I was admitted into the tween unit foraround 6 days, (i am 12), and the staff there was so lovely, especially the night staff. ms Zoe and mr Brendan were my favorites. I liked mr Shawn too.The food wasn’t that bad i mainly got salads tho. My experience there was pretty good we mainly did activities, watched movies and colored. We were allowed to play board games sometimes along with cards and coloring. If we were good we were allowed to go on the playground, also the patients there were lovely, they were all so sweet and kind. I do miss some of the kids from there, unfortunately i couldn’t get any info to be able to contact them because the staff didn’t allow it. They said “you’re here to focus on yourself not make friends” which is understandable. I’m doing better now than i was before i got sent there, the coping mechanisms bingo activity we did helped a lot :)

I am very happy Dr. Danielle Roncone learned her lessons about changing supervisors if its about the student not threatening its original 1-1.

If there was a Minus Zero stars Brook Lane would be double minus that..Yes its that bad and if you feel the assertion is inaccurate please feel free to chime in with a factual counter argument.. Withouth going overboard on details, Brook Lane has some outstanding employees but the system and fundamental premise that the Hospital is founded on is flawed. The health care system has deteriorated in the area of mental health considerably and the experience that was there in the past is long gone. Brook Lane has exactly 1 qualified psychologist and thats pushing it.. The majority of staff is social workers masquerading as health professionals. There is no rhyme to the reason and medications are dispensed and perscribed seemingly at random. Dosages appear to be increased based on the lets see what happens approach and health professionals evaluation of patients responses, which are basically limited to physical i.e. looks good and verbal i.e. sounds good.. This approach only goes so far. For the verbally challenged patient there is no hope of progressing without conveying to the social worker doing the box checking portion of the so called treatment plan.. The goal here seems to be admit patients that can pay $$ and or have insurance to cover a stay in the the unit at Brook Lanes Hagerstown Campus. The mental facility model is getting old as well and confining patients to their room and or unit which basically is a halllway with ~ bunch of rooms on each side, is a sure way to create an enviroment that is unhealthy for getting youre head on straight or vocalizing whats bothering you. The patients are all lumped together regardless of mental ability or instability.. The zoo as it turns out has patients walking the halls talking to the voices in their head at all hours of the day and night along mingled with abuse victims, voluntary and involuntary admissions and god only knows what else. The patients are let out couple times a day for Therapy, meals and whatever else the staff can come up with to pass time of day. The activities which are supposed to build confidence or mood or improve patients well being are rudamentary and ineffective. Coloring and group gossip sessions do not help and neither does putting feelings down on paper.. If the patient knew what caused their situation they would probably fix it.. Getting a diagnosis out of Brook Lane is practically impossbile.. The unit wardens are basically orderlies keeping the patients busy in between activities led by social workers and occasionally a Physiscian Assistant or other psuedo medical professional will stop by and ask probing questions in order to dole out medications.. The evenings and spare time if filled with staring out the window and watching non-threatening tv along with endless commercials.. There is a phone to the outside world that is always busy and personal comms are no allowed. The chances of making through this maze of a mental health facility favors the house... If they like you the stay lasts maybe a week or two, if not cooperative its like hotel california.. The bottom line of this long rambling narrative is stay away if possible, get a real MD to diagnose what ailing you and seek medicine as a last resort. The narcotics dispensed at this place basically sends patients into zombie land and thats not a good place to be. Good luck

I debated on posting a review of my experiences with Dr. Fawaz for over 3 years now. I saw Dr. Fawaz for a few months while living in PA. I felt so uncomfortable speaking with him right from the start. Many of my stressors that I wanted to talk about were under minded. I talked with him about having my dog as an emotional support dog and he quickly said “you are not disabled enough to have an emotional support dog” (word from word) then lectured me on the importance of emotional support dogs for people who need them more. I think the lecture was unnecessary and poor choice of words. Not going into detail but I do want to explain that he wanted to talk about past traumas. Which is normal. I explained them. Then he suggested that they were my fault. I quit seeing him after a few months and started seeing someone new and had to do therapy of my experiences with him. My overall opinion of my experiences with him is he has no “bed side manors” so to speak and poor choice of words for this particular profession. I’m not crying over not sugar coating things. Honesty, is a beautiful thing but in this case he didn’t know me at all and made accusations of situations which was completely unprofessional. Seeing someone for mental health can be extremely hard as it is, so to quickly jump to conclusions being in this profession you shut the patient down immediately. The entire reason a person goes to a psychiatrist/therapist is to be heard, understood, and most of all NOT JUDGED!

