Recovery Brands, LLC
📍 165 Abraxas Road Box 59, Marienville, PA 16239
<p><strong>ABOUT ABRAXAS I</strong></p> <p>Founded more than 40 years ago, Abraxas Youth and Family Services runs numerous facilities in Pennsylvania, Ohio, Texas, Colorado, and Illinois, which provide a variety of services for “youth who have experienced significant difficulty functioning in their homes, schools and communities.”</p> <p>Abraxas I, located on a 90-acre campus in the northwestern Allegheny National Forest, is one of <a href="https://wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/webt/state_data/PA16.pdf" target="_blank">143 (27.1 percent)</a> <strong>residential treatment facilities</strong> in Pennsylvania. Services are provided for <strong><a href="https://www.recovery.org/pro/articles/is-my-child-just-experimenting/" target="_blank">adolescent boys and girls</a></strong> struggling with substance use disorder, mental health disorders, and delinquency, placing Abraxas among the <a href="https://wwwdasis.samhsa.gov/webt/state_data/PA16.pdf" target="_blank">123 (23.3 percent)</a> substance abuse treatment facilities in the state with specifically-tailored programming for youth.</p> <p><strong>TREATMENT & ASSESSMENT</strong></p> <p>Abraxas I offers gender-separate chemical dependency treatment for male and female youth ages 13 to 18. In Pennsylvania in 2016, <a href="https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/NSDUHsaePercents2016/NSDUHsaePercents2016.pdf" target="_blank">2.12 percent of adolescents ages 12 to 18 experienced alcohol use disorder, 3.55 percent exhibited substance use disorder, and 2.23 percent of youth in this age group needed but did not receive treatment</a> at a specialty facility for illicit drug use.</p> <p>At Abraxas I, each resident participates in <strong>a minimum of 10 hours of drug and alcohol treatment per week.</strong> For both boys and girls, the goal of treatment is to eliminate chemical dependency and to build self-esteem, teach life skills, and help clients build positive relationships and become responsible members of their communities. For girls, there’s a particular focus on overcoming any trauma and/or abuse.</p> <p>For boys and girls alike, the program consists of individual, group, and <a href="https://www.recovery.org/pro/articles/the-pain-of-addiction-in-the-family-how-counseling-can-help/" target="_blank">family counseling</a>; <strong>participation in on- and off-site 12-step groups;</strong> life skills education; volunteer work in the local community; and recreation. The program also fosters a sense of restorative justice, through counseling, victim awareness, and accountability. Finally, the center offers a “Wilderness Experience,” consisting of unspecified <strong>outdoor recreational activities.</strong></p> <p>Aiming to prepare residents for life after treatment, the center provides career and technical education and a <strong>work readiness program</strong> that includes volunteer work and job training. There are also opportunities to pursue higher education and community services opportunities.</p> <p>Other programs available at this facility consist of a social-skills development and substance-abuse education program for adolescent males, and an open residential program for male youth struggling with delinquency problems. There is also a 16-bed psychiatric facility for male youth.</p> <p><strong>STAFF CREDENTIALS</strong></p> <p>The staff-to-client ratio is 1:4. There is currently no further information provided by the facility regarding its treatment staff; however, <a href="https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/report_3059/ShortReport-3059.pdf" target="_blank">98.7 percent of Pennsylvania substance abuse treatment centers have continuing education requirements for staff</a>.</p> <p><strong>ACCOMMODATIONS & AMENITIES</strong></p> <p>The treatment, residential, and educational facilities are dotted around the leafy 90-acre campus. There are <strong>fully-accredited and state-licensed middle and high schools on-site</strong>, as well as athletics provisions, including football, softball, track, wrestling, and a basketball court. In addition, there are music facilities including keyboards and guitars.</p> <p><strong>WHAT ALUMNI SAY</strong></p> <p>Rehabs.com has yet to receive feedback from the facility's alumni; however, Google yielded positive reviews at the time of this writing, earning <strong>four out of five average stars</strong> from seven users.<small class="footnote"><a target="_blank" href="#footnote-1"><sup>[1]</sup></a></small> Former client S.F. stated, "it worked for me," giving a five-star rating. B.R. accompanied their three-star rating with the comment, "i was there for 9 months hated it at time but love the way i am because of it.”</p> <p><strong>WHAT STAFF SAY</strong></p> <p>The sole staffer polled by Rehabs.com to date self-identified as an addiction counselor and emphasized a <strong>positive experience</strong> while working at the facility for over 10 years. Giving four- and five-star ratings to the credentials and experience of the staff, the sense of community among clients, the respect for aftercare protocols, and the fairness of the facility's pricing, V.J.W. commented, "I am always amazed at the change in attitudes and quality of health after only a short time in treatment and the lasting lifetime change." In fact, this individual felt strongly about the high <strong>"success rate" of clients at this facility</strong>, noting this as a particular facility strength. </p> <p>Feedback was somewhat more mixed on secondary staff review sites. An average rating of <strong>3.3 stars</strong> on Indeed from 29 employees to date was generated about Abraxas as a whole, rather than Abraxas I in particular.<small class="footnote"><a target="_blank" href="#footnote-2"><sup>[2]</sup></a></small> </p> <p>The lower average of 2.5 stars was produced by 35 Glassdoor users to date.<small class="footnote"><a target="_blank" href="#footnote-3"><sup>[3]</sup></a></small> Though many reviewers spoke highly of the organization’s mission, there were <strong>repeated complaints about poor treatment of clients</strong>. “Teaching youth to be productive members of their society can be rewarding especially when you see the change occur,” one reviewer wrote in a representative positive review, but another anonymous employee commented, “Inept employees who treat clients like they are prisoners. Management turns their head the other way when people are treated poorly. Lots of time spent on enforcing rules and very little time spent on the reason they are there, for treatment.” Neither of these reviews were left by staff at the Abraxas I facility.</p> <p><strong>FINANCING</strong></p> <p>The chemical dependency program is fully funded by local managed care organizations for youth who meet the criteria.</p> <p><small class="footnote"><a target="_blank" href="#footnote-1"><sup>[1]</sup></a> <a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=Abraxas+I&oq=Abraxas+I&aqs=chrome..69i57j69i60j0l4.990j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8#lrd=0x89cd26ba340f4601:0xd5d7678e9a1f6be4,1," target="_blank">GoogleReviews</a></small><br /> <small class="footnote"><a target="_blank" href="#footnote-2"><sup>[2]</sup></a> <a href="https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Abraxas-Youth-and-Family-Services/reviews" target="_blank">https://www.indeed.com/cmp/Abraxas-Youth-and-Family-Services/reviews</a> </small><br /> <small class="footnote"><a target="_blank" href="#footnote-3"><sup>[3]</sup></a> <a href="https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Abraxas-Youth-and-Family-Services-Reviews-E363794.htm" target="_blank">https://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Abraxas-Youth-and-Family-Services-Reviews-E363794.htm</a></small></p>
— Samantha Harper · 2018-04-03 11:19:51 PDT
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