Daytop Village Inc

ABOUT DAYTOP NEW JERSEY – MENDHAM

Daytop New Jersey operates two adolescent residential treatment facilities, three outpatient facilities, a recovery high school, and a women's halfway house. On its 26-acre campus in Mendham, Daytop houses one of its residential treatment facilities for adolescents (ages 13 to 18) and The Academy which is a full-day, recovery-based middle and high school for individuals in the program and day students from the community. These are amongst the just 117 (34 percent) programming tracks in the state to provide adolescent-specific treatment. These facilities focus on treating clients with substance abuse and co-occurring disorders, making it one of New Jersey's 214 (62.2 percent) facilities with this service. Detox services are not provided on site.

TREATMENT & ASSESSMENT

Treatment at the Academy and Daytop New Jersey is rooted in the 12-Steps and maintains a strong, family-like structure. Clients receive a personalized treatment plan and work with a psychiatrist and case manager throughout their stay. Treatment focuses on removing clients for environments that contribute to their substance abuse and related issues, and immersing them in an environment that is conducive to learning. Here, clients learn coping and sober living skills while continuing their education and development.

Daytop emphasizes a peer-based social learning model so that clients support and encourage one another in their recovery. In addition, residents participate in evidence-based and experiential therapies, including individual, group, and family counseling, music therapy, art therapy, and recreational activities. There’s also a Family Association, which supports clients’ loved ones.

While in treatment, residents attend school at The Academy. This educational facility maintains class sizes of four to eight students and has a total capacity of 75 students. It offers coursework focused on core academics, which meets state special and general educational requirements, and follows a traditional school year schedule to keep adolescents on track with their studies.

STAFF CREDENTIALS

Daytop New Jersey and the Academy are are staffed by multidisciplinary teams of licensed and certified professionals. The medical and treatment staff includes licensed psychiatrists and nurses. The Academy is staffed by licensed and certified educators in the state of New Jersey that are able to provide educational services on par with public and private schools around the state. There is also a school psychologist a student assistance counselor available during school hours.

ACCOMMODATIONS & AMENITIES

The Daytop New Jersey has 130 beds while the Academy can accommodate up to 75 students. Clients also have access to a gym with weight and fitness equipment, and activities both on campus and in the community.

The on-site chef prepares nutritious meals and can satisfy special dietary requirements. Once per month the facility hosts a motivational or inspirational speaker.

WHAT ALUMNI SAY

At the time of this writing, six alumni provided feedback to Rehabs.com. The feedback is mixed. Although some alumni appreciated the level of personal accountability, the food and facility itself generally received negative feedback.

One alum who provided several ratings to Rehabs.com, S.C., commented upon the "great counselors," though gave counseling options an average rating of three out of five stars, and staff level of experience four stars. Despite giving just one star to holistic offerings, S.C. overall agreed that she would recommend this facility to others.

Another former client felt the center wasn't fully equipped to deal with rehabilitation needs, writing, "Dont get me wrong the staff and residents are always there with open arms if you need help with things, but im my opinion it was more of a behavioral program." Alum L.O. echoed this feeling, writing, "We learned absolutely nothing about addiction."

WHAT FRIENDS & FAMILY SAY

The seven reviews to date from loved ones are also mixed, but skewed more negatively. Five of the reviews were very critical of the facility, while two were more positive.

Positive feedback referenced above satisfactory care for teen clients in a controlled environment, as well as supportive staff and adequate family involvement. Loved one T.D. noted, "Daytop has change my life and the lives of my family members and for that I will be forever grateful." Another loved one provided mediocre, three-star ratings for most categories, including extracurricular activities and counseling options, but still remarked, "Very structured, staff are very communicative."

Negative reviewers expressed concerns with favoritism, ineffective treatment, "filthy" physical conditions, unqualified or generally incompetent staff, and extremely poor communication between staff and the parents of clients. "Majority of residents are transferred from Juvenile correctional facilities and should be more of a Behavioral facility than a Rehabilitation center. The staff do NOT care about the clients. They care more about making money than the safety of residents," one family member wrote in a representative negative review.

WHAT STAFF SAY

Staff reviews submitted to Rehabs.com were mostly positive. Four reviewers gave the facility near-perfect ratings for its treatment effectiveness, accommodations, and meals. E.K. wrote to Rehabs.com, “Daytop improves not only the lives of the adolescents in the program; it also changes the lives of its staff members… I am proud to be a part of such a wonderful and committed organization and anyone would be lucky to attend or be employed by Daytop New Jersey.” E.K. provided five-star ratings for family participation, counseling options, and treatment of co-occurring disorders.

J.B. echoed these positive feelings, writing, “Daytop has a tremendous amount of beneficial characteristics because of the way they support the residents with an all-encompassing approach. I truly believe Daytop is the best program out there!”

Contrastingly, another staff member expressed an opposite opinion To Rehabs.com and gave the facility two and three star ratings. “Daytop used to be one of the best programs in the state. Today it is a run of the mill kind of place" and added, "It's a couple steps above the detention center. The food is horrible to the point that staff doesn't even eat it, undercooked chicken and nothing really nutritional items offered."

FINANCING

Treatment is free for adolescents of New Jersey via the NJ Children’s System of Care. For out-of-state residents, the facility accepts insurance and charges $425 per day. Daytop New Jersey also offers scholarships and payment plans. There are additional fees for attending The Academy. However, Daytop will negotiate reimbursement with an adolescent’s home school district at no cost to the family. There may be charges for incidentals or other services, depending on insurance coverage.

^[1] https://www.facebook.com/pg/daytopnewjersey/reviews