Monte Nido Houston – TX | ED Treatment Reviews

Monte Nido Houston – TX

July 6, 2024
Accepts Government Insurance, Adolescent, Adult, Allows Nasogastric Tubes, Corporate, Experiential Therapy, For Profit, IOP/PHP, Medicaid, No Cell Phones, PTSD/Trauma, Residential, Single-Case Agreements (SCA), Texas, Transgender/Gender-Affirming Treatment, Treats Males, Treats Substance Abuse
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https://www.montenido.com

Monte Nido is a national eating disorder treatment center with a number of locations across the country. This page is for their Houston and Texas locations. (For reviews of their other residential treatment locations, please click here. For reviews of their PHP/IOP and virtual programs, please click here. For reviews of their adolescent program, Clementine, please click here.)

Monte Nido is known for its focus on body and soul. They mostly focus on residential treatment, however some locations do offer PHP, or PHP with housing. It was founded in 1996 by Carolyn Costin, who left after 20 years in 2016. Monte Nido changed ownership a few years ago; it now has new leadership, new clinical directors and many more locations.

Monte Nido’s new Houston residential treatment center in Texas offers eating disorder treatment to adult females. It also treats co-occurring substance use and trauma. It is the only Monte Nido residential location that can do nasogastric (N/G) tubes and can accommodate slightly higher acuity levels patients.

Monte Nido Houston also has a day treatment center for adults and adolescents of all genders. The day treatment center offers PHP.

Any current reviews or information about Monte Nido’s Texas locations? Please be sure to specify which location you are reviewing. You can check out the FAQ and Guidelines for suggested questions, and post your review or experience in the comments below!

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Anonymous

1 year ago

This review is for adult residential

If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible? There is an elevator, but it is not very accessible (carpeted upstairs with narrow hallways)

How many patients are there on average? While I was there it ranged from 2 of us to 8.

How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, nurse, etc? You see the nurse practitioner usually once a week unless you require more (in that case you may need to step up to inpatient depending on the reasoning for needing more medical support), psychiatrist once a week over telehealth, nurse 24/7, therapist 2-3 times per week, dietitian 1-2 times per week.

What is the staff-to-patient ratio? There was usually only 1 RC (recovery coach) present, there is always a nurse as well though.

What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, ACT, exposure therapy, somatic experiencing, etc.)? primary/process, ACT, DBT, mindfulness, and CPT (if trauma history is present).

Describe the average day:

6-7 AM: Weights (2x a week unless required to do more by team), vital signs, morning meds.
8 AM: Breakfast
Walk if approved (3x a week, days depend on when staff was available). The walk is up and down the driveway.
9 AM: 1st group or time to do therapy assignments/free time (depending on what RC was working). Community meeting on Monday.
10 AM: AM snack
11 AM: 2nd group
12 PM: Lunch
1 PM: 3rd group or assignments/free time
3PM: PM snack
3:15-5:30 PM: sessions or assignments/free time from, outing on Saturday (if you completed in the last 24 hours) and “innning” (an activity on Sunday).
5 PM: last group. Cooking group on Mondays with the dietitian, skills groups or relaxation the other days. Sometimes we would do yoga nihdra or a meditation.
6 PM: Dinner
7 PM: free time, phone calls, “movie night” on Friday although we always had access to the TV with youtube, netflix, music, etc. when not in group. We also usually had access to the house phones anytime we were not in group
8:30: HS snack
Fill out snack sheets for the next day, night meds, vitals, phone calls, upstairs by 10 PM (usually we went before)

What were meals like?: Meals were the same for everyone unless you had an allergy. While I was there this was true for ARFID patients as well although sometimes they would allow alternate supplements (Ex: Nutella sandwiches). We had 30 minutes for meals and 15 minutes for snacks. In the last 5 or so minutes RCs go and pour supplements regardless on if you plan on finishing so the option is there. Some staff were pretty strict on time. Your completion is written down on a card: C is completion, S is supplemented, and I is an incomplete.

