Here is my honest and unbiased review of Riverplace Counseling Center based out of Anoa, MN. The facilities are very nice and clean, They do a good job of keeping things in working order and in shape and have a phenomenal maintenance guy. The front desk admin assistant is very thorough and if asked for help is dependable and reliable. She has a get it done attitude. The tech staff is overall friendly and helpful with what clients need. As far as programming goes it could be better and more coordinated. Counselors are given the autonomy to present material and structure their groups as they see fit which is good when the counselors are competent, which about 75% of them seem to be. However, the ones who aren't can make groups feel very elementary, mundane, and like nails on a chalk board. Creativity and planning goes a long ways in providing the most valuable experience in short time for clients. As far as individual attention goes, the outpatient portion of their programming seems to provide adequate attention and individual based planning. However, while in their IOP w/ lodging phase (which is essentially inpatient, get to that later) one on ones are not readily available and have to be asked for. Which is confusing to the client because compared to other programs, they do very little “social work” to speak as far as helping clients with needs outside of treatment and leave that solely on the client to take upon themselves. This can be difficult at times with limited computer availability, no cell phones allowed, and not a lot of time during the business day to make calls. Fortunately, I had responsive counselors assigned to me and I am forward with my needs, however, a client who does not have those communication skills or gets one of the lesser counselors might struggle in getting their individual needs met. By far my disappointment here came in how they appear to be an operation in a state of constant transition. This was obvious through their lack of a handle on Covid protocols (15 months into the pandemic), constant change of rules, borderline false advertising, and shortage of staffing of techs. The lack of communication of expectations because it seems things are just decided at the top as they go leaves the techs and counselors in a tough spot with clients. And the most concerning thing I observed was the clinical director being completely out of bounds with her decisions, to a point that its a liability. Such as denying a patient his meds when it was discovered they had been misusing them. This is a very dangerous situation not just for the patient but for others around that patient given the nature of the meds. The clinical director has expertise in substance abuse counseling, not a doctorate degree in mental health or medicine, thus should probably stay in her lane. Also, is essentially inpatient, extended care is a medium intensity halfway house, and their “freedom phase” is not a true sober house as its still GRH and the staff walks into your apartment whenever they see fit. When its staffed. It was not until 3⁄4 of the way through my stay that they staffed it 24/7 as required to comply with the state for funding. Also, do not expect the rules there to be consistent as some may be expelled for bringing substances into the house, while other wont be disciplined. And they will change policies that may have been a selling point for you to transition there vs another sober house halfway through your stay. Overall, if it weren't for the couple close friends I made there and the handful of employees who do have it together, this would have been very miserable.