSE ALL THEY WANT TO DO IS BILL MEDICAID. MY MENTAL HEALTH HAS SEVERELY DETERIORATED IN THE TWO AND A HALF ODD YEARS I'VE BEEN ATTENDING THIS CLINIC. Furthermore, the premises themselves are a rundown dump, a shambles, more like a pigsty than a mental health clinic. I complained about the dirt all over the place but it was never cleaned. In the tiny waiting room they keep a TV blasting loud all the time, and it's always tuned to NY 1. So as a schizo-affective person waiting to see my social worker, I was forced to listen to the endless news stories on NY 1 about murders, robberies, rapes, violent crimes...every disturbing bloody news story that you hear on NY 1. When I complained to the supervisor that the endless news stories I was being forced to listen to were upsetting me mentally because of my mental condition, she feigned understanding and sympathy, but nothing was ever done to change the channel or shut if off completely so that we could have peace and quiet in the waiting room, like any civilized psychological facility would. When there's a point of disagreement between you and your social worker, they tell you that you should work with someone else. They can't be bothered helping you - they just want to have an easy day at work with no problems or complications. For example, 2 months ago I had a social worker who told me one day when I came in that we couldn't do any 'therapy' that day because she had to file what's called a 'Treatment Plan' for Medicaid's benefit. I said I need more than 40 minutes to do a good treatment plan, because it entails identifying what your goals in life are, and the various ways you'd like to improve your life and your mental health and what steps you can take to reach your goals. I requested that we devote 2 sessions to my treatment plan, because 1 40 minute session isn't enough. She said no, I have a deadline and this paperwork has to be filed by the deadline. I said, Well why didn't you tell me last week? Then we could have spent last week's session and this week's session working on my treatment plan. She replied, Because I didn't know about this until after your last session and the deadline is before your next session, so your treatment plan has to be done right now. I said, But this is my life, my mental health, and my treatment plan. What's more, you're billing my Medicaid HMO for my treatment. Yet you still refuse to see that I need and deserve to spend more than one session on it. At that point she said, Maybe you should work with a different therapist, then. That's how much contempt and disrespect and disregard they have for you at this clinic.DO NOT EVER ATTEND THIS CLINIC IF YOU CAN HELP IT. IT'S THE WORST PLACE I'VE EVER BEEN TO - AND I'VE BEEN IN COUNSELING MORE OR LESS CONTINUALLY SINCE 1977. ON TOP OF THE BAD, UNPROFESSIONAL ATTITUDE OF THE STAFF MEMBERS, THE PLACE IS SO FILTHY AND RUN DOWN THAT YOU BECOME DEPRESSED SIMPLY BY GOING THERE. The only decent person I met there was a kindly old male psychiatrist from France - but of course, you can only see the real doctor there once a month for 10 - 15 minutes, tops. I STRONGLY URGE THE NEW YORK STATE OFFICE OF MENTAL HEALTH TO REVOKE THEIR LICENSE. THEY'RE RAKING IN OODLES OF TAXPAYER MEDICAID DOLLARS EVERY SINGLE DAY WHILE DOING NOTHING TO MERIT IT. read more