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Messages - hurleygurley

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1
Aspen Education Group / Re: help with aspen's beginning
« on: March 04, 2009, 04:23:55 PM »
There s much more to Aspen's beginnings than meets the eye. It's more complex than described, involving the acquiring a lot of non-program services that still operate in Southern California

http://www.pubmedcentral.nih.gov/pagere ... ageindex=1 Here is a paper written by Elliott Sainer and a cohort, dated 1975 titled "Career Escalation Training ~ a five year follow up" Warning, the paper is on four pages of scanned in material that has to be downloaded as five images. I'm in the process of reading it and it's fascinating to put together his thinking then (about the business of mental health) and what followed in his career.
His mother, Janet Sainer, de.2007, was a celebrated pioneer in social work for the elderly. She was appointed NY Commissioner for Commission on Aging . She is referenced in the Librassury of Congress. Many, many articles came up on her in google ` all praise.I read several obituaries which, notably, mentioned her career but not the career of her pioneering "entrepreneur of the year" son, Elliot. You'd think that the connection would have been made, certainly in NYT obit. Eliott has a sister who appears to be a successful upper West Side psychologist or psychiatrist. Alicia Sainer. FYI, Sainer's wife is Marcia and he has a son named Todd and  probably two sisters, named Diana and Debbie.
 Here's a draft of a contribution I'll make to the wiki about Aspen's other branches and affiliates currently operating that we never hear about: (there's more to add)

*Aspen Solutions, INC, ( a subsidiary of [[Aspen Education Group]] Cerritos, CA [[James Dredge]], Exec. Dir., sole employee, est. sales ~ $68K, classification: All Other Business Support Services
*[[Aspen Health Services Corporation, a Utah Corporation]]
Cerritos, CA [Elliot Sainer]], Dir? est. employees: 77
est.employees @ Cerritos Office: 50, est. total sales:$3,100k
Classification: All Other Outpatient Care Centers,  Other Individual and Family Services
*[http://www.aspenyouth.com/ Aspen Youth Services], a subsidiary of Aspen Education Group, Inc., Classification: Other Individual and Family Services, Elliot Sainer, Exec. Dir., est. employees: 2, est. total sales: $57k. AYS still exists as an entity and it appears to be a construction company.
*[http://www.collegehealthent.com/index.html College Health Enterprises, Inc.](CHE) is a privately–held health care system.Headquartered in Santa Fe Springs, California.  Bessie Weiss, principal,est. employees: 5, est. total sales: $360k, Classification: All Other Business Support Services related to College Health Services and Facilities.
*1.  [http://www.collegehospitals.com/ Medical and Behavioral Services ]
*1.1.[http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_002.htm College Hospital, Cerritos],157-bed acute freestanding psychiatric facility located in Los Angeles County, California.
*1.2.[http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_002.htm College Hospital, Costa Mesa],122 bed medical surgical and acute psychiatric facility located in Orange County, California.
*2.  [http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_003.htm Skilled Nursing Facilities ]Licensed by the State of California as Skilled Nursing, each facility provides short-term, rehabilitative, recuperative, hospice and long-term care in an atmosphere that is warm and caring. Facility houses Medicare distinct units and offers specialty services such as Intravenous Therapy, TPN, extensive wound care and a full range of Occupational, Physical and Recreational Therapies. In addition, respiratory, speech and Language, services are also available.
*2.1 [http://www.delamogardens.com/ Del Amo Gardens Convalescent Center ]a 24-hour skilled nursing facility  located  near Torrance Memorial Medical Center and Little Company of Mary HospitaL, 94-bed semi-private room facility.
*2.2 [http://rivierahealthcare.com/ Riviera Healthcare Center ],skilled nursing facility that provides rehabilitative and recuperative care, short-term respite, hospice, long-term convalescent and skilled nursing care, 154 beds, medicare.
*3.  [http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_003.htm Retirement Homes] Licensed as Board and Care, these facilities each offer services in a retirement setting. Located convenient to medical services, residents are transported to and from appointments. Each center offers assisted living on an as-needed basis. These services may include assistance with normal activities of daily living such as bathing, feeding and dressing, as well as assisting with the dispensing of “bubble packed” medications. Private and semi-private suites are available, each with an emergency call system that is answered 24-hours a day. Dietary services are an integral part of resident service therefore, meals are prepared based on the special need and requests of each resident.
*3.1 [http://www.downeyretirementcenter.com/ Downey Retirement Center] a licensed residential care facility for the elderly in Downey, California, 252 beds.
*3.2 [http://www.gardenaretirement.com/ Gardena Retirement Center]is a licensed retirement and full service assisted living facility n Gardena, 74 beds.
*4. [http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_004.htm  Community Care]
*4.1 [http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_004.htm At Home Therapy Services] - on-site occupational therapy services to older adults in the community, who may be experiencing limited activities of daily living, due to health or behavioral health problems throughout Los Angeles and Orange Counties.
*4.2 [http://www.collegehealthent.com/crimson_004.htm Active Adult Day Health Care ] - safe environment for adults during daytime hours. They participate in a variety of planned programs including social activities, nutritional, nursing and rehabilitation services.
*5. College Health Clinics, a branch of[[ Aspen Education Group]],  a group of Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers in Southern California.
*[http://www.rossierelementary.com/ Rossier Elementary School] Rossier, California, a branch of [[Aspen Education Group]], a California State-certified nonpublic, nonsectarian [http://www.lds.org/ldsorg/v/index.jsp?vgnextoid=e419fb40e21cef00VgnVCM1000001f5e340aRCRD Church of the Latter Day Saints ] school serving the special-education needs of students in Los Angeles and Orange County, Jennifer Miller, Principal, Classification: Research and Development in the Social Sciences and Humanities, Educational Support Services. 100% IEP/SED