What sorts of food were available or served?: A wide variety. Everyone ate the same meals but the amount depended on meal plan (A, B, or C). Snack list is the same but again portions vary (green, teal, navy, pink)

Breakfasts included cereal with milk, nuts, and a fruit, waffles with yogurt and berries, avocado toast with hard boiled eggs, egg bakes, poptarts with milk, bagels with cream cheese or peanut butter and fruit, overnight oats with peaches and cream, and pancakes and sausages.
Lunches included salads with a protein and bread rolls, peanut butter and jelly sandwiches with chips and carrot sticks, grilled cheese sandwiches with tomato soup, bahn mi sandwiches, burgers with fries, hard shell tacos, and pasta dishes.
Dinners included spaghetti with meatballs, salmon with rice and veggies, steak with sweet potatoes and veggies, anything really.
Snacks included pita chips, carrots, and hummus, yogurt with granola, crackers with cream cheese, an apple or banana with peanut butter or nutella, graham crackers and chocolate milk or peanut butter, chex mix and juice, nuts and M&Ms/dried fruits, fig newtons, snickers, luna bars (depending on the milleu they would take this option away), nilla wafers and chocolate pudding, ice cream, a “bakery item” (whatever pastry is available), or a “special” if the dietitian brought something in.

Did they supplement? How did that system work?: Yes they supplement and are very particular about not using alternate supplement drinks. They really prefer you do not supplement and it is hard to level up if you supplement alot. If the milleu was overrelying on supplement, very occasionally they would only allow attending the outing if you had completed with FOOD rather than food or supplement.

What is the policy of not complying with meals? You can not go on the outing or earn more priveledges. Very rarely they send to a higher level of care (sometimes it seemed like they should have done this more often).

Are you able to eat vegetarian? Vegan? Vegetarian yes, I do not think you could be vegan but I am not sure.

What privileges are allowed? Access to the mac and TV all day (no going on social media though). I got my ipad which was supposed to be for an hour a day but they ended up leaving it out because of compliance. MP3 players are allowed, facetime calls could be earned with completion, phone calls every day. You could go outside most of the time if you told the RC you were going.

Does it work on a level system? Yes. You fill out a contract each week and request level ups and priviledges (ex: walks, yoga, sharps, shaving, a partial day pass, time on your phone. You could write in any request, and the team tried to work with you. You could not usually get your own electronics though.

How do you earn privileges? Completing your meals on food, participating in group, doing therapy assignments (had to be done to level up).

What sort of groups do they have?: Process groups, relapse prevention, yoga, nutrition, mindful movement or walks (if approved, MNA tends to be strict on this for some patients), life skills, art, recovery reading (reading 8 keys if staff was available, this often did not happen).

What was your favorite group? Art therapy and weekend groups because of the RC that worked saturday.

If applicable: Is the program trauma-informed?: Yes somewhat. They use CPT for trauma.

What did you like the most? The community was very recovery focused while I was there. The staff treated me nicely and it was not traumatizing for me. The house is comfortable, the showers are clean. Allison the lead therapist is very kind.

What did you like the least? The standards are very high for completion, it felt like one time missing was noticed more than 20 meals completing.

Would you recommend this program? Yes. It is the best RTC that I have been to with the least punative treatment I have experienced.

What level of activity or exercise was allowed? This was approved based on weight gain. Walks, yoga, swimming.

What did people do on weekends? Crafts, watching lots of TV, phone calls, outing.

Do you get to know your weight? No. I accidentally saw because the nurses station computer is huge.

If applicable: How fast is the weight gain process? I think it really depends on the person. They would increase meal plan throughout the week if you were not gaining fast enough though.

What was the average length of stay? From 4 weeks to 6 months.

What was the average age range? 18-40 while I was there. Mostly 18-24 though.

How do visits/phone calls work? The house phones are available. Visitation is once a week.

What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)? Sometimes these can be accessed as a priveledge.

For adolescents: Did they provide time to do schoolwork or offer academic support? One patient was still in high school and they allowed time to complete assignments but no academic support. This is at the adult location.

For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go on outings/passes? Meal outings are every week for everyone. Grocery store outings with the dietitian happen when deemed ready. Individual exposures and shopping trips are done with the primary therapist. Passes were granted SOMETIMES but not very often. Outings on the weekend were for all levels as long as there was 24 hours of completion and no safety risk.

