ABOUT SPRING LAKE RANCH THERAPEUTIC COMMUNITY
Nestled in the scenic Green Mountains of Vermont, Spring Lake Ranch offers long-term residential treatment for individuals with co-occurring substance abuse and mental health disorders. The facility, founded in 1932, admits men and women 18 years and older. Detox services are not offered on-site; residents must be medically cleared and able to participate fully in all programming when admitted.
TREATMENT & ASSESSMENT
Treatment is community-based and centered around an experiential program on the rehab’s 700-acre working farm. Residents are assigned jobs designed to build self-esteem and confidence as well as reinforce basic values, such as teamwork, responsibility, and reliability. Duties are divided into four crews (farm, gardens, shop, and woods) on which the residents work for five hours a day. The length of stay typically is six to 12 months.
During non-working hours, residents attend on-site 12-step meetings and group therapy sessions. For individual counseling, the facility refers residents to local clinicians in the Rutland area, though a psychiatrist comes on-site twice a week.
Family involvement is limited at Spring Lake Ranch. Residents must be in treatment for at least one month before they can receive outside visits, which are limited to one per month. The facility offers adult education services for residents without high school diplomas, and enables some participants to take courses at local colleges.
Upon completing their stay, residents may opt to graduate to the Transitional Living Program in Rutland, which offers job assistance and housing as well as therapeutic and other support services.
STAFF CREDENTIALS
A cross-section of mental health specialists, including a consulting psychiatrist, social workers, and team of clinical professionals, work at the facility. Many staff members live on-site and attend meals, lakefront activities, community events, and meetings. The staff at the Rutland program often work at the farm facility first and carry this experience over to their interaction with residents in the aftercare program.
ACCOMMODATIONS & AMENITIES
The Ranch is a community of about 70 people, and there are 33 beds for individuals in recovery. Clients live in small, rustic cottages (single bedrooms and shared bathrooms) that accommodate two to eight people in each. The houses are clustered around the farmhouse, which serves as the center of the facility and contains offices, meeting rooms, and the communal dining room. According to the facility’s website, “Nutritious and delicious meals at the Ranch often feature meat and produce from our own farm and gardens.”
A tennis court and pottery studio sit nearby as well as living quarters for staff and their families. Other amenities include a fitness center, basketball court, game room, and wood shop.
WHAT ALUMNI SAY
Though Best-rehabs.com has yet to receive feedback for this facility from former clients, 23 ratings on its Facebook page, which the center can edit, averaged 4.3 out of five stars. Though most reviewers did not leave commentary, Megan wrote in her five-star review that “The ranch was such a great help to me and the betterment of my mental wellbeing.”
Alum Jeana only awarded one star, though, noting that she wished she could leave zero. “Spring Lake Ranch did nothing but made me feel mimiserable about myself
My counselor was an ex nun who pumped me up on more meds whenever I disagreed with her. I would not recommend this place to anyone,” she wrote.
WHAT FRIENDS & FAMILY SAY
To date, J.B., the one loved one who reviewed this facility to date, gave low ratings of one out of five stars for treatment effectiveness and accommodations, but three out of five stars for meals. “What a nightmare,” they wrote, continuing with “the Rutland program is an absolutely awful Rip off.”
WHAT STAFF SAY
At the time of this writing, one staff member, R.H., gave the facility a mediocre rating of three out of five stars for treatment effectiveness. The reviewer told Best-rehabs.com that while staff was caring and the dual diagnosis treatment was strong, the program was expensive.
FINANCING
Spring Lake Ranch is a private-pay facility that does not accept third-party insurance for its program including Medicare and Medicaid. According to its website, the daily fee for The Ranch program is $385 while the Rutland program is $290 per day. The fee covers private room and board as well as program and psychiatric services. It does not include expenses for medication, medical or dental visits, private therapy, personal items, extended transportation, and temporary one-on-one staff coverage. Additionally, the supportive living apartments are $100 per day for the first 60 days.
Individuals in need of financial assistance are encouraged to apply for the facility’s Sarcka Scholarship Fund.
[1] https://www.facebook.com/pg/springlakeranchvt/reviews/?ref=page_internal