Anyway, there's more for me to untangle and I'll get back to you when I've pieced it together.

2
Aspen Education Group / Island View is HELL
« on: August 05, 2007, 01:08:19 AM »
I, too, I am so sorry you suffered the horror of these programs. I do think it is possible for you to have a voice in redressing what was done to you. I would like to offer some advice and maybe some real help. If you are comfortable communicating with me please send me a private message and I'll get back to you.

To your healing ~

Hurleygurley

3
Aspen Education Group / Thank you for the affirmation dear Guest!
« on: August 04, 2007, 04:34:11 PM »
IThank you for the affirmation dear Guest!

Very hush hush is right.

Aspen's  extremely manipulative marketing/business m.o. so pervasive and convincing that I believe that there are people even on this list who continue to believe that Aspen doesn't use the same b.m. torture that WWASPS, Provo, et al, do.  Their programs do vary and there are some (leaving out all the "due process" and their outrageous fees, un or under qualified staff, and lack of oversight) that are useful for a few of  types of diagnoses - mostly Asperger's types of conditions and a few others. I won't go into that now but as a former therapist I've been thinking a lot about when a restrictive structured environment (regulated, with well qualified staff, and due process, access to the world etc... ) might be warranted.

4
Aspen Education Group / I believe that Aspen settled for a large amount
« on: August 03, 2007, 02:01:27 AM »
I'm fairly certain that the boy's family settled for a large amount with Aspen.

These settlements inevitably include a hush agreement. How many are there?

This is one of the many reasons why Aspen is most insidious of corporate owners of these programs.  they have plenty of money to shell out for settlements, unlike nearly all the others.

5
After speaking with close to 100 former participants, as a former therapist, I would have no doubt saying that the b.m. is the essence of their business model  - how to keep secrecy and control. Whatever other therapy happens in these programs may be useful but only by accident. The psychic rape involved in the points and levels system is brutal. I'm sure that the degree of severity differs from program to program.

I don't know about their weight loss programs. I suspect they are employing a "kinder gentler" sort of behavior mod.

6
The Troubled Teen Industry / Betrayal, yes it hurts...
« on: July 05, 2007, 12:50:24 AM »
It was very heart wrenching to know that this man who'd been such a great help to me and so many others and wound up sucked up in the world of greed. I'm retain some hope that he may wake up but I'm not counting on it.

hg

7
If anyone finds out the identity of the boy and his family, please let me know and let them know I may be a significant resource for them as the investigation is handled by Utah officials.

I will post more about this but the short story is this:

Aspen Ed. owns Youth Care. CRC Health merged with Aspen Ed. (backed by Bain (mormon) private equity) . So CRC owns Youth Care. By extremely odd coincidence I had had a 20 year acquaintance as a therapist consulting with a psychiatrist on various cases. I admired him very much ~ particularly his intellectual honesty and integrity. He closed his private practice a few years ago (in San Francisco) as a child and adolescent psychiatrist, like so many other doctors who couldn't afford private practice anymore. He said he was going to work for managed care and try to make change in medical standards "from the inside".  Lo and behold, he turns out to be the Medical Director at CRC Health.