First things first: please keep in mind that people dont tend to go out of their way to leave positive reviews, only negative ones. I was a bit worried at first when I saw some of the reviews, but I had a great experience personally.I was in the adolescent unit for around six days before discharge. All the staff was kind from my experience, and even helped me when I was having a panic attack on my first night there.The other patients were all lovely too, everyone got along with one another and it felt like a family there. I miss many of the friends I made there.Keep in mind that youre here to get help, you need to be open to the people here or they cant help you. I was a bit nervous but decided to fully disclose my issues, and by my second or third day they put me on medication that helped my anxiety massively.The food was okay! It was pretty much the same as what youd get in public school lunches. For lunch and dinner you had a choice of what to eat, which I appreciated tons, since I think I would starve if I wasnt able to have one of my safe foods. They also offered vegetarian options, and were careful about food sensitivities. One thing I noticed is that the food was pretty much always cold, though, but I didnt mind much.Most days were filled with lots of free time, which patients could use to color, write, play games with other patients, read, do puzzles, etc... I wasnt very happy with their selection of books, though, so I would suggest to bring your own if youre an avid reader like me. It honestly felt like a combination between a daycare and a nursing home. It did get boring at times, but it was always very peaceful.Some other minor things I have to nag about- many showers were broken, and the toilets sound like gunshots when you flush them, which is an issue especially considering how many other patients are sensitive to loud noises. It was always freezing cold in my room, but I was given an extra blanket which fixed the issue.Other than that, my experience here was was great, and I would absolutely choose to come back again if I ever felt like I needed to! c:

I was a patient of Dr. Corvin Robinson for seven years or more. As time went on I felt that maybe he was getting overwhelmed with his patients and I could see that he was still working on things from previous patients, while he was speaking with me. He couldnt focus and eventually I received a call that he resigned.Brook Lane asked that I go back through their intake services to reschedule. The soonest they could schedule me was two months out with Dr. Jamal Fawaz. I told them tele-health would be best because I live further away and Covid-19 is still a concern. They told me no and that he has to meet with me in person. I told them I was coming from College Park and that I would come in. Unfortunately, there was a traffic incident on the way there. I arrived and spoke with the receptionist at 2:08pm. She told me I would have to reschedule. I begged receptionist explaining my situation. They let me speak with Dr. Fawaz personal assistant and she said she would go ask him. She came back telling me that he refused and that I would have to come back. I let her know that instances like this are, in part, why people seek help.Already being an existing patient, I was disappointed and have no desire to return. I accept that I was late and I also explained my situation to them way in advance. Even though I had since moved from the area, they had my records and I elected to give them an opportunity to retain my business. I was reluctant as Dr. Fawaz has a two star rating here and not much better on other medical sites. And if he turned me away for eight minutes, then it is obvious he doesnt need my money.Their staff spent more time arguing with me over what clock they look at and eating copious amounts of food - and it shows. If you dont need my business, being an existing patient, then it is clear that your antiquated facility doesnt need anyone elses.

For the old hag doctor, short hair and glasses. She said “ if you don’t tell me now then you’ll never leave” yeah that doesn’t help at all plus you can’t expect me to tell you what’s wrong immediately without knowing you or having a short conversation beforehand, then after telling me “ I won’t leave this place if I don’t tell you” giving up and telling me to leave. You made it way worse for me then you can imagine. I hope your car gets towed and fined and I hope you get paper cuts and accidentally put hand sanitizer on them. The food was pretty good.

(adolescent unit)a lot of the staff were absolutely amazing, i loved them so much. my doctor was okay, she didnt listen, assumed things, and just was eh. the food is pretty gross but if you get the chicken wing dings, bro they bussin. groups are fun, especially hobby skills and if you tell the man who runs it you’re leaving, he will bring you a stress ball at some point that day. we had lots of free time where we usually watched movies, colored (even though staff took coloring supplies from us and told us it was because kids were misusing them when no one was), played cards, etc. you learn A LOT of card game while youre there because they pass the time really well. there were multiple code 5’s (agressive patient) which triggered lots of us but they were all handled well. most of the nurses are absolutely amazing (especially ms celine). patio time is absolutely amazing, its a really nice way to get some vitamin D and they usually play music and take song requests if said song is appropriate. the kids are so so so cool for the most part, when i was there we made a whole “nation”. the staff are very strict when it comes to cursing and inappropriate topics. all around a 3/5 because doc and food brought it down, but id absolutely go again if i had to.

