Centered Health Ballard HealthMarks House Not a place to trust with the health and future of your adolescent malibu California

Our child was a client at Centered Health during the summer of 2017 and I would not recommend this organization or facility to anyone.

Our experience was atrocious.  We were very taken in by the ocean view, beautiful home, on site chef, and competent people consulting on the telephone.  The people on the phone are not the ones at the facility every day though.  As a matter of fact, we spoke with Kristin and Irene and never saw either at the facility.  The food and the view were the only good things about the facility.  The owner was a horrible man that never returned our calls, (not once) didn't appear to care about the facility or the kids, and has the reputation of being a tyrant.  This is understood once experiencing a few weeks at Centered Health.  Not one time did he ever call us. Only administrative assistants or the group psychologist returned our calls and not every cal.  Only sometimes were calls returned.

Our teen needed a place to regroup and get grounded and the environment was highly unstable during his stay.  Staff was turning over too fast and causing a lot of shake up for him and the er kids.  We were unable to get a hold of our child even when stated it was urgent.  Our child was thrilled the first week being in a new environment with trip to the beach and then quickly discouraged after other clients teased him and did things that made him extremely uncomfortable.  He would get attached to a staff member and they would quit and this happened numerous times during his stay.  He couldn't call us or speak to us privately and this made us uncomfortable as our child couldn't express honestly what he was feeling and what was going on.

We thought we were going to an amazing rehab facility and while some professional staff (contracted) that ran groups were good, the majority of the people we interfaced with had no authority. And when seeking someone with authority, there was just no one available.  What's even more concerning was that was the day time experience  - imagine the night!

We felt we wasted our money and were lured in by the promises of outstanding therapy and diverse group sessions.  Our phone consult and on site tour were so wonderful.  Once our child was there, within 10 days, we were concerned about everything.  We would not recommend this facility to you for your teenager.  You should keep looking and don't be fooled by the ocean view.  Many reviews on line are positive but I truly don't think they are from real parents.  I am a real parent and our family was not only discouarged but we also felt ripped off and traumatized by all the instability and lack of insight into what was going on with our child during his stay.

I would STRONGLY urge you to look elsewhere.  If you speak to anyone for a reference, I would also encourage you to validate who are actually speaking with and ask difficult questions.  I wouldn't trust on line references, phone references, or anything.  It all failed for us.