He is senior management now with a big salary and stock options. I couldn't have imagined that he was anything other than the person I knew but I also know that people can be influenced and pressured and end up on the wrong side.  This appears to be what happened to Thomas Brady. I had called him this past October as the merger was being finalized and filled him in on all the gory details, particularly about Youth Care/PR because I started out in this murkey world trying to get my son's girlfriend  out of there.

I gave him documents which proved medical negligence among a long list of other sh**.   I told him that for each document I gave him I have more to support my claims.  He dodged, sent me back all the documents I gave him face to face and implied that he would deal with this but on his own terms. I called him last week before I knew of the death and told him that I cannot see anything that makes me believe that he hasn't been corrupted and that he's dodging me.  I have proof that the umbrella company had been specifically informed of gross abuse and negligence and they did not act on it.

I would encourage anyone involved in Aspen program issues to contact CRC Health in Cupertino, California. I would also contact Aspen Execs. I would say that calls and emails to executive management of both would be most useful.

Please contact by private post or at [email protected] and the ceo  of crc: bkarlin@crchealh
www.crchealth.com

www.youthcare.com
www.aspeneducation.com

and not that I presume this will be of use:

http://www.hsdcfs.utah.gov/newsletter.htm (/Dept. of Human Services in Utah)

and of course there's good old Ken Stettler - I have some interesting email exchanges with him and one of the asst. attorney generals which are pretty damning. I'll be back with phone numbers.

8
Quote
Sat, 30 Jun 2007 07:28:56 -0500
Boy found dead at Draper group home (Provo Daily Herald)
by Home inspector's checklist @ Sat, 30 Jun 2007 07:28:56 -0500


SALT LAKE CITY -- A southern California boy died at a home in Draper, apparently in his sleep. The 14-year-old boy awoke early Thursday complaining of stomach and bowel problems, was placed in a separate room from other kids and found dead the next morning, said Carol Sisco, spokeswoman for Utah Department of Human Services.

Teenage Boy Dies In His Sleep At Utah Group Home (2News Salt Lake City)
A teenage boy died at a group home in Salt Lake City -- about a day after complaining of stomach and bowel problems, officials said.
Original post: Boy found dead at Draper group home (Provo Daily Herald) by Copyright (c) 2004 Yahoo! Inc. All rights reserved. at Yahoo! News Search Results for home inspectors

Blog tag: Home inspector's checklist
Technorati tag: Home inspector's checklist
f anyone finds out the identity of the boy and his family, please let me know and let them know I may be a significant resource for them as the investigation is handled by Utah officials.


I will post more about this but the short story is this:

Aspen Ed. owns Youth Care. CRC Health merged with Aspen Ed. (backed by Bain (mormon) private equity) . So CRC owns Youth Care. By extremely odd coincidence I had had a 20 year acquaintance as a therapist consulting with a psychiatrist on various cases. I admired him very much ~ particularly his intellectual honesty and integrity. He closed his private practice a few years ago (in San Francisco) as a child and adolescent psychiatrist, like so many other doctors who couldn't afford private practice anymore. He said he was going to work for managed care and try to make change in medical standards "from the inside".  Lo and behold, he turns out to be the Medical Director at CRC Health.

He is senior management now with a big salary and stock options. I couldn't have imagined that he was anything other than the person I knew but I also know that people can be influenced and pressured and end up on the wrong side.  This appears to be what happened to Thomas Brady. I had called him this past October as the merger was being finalized and filled him in on all the gory details, particularly about Youth Care/PR because I started out in this murkey world trying to get my son's girlfriend  out of there.

I gave him documents which proved medical negligence among a long list of other sh**.   I told him that for each document I gave him I have more to support my claims.  He dodged, sent me back all the documents I gave him face to face and implied that he would deal with this but on his own terms. I called him last week before I knew of the death and told him that I cannot see anything that makes me believe that he hasn't been corrupted and that he's dodging me.  I have proof that the umbrella company had been specifically informed of gross abuse and negligence and they did not act on it.

I would encourage anyone involved in Aspen program issues to contact CRC Health in Cupertino, California. I would also contact Aspen Execs. I would say that calls and emails to executive management of both would be most useful.

Please contact by private post or at [email protected] and the ceo  of crc: www.crchealth.com

www.youthcare.com
www.aspeneducation.com

and not that I presume this will be of use:

http://www.hsdcfs.utah.gov/newsletter.htm (/Dept. of Human Services in Utah)

and of course there's good old Ken Stettler - I have some interesting email exchanges with him and one of the asst. attorney generals which are pretty damning.