I just wanted an appointment to speak with someone about cognitive behavior therapy for my anxiety (hellooooo pandemic). They offered telehealth appointments. Great! I sent back the paperwork I needed to e-sign. They kept pulling a bait and switch on my appointment time. Despite the fact its telehealth and I completed all my paperwork, they still scheduled me as if I was coming for a regular intake appointment (half hour prior to an appointment) and didnt bother to explain that. So...I scheduled (for example) an appointment for 7:30 to 8:30. Their automatic appointment confirmation system called me and confirmed for that time. (Keep in mind this happened 3 times before anyone explained) I took off work for a set time. And what do I get in my email? A zoom link from the therapist for 8:00 to 9:00. So I called and they still wouldnt see me for my SCHEDULED appointment time, even tho I had all my paperwork in and its telehealth.Keep that in mind if you think you want to schedule with them--evidently time means nothing to them and neither does the fact that their bait and switch cost me $50.Do not recommend.

I saw Dr. Jamal Fawaz from 2018-2021. During my time, I was only prescribed about.. maybe a half dozen different medications. Some didn’t work, others I couldn’t afford. My diagnoses are Bipolar 2, PTSD, and OCD. At the time of my departure, I was on Effexor XR and Buspar. When asking for something to help with my hypomania, for example Lamictal, he proceeded to ask me if I partook in the usage of recreational drugs or substances. I mentioned that I occasionally smoke marijuana, but it wasn’t a daily habit that affected my life. Dr. Jamal Fawaz proceeded to compare me to somebody who uses highly addictive substances daily, such as heroin, cocaine, meth, and highly addictive narcotics. He refused to give me any new type of medication after that, saying he “wouldn’t treat someone who was trying to make themselves psychotic.” Overall, wouldn’t recommend if you’re a marijuana user, medical card or not, as he does not believe in it and called the THC Industry a “money machine.”

My daughter and I both go there and I really like my therapist, Michelle Smith. Michelle does do evening appointments. My daughter has had to keep jumping from different therapist, because of staff changes. She had Christopher Wheatley and liked him, but they moved him to inpatients only. Her current therapist doesnt seem to be doing anything but renewing her prescriptions which has become a mess. Not having evening hour appointments available for my daughter is ridiculous as well as not taking appointments after 3:30. Availability for appointments for my daughter has been hard with all the therapist she has had because none do evening, after 4 and sometimes only 3 days a week.

I have been admitted twice in the adolescences unit and the staff was very nice and caring. Group was fun and over all was a good experience. My only complaint is that the night staff is loud and very rude. But besides that it was a great experience.

A wonderful facility with a caring staff, I had a great experience there. I am alive because of the staff at Brook Lane

I had an amazing experience with all the lovely and caring staff. I definitely felt cared for and taken care of. I especially loved my therapist, she’s honestly so understanding and made my stay there so much more welcoming. I will forever carry this experience and it will change a lot for me in a positive way.

Brook Lane’s inpatient hospital lacks professionalism and care towards and for their patients, especially the night shift. It’s been complained that the night shift staff have very inappropriate behavior/conversations in the hall in which the adolescent unit can hear clearly. I’m told by a close family member who’s currently inpatient that their conversations between the male nurses regards who of the female nurses they would sleep with. More of course for the female nurses who are rowdy with inappropriate language at night. When I called to complain to HR, I was abruptly told that they’d have to call me back. I haven’t received a call back yet, but if I do, it’s surely in an untimely manner; especially for someone who’s looking to file a complaint. With that being said, I’m sincerely hopeful that the night shift nurses are appropriately disposed of; as well as HR.

Brook Lane North Village has THE WORST customer service I have ever received and this is supposed to be a mental health care provider. I am disgusted by this business and their practices. Please educate yourselves and your reception staff on how to speak to patients. You may also want to update your company policies instead of discharging mental health patients for ONE missed appointment in over 4 years of treatment. I wouldn’t refer my worst enemy to this place, let alone a friend or family member. DO BETTER BROOK LANE. Unacceptable.

I was there two weeks. I cant say enough thanks to Dr Gonzalez Nurse Sue Nurse Deb Nurse Tabitha and Nurse Amy. The rest made me feel like a number in a herd of cattle. These stand out employee pulled me though. Some really caring folks work here its just not enough.

