Buyer Beware

Teenagers housed in facilities where communication is restricted are as vulnerable to abuse as younger children in day-care environments.

ISAC recommends that parents thoroughly investigate all available local resources and consider outside placement as a last resort and only if such placement is recommended by a licensed medical professional.

Even then, ISAC strongly cautions parents against choosing a facility found while searching the internet.

Many parents have told us they spent more time choosing kitchen appliances than deciding where to place their children.

If you are determined to place your child in ANY type of behavior modification program, therapeutic school, drug rehab, boot camp, wilderness camp, etc. - PLEASE - heed the following advice from ISAC:

• Research the facility on the internet. Look beyond the program's website, videos and info packets. Often times the beautiful scenery and smiling children don't tell the real story. Use the facility's name AND the words "abuse", "fraud", and even "death" as your search terms. Feel free to contact us for help.



• Check the archives of newspapers where the facility is located.



• Contact the Secretary of State where the facility is located and get the names of the owners and officers. Research those people as well.



• Contact the appropriate state and local agencies and obtain records of any complaints against the program.



• ANY policy, punishment, etc. that would be considered child abuse in the home, should still be considered child abuse when it happens inside a private facility.



• Do not send your child to an unlicensed, unregulated program.



• "Experience" and licenses/credentials are NOT the same!



• If your health insurance will not pay for the program, the facility probably does not employ credentialed staff.



• Do not place your child solely on the advice of an educational consultant. Many of them are paid by the facilities to make referrals.



• Do not place your child in a facility outside of the United States.



• Read our list of Warning Signs and compare them to the rules and policies of the facility.



• Listen to former students/clients/participants. They know more about these programs than anyone else and since they are out of the program, they have no reason to lie.



• If your child is not allowed to call you, it is unlikely that the facility would allow him/her to call the authorities to report abuse or even 911 in the event of an emergency.



• Make several unannounced visits to the facility - BEFORE sending your child. The safety of your child is worth the expense.



• The National Institutes of Health has declared "get-tough" programs to be ineffective. Click here to read the article



• The Association of Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Nursing opposes routine involuntary transport. Click here to read their complete statement.



• The National Mental Health Association does NOT recommend boot camps or other facilities for juveniles that use confrontation, intimidation, or humiliation. Click here to read their factsheet.



• If you have questions or concerns about any juvenile facility, please feel free to contact us.

          Printer Friendly Version