Embark at Chevy Chase

I attended the outpatient program at embark and it was an awful experience. I was told that i would get family therapy, which they did not provide in the month i attended.

As a PhD neuroscientist at NIH who studies brain conditions, I expected evidence-based care for my son. Instead, Embark refused to work with my child’s existing team of excellent state-appointed providers and top pediatrician. They would not communicate with these experts or align with the measurable outcomes already established by the county’s thorough assessment. Embark had no interest in coordinating care - only in billing my insurance. When I asked reasonable questions about treatment approaches and outcomes, they shut me down. Rather than address my legitimate concerns, they characterized my questions as “relationship issues with the mother” to justify additional charges to my insurance company. This facility preys on desperate parents with good insurance. They refused collaboration with established providers and became hostile when I advocated for my son’s best interests. Two years later, I can confidently say: avoid this program. Find providers who prioritize measurable outcomes and teamwork over insurance revenue. I am a PhD brain scientist at NIH with a son that was diagnosed at age 6 with a behavioral disorder. I have received excellent support and care from providers and treatment centers over the years, but Embark stands out as an absolute disaster on multiple levels. 1) The staff is disorganized. They confused referrals for future providers with past providers that had treated my son, that would have provided useful clinical information to Embark 2) They use family therapy to discuss their internal grievances as opposed to having my son with me for actual therapy 3) My family therapy was set for 9am, even though my son arrived at IOP at 4pm. 4) They billed me personally for the same treatment they submitted to insurance and wanted payment from both me and insurance, even though I had reached my out of pocket max and all treatment was to be covered by insurance. When asked to resubmit to insurance, they refused to do it. 5) Any documents they were supposed to provide, I had to circle back 4-5 times to get what was promised to me. There is no follow through on what they promise to do. If you aren't an organized person, you will never get what you need. 6) They were rude and dismissive with my son's pediatrician. She was the only provider they spoke to, thanks to her taking the lead on reaching out to them. 7) I've shared Embark's emails to me with other top tier professionals in the field and they are shocked and disheartened at Embark's lack of professionalism and pejorative tone. 8) My child had a great experience at Newport Academy. I continue to use the alumni support that is provided to parents and clients of Newport every single day. 9) Many other families I know are thrilled with the support they receive from Newport Academy. 10) As a mom and professional in the field stay away from this place that is level 10 disaster. You will be left feeling frustrated, disappointed, and angry. Your time will be wasted trying to communicate effectively with staff that lack professional acumen, with limited ability to problem solve and accomplish basic tasks e.g. send a list of referrals or connect with a treatment provider for clinical information.

My kids were having a difficult time this year for many reasons and this was a great place to re-set. Everyone was so kind and accommodating and helped us as a whole family. I really trust the care they got and while I expect we still have work to do we are a lot less lost on where to go from here. Also since ending care with Embark, we have been able to get some guidance (before we left as well but even after) on resources outside of their center. Special gratitude to Lydia, Lee and Cameron. Chris from the front desk and Diana from group were also such kind souls. I wish we didn’t have struggles but at the same time we met the kindest people to help us navigate this phase. And now have skills to cope when things come up again (which they will on some level for sure.)

Very slay therapy program, love Alyssa down she’s the best.

Thank you to everyone at Embark for the amazing support. My 14 year old son has done a complete 180 degrees: he is happy, confident, respectful, responsible and ready to take on his 9th grade (in-person, not online) in high school next year. You may have read a negative review that was recently posted on the services at Embark Cabin John. I want to confirm that my experience (coming from the other parent who is the actual caregiver - full-time - for our son for the last ~6 months) is the complete opposite. 1) Staff (both clinical and administrative) at Embark Behavioral Health @ Cabin John, Maryland are very friendly, organized and professional 2) No billing issues whatsoever; Embark, much like Newport is out-of-network for our insurance coverage; certain charges are not fully covered and therefore the parents are expected to pay; there has never been a situation where both the Heatlh Insurance Company and Embark are both expecting payment....only the Provider (i.e. Embark) sends out invoices for payment...not the insurance company. The comments you may have read online is due to lack of understanding from the other parent in terms of how Insurance and Out-of-Network providers handle billing (despite reaching the out of pocket maximum); parents should check with their insurance provider to fully understand what is covered and what may have to be paid out-of-pocket, even after reaching the Out Of Pocket Maximum. I should know...because I am the one paying the bills and have fully explored this with both the Insurance Company and Embark billing department!! :-) 3) The clinical staff have been very accommodating; we have met on several occasions (with both parents) to review our son's progress and to review a plan to make adjustments for further positive improvements 4) Upon my son stepping down from his PHP to IOP program, the care plan was re-assessed to make healthy adjustments; Dr. Patricia Hudson-Henry was assigned to our family to help work with both parents on skills to improve overall communication, de-escalating conflict and building trust with our Son...it has made a big difference in his overall behavior and has brough us even closer now. 5) Bottom line: I am just a regular Dad who cares for his son and two other children. Not only is my son now ready to tackle high-school next year, I believe he has learned several "life skills" to handle many obstacles and de-escalate / self-regulate when he gets frustrated or mad...and with him now being much more open to sharing thoughts and feelings, I can continue to guide and support him throughout his adolescence and young adult life. If any parent out there is dealing with... - a difficult teen - conflicts between spouses (married or divorced) which is affecting your child's behavior and overall mental health - a child who has various mental health challenges - have concerns about a teen's substance abuse, eating disorder, defiance, non-cooperative, etc. ...and is on the fence about bringing their child to Embark Behavioral Health at Cabin John, rest assured they have the right staff and approach to help you. I would highly recommend their services and would like for my 16 year old to also work with the same people Embark @ Cabin John.

it’s a great place with really cool people

Embark seemed like a good fit for our child. However, the first day of treatment another patient had a major issue occur that caused our child to be triggered and traumatized. The situation was not handled appropriately by the therapist, IOO. Our child begged us to not return to this particular facility. It’s unfortunate, as we thought it was going to be a safe, comfortable environment for our child to process and heal. Embark was good about refunding us the money we paid. However, despite the fact we were no longer in the program as of the first day; we just had an unauthorized withdrawal for a large sum of money from our bank account from Embark yesterday. Not acceptable. This may or may not be the responsibility of the cabin John location. However, they were aware we were not participating any longer as well as the billing department due to the fact that they had already refunded what we had paid thus far. Embark’s billing and local facilities must do better for future clients.

Our daughter gained so many lifelong skills and great knowledge over the last few months at embark. I can’t speak highly enough about the staff and the program. We also had an amazing therapist! Highly recommend and thank you embark.