What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team? They help you transition to a PHP.

Anonymous

Reply to Anonymous

1 year ago

Thanks for taking the time to write this! It literally infuriates me that programs like this get away with saying they “treat ARFID” and then require people with ARFID to eat the same food as everyone else which is only going to make ARFID so much worse.

1 year ago

When were you there? 2024

What level(s) of care did you do (e.g., inpatient, residential, PHP, IOP)? Residential

If applicable: Is it wheelchair accessible? Yes

How many patients are there on average? Heard from a past patient at one point there was only 1 client. The max capacity they can fit is 16 clients. But our milieu sat around 8.

What genders does it treat? AFAB people.

If applicable: Do they support the gender identities of transgender and nonbinary people? Yes.

How often do you see a medical doctor, psychiatrist, psychologist (therapist), nutritionist, nurse, etc? MD 1x/week, Psych 1x/week, therapist 2x/week, RD 1x/week, nurse daily for vitals + as needed.

What is the staff-to-patient ratio?1:4-10 (At least when I was there they were understaffed a lot. Someone had a medical episode and wasn’t found for a period of time due to the understaffing, and the client got in trouble for it).

What sort of therapies are used (e.g., DBT, CBT, EMDR, ACT, exposure therapy, somatic experiencing, etc.)? DBT groups, CBT, ACT groups. CPT is a possibility in individual sessions.

Describe the average day:

What were meals like? You don’t pick your meals and everyone gets served the same thing (unless you have allergies/diet modifications like veg or something is 1 of your allotted exclusions- they’ll then make their own substitutions). You do pick your snacks the night before. We had meals and snacks at a long table in the dining room. the RC’s eat with you. We did 1 group meal outing a week. Pizza was ordered in once a week. I heard there wasn’t a chef for a prolonged period of time before I got there (I think it was around 2 months). But we had a chef when I was there.

What sorts of food were available or served? There was a lot of different variety. I hope it’s okay to list different options. Breakfasts could be different types of toast, cereal, donuts, etc. Lunches a lot of times were sandwiches, soups, harvest bowls, salads. Dinners were pastas, Chipotle like bowls, burgers, chicken and rice, chili (usually more towards what people would call “comfort meals”). Depending on the meals, there would be sides and or deserts (these were optional). Snacks were a list of like 8 different choices: fruit + spread, fruit + cheese, crackers + cheese, trail mix, ice cream, graham crackers & choc milk, candy bars, protein bars, a weekly rotation of random special snacks/bakery items, etc. They usually would have holiday type options around the holidays (ex: hot chocolate + another item, Christmas tree cakes, etc). We also sometimes had a movie night snack that was typical of movie snacks: popcorn, candies, etc.

Did they supplement? How did that system work? Yes, liquid supplement. You were poured supplement based on how much you did/didn’t complete. The thing I did appreciate is they always put everyone’s sup in the same size plastic cup and they were not see through, so people weren’t able to sit there and compare.

What is the policy of not complying with meals? You got supplemented.

Are you able to eat vegetarian? Vegan? Yes. I believe MN as a company is the best at accommodating dietary things. We had Vegan, Kosher, and lacto-octo-veg.

What privileges are allowed? You can have coffee in the morning if you complete for 24 hours before. You can have tea at HS snack if you complete for 24 hours before. You can go on an outing on the weekend if you complete for 24 hours before.

Does it work on a level system? Yes. There’s entry level, med obs, and toilet obs which all will get 24/7 flush checks. Level 1 will be able to flush 1 hour after meals, 30 minutes after snacks. Level 2 will be able to flush 30 minutes after meals, 15 minutes after snacks. Level 2 you will get to have your room unlocked at 9pm as opposed to 9:30pm. Level 2 will also start portioning their own meals and snacks. There was also a level 3 but I forget what if any additional “perks” were on it.

How do you earn privileges? Completing and/or not using behaviors.

What sort of groups do they have? Lots of process, community, goal setting, cooking group, relapse prevention, body and soul, grounding group, ACT, nutrition, recovery reading, family & relationships, DBT, CBT, life skills, art.