I have so many negative stories of Brook Lane throughout the past seven years of seeing myself in inpatient, partial-hospitalization, and arguably one of my worst experiences, the school Ive been a part of for two and a half years.Inpatient - Ive been in the child unit, the tween unit, and the adolescent unit. I often feel the need to leave lots of my feelings out when talking to anyone because while I believe sometimes inpatient would be helpful normally, my almost ten times hospitalized there have been horrendous each time.For one, over the years, policies and minor things I grew accustomed to changed drastically. Some for the better, admittedly, and some for the worst. But one thing I learned of Brook Lane is that nothing stays the same for longer than a week. It is so unbelievably inconsistent. Staff are sometimes good, and sometimes bad - the latter more frequent than Id like. While in a manic or hypomanic phase a few years ago, I was ready to be discharged from inpatient, and was giddy with excitement. A staff member threatened to extend my stay because it was bothering her. Other staff members had sort of let chaos reign for one of my stays. Other times, I had been assaulted by other patients twice in the span of twelve hours, and they werent stopped either time. The second, I was beat in the face waiting to go to breakfast, and staff made no move against the patient in question. I had insulted him the night before, due to him laughing at me after being punched that night. He didnt take kindly to that, and asked for an apology. I was admittedly a little mouthy, but he had no sympathy and seemed to find my assault amusing, hence provoking me. I was spitting up blood after he had decided to fight me, and had to get a CAT scan and something else, if I recall. Brook Lane was incredibly slow to respond to informing my family of the situation, and even slower to let my mother remove me from their care.Partial-hospitalization - PHP was largely just unprofessional and had bad staff members. I remember one of the two nurses was a rude lady who seemed to care little about the kids attending. It used to be largely focused on schoolwork and therapy. However, schoolwork is only one hour a day as of late, and all the therapists at this establishment have since quit - all of them. They are severely understaffed at the moment.Laurel Hall School - I was first sent to this nightmare of a school in the second semester of my 10th grade year. My mental health was severely in question, and I eventually got okay on my own terms. As that happened, I quickly realized how bad this school is. For one, they dont prepare you for college in any way, and a therapist admitted this to me when I brought it up. Screaming children are having to be restrained regularly, a big distraction to working students. Ive been threatened in this school by a student who later was arrested for attempted murder, and they sided with him more than me, despite the enormous amount of bullying said student did to me, along with multiple others. Staff did very, very little in regard to the bullying. Assault has happened before in this building, and often gets glossed over. They also assign an incredibly small amount of work, and dont remotely challenge the students for any of it other than math work, which is naturally challenging for most. I fear for when I attend college later this year, as I will not, in any way, be prepared for a real challenge as college is. Therapy is not necessarily minimal, but certainly not doing much to help students. It is more an activity for fun than it is therapy. I could go on all day about how much I truly despise Laurel Hall - but this review is long enough.I simply want to end this review by saying that Brook Lane is a horrendous choice for anyones mental health needs. By no circumstances do I suggest it, after seven years of inpatient, outpatient, partial hospitalization, and schooling.

When I was fourteen, I spent a week or two at this facility, and I can safely say it’s left me with lasting trauma. I am transgender, for reference, and I had my “therapist” tell me that I did not dress, sound, act like, or would be my preferred gender any time soon. Granted, this was probably true in some sence since I was very early in my transition, but understand this being heard by a suicidal fourteen year old coming from an abusive household. It crushed me and has for years. That wasn’t even all. Staff was very unprofessional and simply did not know how to handle the mentally ill period, let alone mentally ill teenagers and children. I have had violent reactions to the mere thought of having to stay here, or any other mental health facility ever again. Do not send your kids, your relatives, or any other loved one here. I felt much safer and much better off outside of the facility than inside. This place heightened my suicidal tendencies rather than reduced them and has given me a fear and hatred for any other mental health facility like it.

When I was in the 6th grade I was placed here. I arrived late at night and fell asleep, and was awoken to the sound of another boy yelling, he was being pulled off of the bed by the feet by whom i assume was one of the nurses, named Matt. The boy was already covered in bruises and burns from what clearly appeared to be from an abuser. Matts reply to the boys screaming was this, This is the best part of my day. This is Brooke Lane Health Services. I am now an adult and still think about my experiences there. 1/5

This has to be one of the worse places to go for mental health, the staff was very rude and inconsiderate of anyone who needed help

Dr. Fawaz has helped me sort out my medications and has always listened to my concerns. He is always willing to educate me on why something works or doesn’t work, and the science behind it which I find to be really rare with doctors! Both my therapist and my psychiatrist are through brook lane and they work on my treatment plan together so the both know what is going on which I think could be really helpful. Recently Dr. Fawaz’s secretary really went above and beyond to help me figure out my insurance and had it taken care of in less than 24 hours. Overall they’ve been really great!

