Wow, all I did was call to find out the process for having my son evaluated for a learning disability. The receptionist talked so fast and was so rude that I was completely demoralized. I explained I didn't know the procedure and asked if I could speak with someone else, as she was speaking far too fast and I couldn't understand what she was saying. She proceeded to talk AT me and did not bother to hide her irritation. I ended up in tears, just trying to find help for my son and this is how they treat you? I understand I may not have been calling the right place but this was the phone number on the Adolescent Psychiatry website. Pitiful way to treat vulnerable people looking for help.
I had a very short stay in the Sanford inpatient program. PTSD and severe depression followed a traumatic event a year ago and I was stuck. I cannot speak for the unlocked inpatient unit, as that is where I SHOULD have been, but they had no beds - so I was put on the locked unit. My primary issue at the time of admission was severe sleep deprivation and I went in, expecting to have my sleep meds increased or adjusted in some way. Instead of that happening, I not only didn't get the drugs I was already on, I got nothing - other than a melatonin pill (great for jetlag but that's about it). The bright lights in the hall shone through the window in the door, and the noise of a locked unit made it impossible to sleep. I tried to sleep at the other end of the bed, but then the nurse came in and turned on my bathroom light so that they could see me during their every 30 minute bed checks. I got NOT ONE MINUTE of sleep and was a basket case by the next morning. Eating breakfast with several very disturbed men and a woman who was waving her tray around in the air to 'purify' it made me feel like I was in a scene from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. Seriously. I had been given the impression I'd be seeing my regular doctor, but that is not the case. You see someone new - who does not know you and has no reason to trust you. The nursing staff dispense meds and otherwise stay safely inside their large nurses station, charting on computers, chatting and drinking coffee. On the locked unit, at least, the majority of the nurses speak broken English. The Occupational Therapist and Social Workers saved me from it being a TOTAL disaster. They were empathetic to my situation and worked hard to get me discharged, which I was - after an 18 hour stay. I needed (and still need) inpatient care - but NOT on a locked unit. My advice to anyone considering inpatient treatment at Sanford is to assess your own needs and make SURE that they have a bed for you in the proper unit to get those needs met. I think I COULD have had a better experience on the 'other side' and even asked if I could be transferred to a medical unit but that wasn't an option. I have seen and worked in at least a dozen inpatient psych units (mostly back in the 1970's) and I have NEVER seen anything even CLOSE to as restrictive as this place is. You can't have your clothes, you can't have ANYTHING other than a book in your room with you. I understand locking up scissors and appliances with cords, but the bathrooms don't even have mirrors, you can't have your blow drier (even for 10 minutes) to dry your hair, and you get to wear a yellow jumpsuit because of the threat of 'elopement'. Bad, bad, bad place - unless that is what you truly need. I thought I had asked the appropriate questions beforehand, but turns out - I misunderstood a lot. ASK QUESTIONS and make sure they have a bed for you in the appropriate unit.
Sanford Fargo Behavioral Health is a US Health facility based in Fargo, Minnesota. Sanford Fargo Behavioral Health is located at 100 4th St S, Fargo, ND 58103, USA.
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