What was your favorite group? Recovery Reading. If therapist E is still there, they always made it a good group. Had insightful reading and were open to our suggestions of different readings.

If applicable: Is the program trauma-informed? Nope.

What did you like the most? Not feeling like you’re only in groups or eating. There was a few hours in the afternoons for you to get pulled for sessions, but if you didn’t get pulled you had downtime. You were allowed to go outside as long as it wasn’t during a meal or group, or obviously after lights out.

What did you like the least? They pick favorites. They “individualize” your treatment, but then don’t actually. Don’t know when to refer patients out. Lack of adequate staffing. (Honestly stuff that is seen at every treatment center).

Would you recommend this program? If you are being recommended residential level of care, yes; because you need an intervention to help save your life. I would never tell a person to stay away from any treatment center no matter my experience. The caveat is that most people will get some type of treatment trauma from being in treatment. It’s traumatic, that’s just how treatment is. I personally would not return to this location if I needed to seek this level of care again.

What level of activity or exercise was allowed? They were big on Restorative/Mindful rest. But you could get walks and yoga for activity. You would have to complete for 24 hours before the walk or yoga in order to participate.

What did people do on weekends? We had some groups. There was an outing on Saturday that you’d have to complete for 24 hours before to be able to go on. Sometimes we did a Movie night.

Do you get to know your weight? No. I did unfortunately (on accident) see a peers weight who was being weighed more frequently, as some nurses wouldn’t cover the vitals page as they were doing your vitals.

If applicable: How fast is the weight gain process? They don’t tell you, but I think they shoot for what the typical standard is. (Not disclosing because I don’t think it’s helpful to know when you’re in this LOC).

What was the average length of stay? People were there anywhere from 6 weeks to 6 months and all different times in-between. I’d say the average was probably 6-12 weeks.

What was the average age range? 18-50 but most everyone was in their 20’s in my milieu.

How do visits/phone calls work? Visitation is on Friday from 2pm-5pm after a family group from 1pm-2pm. We had 2 landlines (one cordless, one in a phone room). You were allowed to use the phone so long that it wasn’t during a meal or during a group.

What is the electronics policy (e.g., cell phones, iPods, Kindles, laptops, tablets)? You weren’t allowed to have your personal phone/laptop unless it was to quickly pay a bill, etc (which was supervised). You could have an old school style MP3 player. And they had a communal computer that everyone was able to use.

For adolescents: Did they provide time to do schoolwork or offer academic support? N/A.

For inpatient/residential: Are you able to go on outings/passes? Yes, Saturday you could go on a group outing if you completed for 24 hours before. You weren’t allowed to buy clothing on the outings. Otherwise everyone went on a required meal outing once a week.

For PHP/IOP: What support do they provide outside of programming hours? N/A

What kind of aftercare do they provide? Do they help you set up an outpatient treatment team? We did an aftercare planning group. You also have an aftercare worksheet that you do when you are working towards discharging. They will make sure you have PHP set up before stepping down.

Are there any resources for people who come from out of state/country? Not sure about Country. But out of state you had to figure out your own transportation.

If applicable: How is the program responding to COVID? (Less patients, virtual programming, no visitors, masks, social distancing, etc) In 2024 there wasn’t any changes or restrictions.

Other? I know it says that this location allows NG tubes. But here is the disclaimer for that! You aren’t allowed to have a NG tube placed and walk around with it. They will drop your NG tube in the nurses office to bolus you supplement and then they will pull it. Yes they can accommodate slightly higher acuity patients, but they also accept too high acuity patients/aren’t good at referring out- which hurts everyone involved. They don’t do anything for co-occurring substance use disorders (no ability to go to AA or NA, etc). They are quick to send you to the psych hospital that the Psych works at.

1 year ago

Does anyone have information about the PHP program? Specifically the programming hours, how meals work, etc.?

1 year ago

I’m curious if anyone has info on whether or not they are truly a trauma informed program?

Reply to F

1 year ago

They say they are but from experience they aren’t truly trauma informed.