I wouldn’t recommend anyone going here please. The staff just sit and gossip and talk about their lives instead of watching the patients. The therapist would get sassy with you and make you feel absolutely terrible. Many patients that said they had suicidal thoughts got ignored. It’s crazy to think that you think your getting help but your not.

I am only alive because of the people that work here.

Ive been to other mental hospitals and now Ill only go here. The staff are friendly and I trust them. Plus.. You get to have a lot more from home than other places. I actually really felt better after leaving. They practically saved my life! However, the communication amongst staff could be much better which is why I only gave 4 stars. It was very frustrating.

Absolutely an awful facility with unprofessional staff. My daughter was placed here after a stay at another hospital because she said she was going to hurt herself. She spent a week at the facility and we had scarce communication with the staff, therapist and psychiatrist. When it was time to bring her home we had the customary family therapy and it did not go well and the therapist decided that she should stay longer. The plan was to have a phone session with her but the facility did not call us and then contacted us late in the evening to pick her up two days later because she was being discharged. We live an hour and a half away and sometimes two hours with traffic. They threatened us when we said we wanted to know what the plan was and told us if we didn’t pick her up they would contact social services. So we drove out late in the evening to pick her up. No plan, no help, nothing. Again, an absolutely awful facility and staff.

Just like every other bad mental health facility. Feels more like jail than a place of healing. Lots of staff are mean.

Absolutely horrible experience. There was no communication and there seemed to be a lack of structure within the program. We had 2 calls with the psychiatrist- 1 a few hours after he arrived (at 3 am) to talk about what they would do once he woke up and once a week later letting us know that he was being discharged that same day. We left messages for him between those calls that were never returned or even acknowledged. We met with two people- a family therapist who HAD NEVER MET MY SON and knew nothing about his case and the discharge nurse WHO HAD NEVER MET MY SON and knew nothing about his case. He had no medication change, we were given no instructions when we left or discharge plan, and I am still waiting 6 months later from a return call from the patient advocate. The only thing my son learned is that he never wants to go there again. Do not allow your child to be placed there. They will not improve or get the help they need.

Had an intake therapy session today at the Maugansville location. Had to bring my terminal ill child with me as I can not place him in daycare. 45 minutes past my appointment time, my son wants to move around. So we make our ways around the waiting room, and suddenly a man comes from behind one the doors and jumps down my throat that I “need to do something with your child” because his office was being disturbed. I had no problem with him letting me know, it was his word choice, his tone, and lack of empathy. When I went to the front desk to tell them I was not staying for appointment and what I had experienced they would not give me the therapist name so I could contact a higher up, and were very snarky. For this being a mental health facility they are very unprofessional. And from reading previous reviews I’m not the only person to have this type of experience...

Terrible care for patients. Everyone in this place is rude the nurses, doctor, and the therapist. Do not take your children here they will suffer more than heal! There needs to be a huge change in this facility!! There is a huge lack of communication between all the staff members. If someone has a high temperature they should communicate to each other and give the patient the care that they need, not ignore the problem. The therapist should be warm and kind to the patient not aggressive! Even The doctor herself was very aggressive, she was threatening my daughter that she’d have a longer stay. Please do not let anyone suffer in this place, if you have depression this place will only make it worse, there must be hope somewhere else

My stay at this place wasn’t do bad actually...

My son is going on his 3rd week inpatient. He has gotten worse instead of better! The doctor unfortunately refuses to treat the adhd insisting that’s not what is going on and instead has focused on other things. The results being my child is out of control to the point that he is receiving benedryl and psychotic meds to calm him. I have went above this doctor to get help and continue feeling like I’m not being heard. Our out patient services have been great and we will continue those upon my sons discharge. I will look elsewhere if we ever have to turn to inpatient again.

All staff were great

The best mental services in all MarylandThank so much guys! 👍

Terrible place. More traumatizing than healing.

Worst place ever. They brainwashed my brother to hate my stepdad and he has never been the same since he went here