ABOUT ST. PETER’S ADDICTION RECOVERY CENTER
St. Peter’s Addiction Recovery Center (SPARC) is part of St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany, a nonprofit acute-care hospital that in turn is part of Trinity Health, a national not-for-profit Catholic health system. According to St. Peter’s Hospital’s website, the facility provides services “in the spirit of the gospel.”
SPARC provides detox, inpatient, and outpatient services for individuals struggling with problematic substance use and dual diagnosis. Medically monitored detox is available at St. Peter’s Hospital in Albany. SPARC’s inpatient rehabilitation center is located seven miles southeast of the hospital, in Guilderland, and outpatient care is provided at six locations in Albany, Schenectady, and Saratoga Counties. Adults may access all levels of treatment; adolescents may access outpatient care only.
TREATMENT & ASSESSMENT
All patients receive a medical, psychiatric, and psychosocial evaluation upon admission. The length of stay varies according to the individual needs of each patient.
SPARC appears to offer a traditional program that mixes 12-step participation with a range of therapeutic options. Specifically, therapy is offered in individual and group settings, and there’s also programming and support for families. Clients are provided with education about the nature of addiction and recovery, to help them to make informed decisions, and spiritual counseling, to address the broader impacts of addiction; it’s worth remembering that St. Peter’s is a Christian hospital. In order to help clients to stay clean and sober during and after treatment, all clients participate in discharge planning, leaving with a full plan for life after treatment, and SPARC also provides relapse prevention training, case management, and an alumni program. Specialty services include dual diagnosis treatment, HIV testing, dedicated services for pregnant women, and a smoking cessation course.
Outpatient treatment uses similar modalities to the inpatient program, with added options for criminal justice programming and DWI programming, as well as programs for adolescents aged 13–18. Treatment is offered at two intensities: standard outpatient care and intensive outpatient programs (IOPs). Men completing an outpatient program in Albany have the option of staying in a community home, subject to qualifying for this program. This sober-living home provides a focus on relapse prevention, life skills, and developing plans for housing, work, and education.
STAFF CREDENTIALS
The treatment team includes physicians, psychiatrists, nurses, and nurse practitioners, according to the facility’s website, along with social workers and chemical dependency counselors. The three individuals polled by Best-rehabs.com to date on the staff’s level of training and experience gave it two four-star ratings and a five-star rating; the three individuals polled on the level of staff support provided at SPARC gave this metric two five-star ratings and a one-star rating.
ACCOMMODATIONS & AMENITIES
The SPARC inpatient facility offers 40 beds; the detox facility at St. Peter’s Hospital, offers 18 beds; and the men’s sober-living home in Albany offers 22 beds. St. Peter’s Hospital, SPARC, and all affiliated facilities are tobacco-free environments. The four individuals polled by Best-rehabs.com to date on SPARC’s cleanliness gave it an average rating of 4.75 stars.
WHAT ALUMNI SAY
Of the six alumni polled by Best-rehabs.com to date, five would recommend SPARC (some of them strongly), while one would not recommend the center. The four individuals polled on the overall quality of the organization’s individual and group counseling gave them average ratings of three stars and 3.75 stars respectively. Meanwhile, both of the individuals polled on SPARC’s ability to treat co-occurring disorders gave the center four stars in this category.
In their comments, the reviewers repeatedly noted that SPARC was nimble and specialized enough to identify and/or target their specific problem. “They really knew how to diagnose your exact problem,” Larry wrote in one representative review; “It has a professionals program that was perfect for me,” an anonymous reviewer added in another typical comment. The few isolated notes of complaint cited overcrowding in group therapy and a lack of provisions for exercise, and negative reviewer L.O. wrote: “I had one counselor who made a difference but it didn’t seem like she was supported by other staff.”
At the time of this writing, secondary sites yielded two five-star ratings and a two-star rating, spread between Google and an unofficial Facebook page.[1][2] Both of the positive reviewers gave glowing but general praise: “I loved it here. They helped me so much. Im still clean!!!! Thank u!” G.R. wrote in a representative review on Google. Two-star reviewer T.G., writing on Facebook, objected to the center’s use of the 12-Steps.
WHAT FRIENDS & FAMILY SAY
The single loved one polled by Best-rehabs.com to date would recommend SPARC, and gave the facility four out of five stars in almost all of the evaluated treatment metrics, including its treatment effectiveness, holistic offerings, family participation, counseling options, and ability to treat co-occurring disorders. “A family type atmosphere is provided that make one feel like they are supported and cared about,” they wrote, also praising the “kind, dedicated caring staff.”
FINANCING
According to SPARC’s website, Medicaid and most major insurance plans are accepted. The facility also offers sliding scale fees for uninsured clients. The four individuals polled by Best-rehabs.com to date on the center’s affordability gave it an average rating of 4.25 stars.