Also, if you blog it would be great if you could blog the news article with any pertinent commentary with the same title as the article.

9
I am known around here to be a dedicated activist focused on uncovering Asp's mo. I have finally gotten together a working, albeit, loose, coalition of strategists working with me  I have been compiling data in them for over two years, from many angles and I believe we're close to critical mass. We have yet to determine what avenue would be best to take to break their precious wall of secrecy.  There are two reasons that we want to gather as much information as possible NOW - one has to do with their vulnerability due to the recent acquisition, the other reason can't be made public.  Whether you worked for them or were subjected to them we need to know. We all know what goes on in general in their programs. While lots of stories might not prove anything in court, they make a huge impact on the public, There are other things that can be done through the legal system.
[/b] Send me a private message, PLEASE!

10
Aspen Education Group / Brain Research
« on: November 16, 2006, 12:41:03 PM »
Brain research that's been coming out steadily in the last few years due to technological advances in imaging, indicates, among many other relevant interesting things, that the repetition/reliving of traumatic stories makes matters worse. Every time the trauma is retold (especially under "therapeutic" circumstances when the "telling" is loaded) it reinforces the brain pathways that lead to that memory. This research has popped up a lot since 9/11 and there's been more attention on trauma therapy. No one does Psychodrama anymore except for the few who invested in workshops in the 70's and 80's and are still trying to get their money's worth.

From the Salesmanshipclub (ref. above)  - nice  name. ; }
http://www.salesmanshipclub.org/therapy_components.aspx

BTW: Internal research and evaluation is an important component of our mission as each program strives to deliver innovative, effective and efficient services. Each year, our research and evaluation team analyzes the effectiveness of each program.

An evaluation of family therapy clients in 2004 showed that after just 3-6 therapy sessions:

    * 70% with school behavior problems reported improvement.
    * 75% reported improved family relationships.
    * 99% of children remained in home.
    * 99% report being treated with respect.
    * 95% said services are helpful.

BTW, there is a good deal of this type of brain research that supports the simple idea that rapport, "limbic attunement" (empathy!) and loving attention et al... everything we know... is at the core of a truly therapeutic experience. I'll post some refs. soon.

11
The Ridge Creek School / Hidden Lake Academy / Brain Research
« on: November 16, 2006, 12:39:15 PM »
Brain research that's been coming out steadily in the last few years due to technological advances in imaging, indicates, among many other relevant interesting things, that the repetition/reliving of traumatic stories makes matters worse. Every time the trauma is retold (especially under "therapeutic" circumstances when the "telling" is loaded) it reinforces the brain pathways that lead to that memory. This research has popped up a lot since 9/11 and there's been more attention on trauma therapy. No one does Psychodrama anymore except for the few who invested in workshops in the 70's and 80's and are still trying to get their money's worth.

From the Salesmanshipclub (ref. above)  - nice  name. ; }
http://www.salesmanshipclub.org/therapy_components.aspx

BTW: Internal research and evaluation is an important component of our mission as each program strives to deliver innovative, effective and efficient services. Each year, our research and evaluation team analyzes the effectiveness of each program.

An evaluation of family therapy clients in 2004 showed that after just 3-6 therapy sessions:

    * 70% with school behavior problems reported improvement.
    * 75% reported improved family relationships.
    * 99% of children remained in home.
    * 99% report being treated with respect.
    * 95% said services are helpful.

BTW, there is a good deal of this type of brain research that supports the simple idea that rapport, "limbic attunement" (empathy!) and loving attention et al... everything we know... is at the core of a therapeutic relationship. I'll post some books on the subject.

12
Aspen Education Group / Island View
« on: November 13, 2006, 04:20:58 PM »
I missed this at the time This was from 2004.

http://deseretnews.com/dn/print/1,1442, ... 19,00.html

Teen facility targets suicide prevention

State ordered steps be taken after hanging

By Amy Joi Bryson
Deseret Morning News


'SYRACUSE ? A residential treatment center for troubled teens is being required by state licensing officials to take "corrective action" after a 16-year-old Pennsylvania boy hanged himself earlier this month.

The youth, who had been at Island View Academy for only a month, apparently hanged himself from a shower support with a belt. The shower was in a bathroom shared by other residents.

Ken Stettler, the state's human services director over licensing, said Island View officials plan to meet with him next week to submit a corrective plan of action in light of the teenager's death.

While the boy had a history of suicide attempts, Stettler said nothing in the weeks the youth was at the facility indicated there was significant trouble.

