[mindwrench]

I am curious if anyone has any thoughts/opinions on the difference in quality and intensity of care received between a community mental health center that has sliding pay scales and a private practice.

I am currently a client through the local community clinic as I have no insurance, and no income. I have been told that there are only so many resources to go around, which I understand. The first T I was assigned gave me the impression that this is fast moving, dive in hard, throw a bunch of drugs at you, spill the beans and block it out of your mind, basically like getting your car painted at the $99 body shop. I requested a new T which required forms filled out and they have to be approved for funding, and reviewed by the director for approval like I guess they decide if I'm a lost cause or some kind of trouble making client I don't know.

I"m going to continue forward with them assuming they let me.

Is it worth trying to come up with the money to hire a private T to work with? If I my next T at the clinic doesn't work then I am going to get some prices, and see what I can do.

[bounceback]

I have gone strictly to community mental health clinics. I have received excellent care. I have been in therapy on and off for about 25 years. The only problem I found was they depend on grants and sometimes they don't get their funding so sometimes the therapists want to move on. I have been with therapists as long as 7 years and as short as one year. I have come a long way. I think it all depends on who you get as a therapist. Give it a shot. The good thing is the doctors and your therapist and case manager come up with a treatment plan for you and they work together on it usually behind the scenes. In order to get meds at most clinics they want you to have a therapist so I don't think they throw drugs at you.

[Daeva]

I prefer community ones. Easier to find a T, if they are unethical there's a boss to report it too, and they know that so they treat you better most of the time. Also if they on vacation they have back ups, etc. I just like the set up better. I get paranoid too so people can hear you scream for help in a community one.

[stopdog]

I believe that the therapists themselves are often no better or worse in clinical versus private setting. The thing that may make a big difference is the amount of bureaucracy and rules and regulations the clinic imposes upon its therapists and the clients. I think the same is likely often true of big private clinical practices also. My personal preference is solo practitioners because I dislike having to deal with anyone other than the actual therapist

[granite1]

i have seen my T in a clinical setting and i now see her in her private practice . it has its good points and bad . i now pay out of pocket but there is no other people involved and no insurance to tell her what is best for me . she my apts are 50 min long not 40 and she is on time ware at the clinic she was always 5 min or so late . the down fall is consistency. at the clinic she was always there at the said time every week . now it seems she is moving my time around a lot and this coming week even canceled do to training . i liked that in order to keep her job at the clinic she has to go to work .in her private practice she seems to schedule that around her private life so is not as consistent. it seems

[Luce]

I started off seeing my long term t at a community clinic. There were limits on age, and when myself and a couple of other of her longer term clients neared the age limit T left ans set up her own practice.

SO my experience is you can find quality ts through community clinics, but there may be limitations on what they can provide. I just happened to be very lucky that my t was financially able to do what she did.