I was in Beckett Springs for 4 nights and I want to detail my experience there to keep anyone else from going through the trauma I experienced. You WILL be held against your will and YOU WILL NOT BE SAFE.
I went in to Beckett in order to switch meds safely because a new antidepressant was causing severe depression and intrusive thoughts. I made it clear from the beginning that I had no intent or plan to hurt myself - I just wanted help transitioning to a new medication that would hopefully work better. When I met with the assessor, I asked if I did inpatient, would I be able to leave if the place was not a good fit for me. She told me that I could sign an AMA (against medical advice) and be out as long as a doctor was present. Remember this as this is important, and NOT TRUE.
I was told by the assessor that the average stay in the mental health wing is 3-5 days. I started talking to patients in the wing my first night and realized that all had been kept for over a week. Many said that the doctors would give them X day for discharge, and then repeatedly push it back. One woman has been in there for almost 50 days with no plan of discharge. I talked to several individuals that were as high functioning as me, and they said they've felt fine for a week and still have no discharge in sight. One mentioned that she only got a discharge date when she told the financial coordinator that she couldn't afford to pay for her stay. It honestly seems like Beckett is here to get as much insurance money out of you as possible.
Now here comes the negligence - I witnessed multiple patients that were fall risks not being monitored, and therefore several people fell. My first roommate came in lucid and on a walker. She told me she was given trazodone three times a day - a sleep aid - and she turned into a mumbling woman I didn't recognize. She fell in the main area and hit her head because of the effects of her drugs, so she was put into a wheelchair. Patients that are fall risks normally have someone with them at all times in other hospitals, but here they are given a countertop bell you could see at a hotel. My third day I walked in to her laying on the ground after falling out of bed because she was too drugged up to realize where her bell was to call for help. She said she hit her head again, and it took them half the day until they sent her to the hospital to get looked at. Another gentleman was admitted even though they didn't have a room for him, so he was kept in a recliner in the hallway. He did not have a room for several days! I did not see him rotated to make sure he didn't develop bed sores. He was able to get up and wander around over five times, and the patients often had to be the ones to notify the staff that he was up DESPITE HIM BEING DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF THE NURSES STATION. At one point two staff couldn't convince him to sit down, so they abandoned him and went back to work, leaving patients to make sure he didn't fall.
Depending on what patients are at Beckett Springs YOU WILL NOT BE SAFE. A large gentleman came in on my third day, and the fact that they had someone with him at all times demonstrated that they knew he was either a threat to himself or someone else. That night, he was left unattended. He pulled out his penis and sexually harassed one woman, and then was able to ENTER two women's room and sexually harass them and NO ONE NOTICED. One of the women was able to get out and get someone to remove him. The woman that was flashed wanted to talk to a therapist about what had just happened to her, but was denied for over 12 hours. She also wanted to press charges and was denied. When she said she was going to call the police herself, she was threatened with losing her phone privileges. This man had looked me in the eyes and licked his lips, so I was repeatedly crying after the events. Staff that overheard me talking to my husband about it rolled their eyes. I was again told in group that I was safe, but that is obviously false as this was allowed to happen to three women. The woman that was flashed was allowed to transfer to another unit, but nothing happened to the man besides getting a sitter again.
Now for AMA. I was told that I wouldn't be discharged for several days, so I wanted to sign myself out because I did not feel safe. I was then told that I would be put on a 24 hour hold if I signed, in order to determine if I was safe to leave. This 24 hours could actually extend to 72 hours per their paperwork. I was also told that signing AMA would mean that my insurance would not have to cover my time there, which is easily over 10k a day. I was essentially stuck there until they decided to discharge me, and from talking to others, that would be when my insurance ran out. I was NEVER told ANY of this when I signed myself in, and I never would have gone in had I known. The only reason why I was out as quickly as I was was due to my husband and I threatening to get a lawyer. read more