"They had done their own assessment, developed a treatment plan around that and were instructed to watch him closely," Stettler said. "He had been there a month without any kind of suicide gestures or overtones, and there was no reason for them to believe that at that point it was still an issue."

Still, Stettler's office wants directors of the 110-bed facility to submit a list of steps they have taken or plan to take to minimize the potential for future incidents.

"There might be some things the program can do to prevent this sort of thing from happening in the future," he said. "We gave them recommendations, and they will present that back to us."

Stettler said Island View officials have conducted a walk-through of the facility to remove possible risks, such as fixtures that could be used in suicide attempts.

Island View, which has been operating in Davis County for more than a decade, has experienced no troubles in the past, Stettler said.

"Their record has been exemplary."

Syracuse police detective Mark Sessions said the boy was found hanged in the bathroom July 2 after he excused himself from a movie, which was being shown before dinner.

In the hallway outside his room, Sessions said, the boy encountered a couple of other teenage residents and joked with them before entering his room.

Staff believed he was in his room at his desk, but the youth entered the bathroom from the private entrance in his room. When staff found him, they unsuccessfully tried to revive him.

State licensing officials also are in the process of revoking the license of a Manti outpatient treatment center that was performing services without properly credentialed staff."[/b]

13
From the Houston Chronicle 11/7/06
http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/hea ... 18444.html


"The Dr. Phil Show put Kimberlee in their Aspen Achievement Academy for Wilderness Therapy, which apparently didn't work....


Dr. Phil tried to help
Ramsey and her mother appeared on a Dr. Phil show about runaways. It aired Oct. 16.

According to the search agency, "The Dr. Phil Show put Kimberlee in their Aspen Achievement Academy for Wilderness Therapy, which apparently didn't work."

A news release from the Aspen Education Group's Web site talks about Ramsey's appearance on the nationally syndicated talk show.

"As much as you're seen as the rebellious teen who's angry and bucking the system, and bucking controls, the truth is, you're really in a lot of pain," Dr. Phil McGraw said to Ramsey, according to the release.

Pair ran away before
Gibson said Ramsey and Vanegas had run away together in the past. She did not know whether there was any criminal connection, and the Galveston County sheriff's deputy in charge of the case couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday.

"We're based in Dickinson, so it's on our home turf," Gibson said.

"If they have a killer on the loose (volunteers) just want to make sure their kids are accounted for."

"Obviously Kimberlee is easy prey. She's a runaway. She doesn't have any money. She doesn't have a car. She doesn't have a cell phone," Gibson said.

Ramsey was wearing blue jeans, a blue football jersey and black house shoes.

Ramsey has brown hair with blonde highlights. She has green eyes, is 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs about 155 pounds. Anyone with information about the case is urged to call Texas EquuSearch at 281-309-9500.

Vanegas will be buried today."


Check Aspen's site for the Dr. Phil story.

14
From the Houston Chronicle 11/7/06
The Dr. Phil Show put Kimberlee in their Aspen Achievement Academy for Wilderness Therapy, which apparently didn't work."

Quote
Dr. Phil tried to help
Ramsey and her mother appeared on a Dr. Phil show about runaways. It aired Oct. 16.

According to the search agency, "The Dr. Phil Show put Kimberlee in their Aspen Achievement Academy for Wilderness Therapy, which apparently didn't work."

A news release from the Aspen Education Group's Web site talks about Ramsey's appearance on the nationally syndicated talk show.

"As much as you're seen as the rebellious teen who's angry and bucking the system, and bucking controls, the truth is, you're really in a lot of pain," Dr. Phil McGraw said to Ramsey, according to the release.

Pair ran away before
Gibson said Ramsey and Vanegas had run away together in the past. She did not know whether there was any criminal connection, and the Galveston County sheriff's deputy in charge of the case couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday.

"We're based in Dickinson, so it's on our home turf," Gibson said.

"If they have a killer on the loose (volunteers) just want to make sure their kids are accounted for."

"Obviously Kimberlee is easy prey. She's a runaway. She doesn't have any money. She doesn't have a car. She doesn't have a cell phone," Gibson said.

Ramsey was wearing blue jeans, a blue football jersey and black house shoes.

Ramsey has brown hair with blonde highlights. She has green eyes, is 5 feet 8 inches tall and weighs about 155 pounds. Anyone with information about the case is urged to call Texas EquuSearch at 281-309-9500.

Vanegas will be buried today.


Check Aspen's site for the Dr. Phil story.

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