therapist

behavioral health professional

registered nurse

licensed practical nurse

dietary aide

Harbor Oaks Hospital

I KNOW THIS IS LONG BUT IF YOU DON'T READ AND START WORKING THERE YOU WILL BE SORRY YOU DIDN'T LISTEN...
I started working here because I have a true passion for psych nursing and helping people with mental illness. I was warned multiple times by people who were more familiar with the area and the reputation of this hospital, but I didn't listen. I worked there for 6 months and began witnessing staff getting hit, punched, pushed, thrown things at, etc. It is the nature of the business, working with mentally ill people, but the major problem here is the lack of supportive staff and workplace safety. Staff who is supposed to secure the workplace is constantly on their phone or chit chatting, they do not follow directions, and management doesn't care because they cannot afford to fire anyone since they are already understaffed. When I got punched in the face and suffered a concussion at work, the staff on my unit has ignored two of my previous orders to seclude the dangerous patient, and they were all chit chatting and laughing while I was trying to deescalate the patient and was calling for help. I was sent home that day, saw the occupational health doctor, but there was no help or support provided for the traumatic experience that has been for me. I was scared to return to work there, and even work in other facilities in the psych industry. This injury could have turned out much worse, by pure luck the patient missed my eye...but I could have suffered much more, and my employer simply would have never cared. I never returned to this job because I didn't want to risk suffering a more serious injury. The hospital refused to pay me the worker's comp pay for the time I missed work due to the injury and also refused to pay me for my accumulated PTO that I never used. Technically once I was done working there (mind you, because I WAS HURT AT WORK), they ignored all my phone calls, it took them weeks to even start a worker's comp claim for me to be able to get proper medical treatment (at this point I needed to see a neurologist since I continued to have symptoms like headaches, dizziness and nausea and I couldn't return to work right away). I had to call HR every other day and remind them I was home suffering and I needed to see a doctor. This was the most ridiculous situation I have ever found myself in, in a so called professional workplace. This hospital does not deserve to operate, seeing the way they treat their employees. The turnover rate is very high. Mandation is a real thing, after a 12 hour shift I have been mandated multiple times and had to work a total of 16 hours, and then return to work within less than 8 hours. After all the hard work I did for them they simply ignored me and refused to give me the help I needed once I began being a burden for them because I was injured. 
NOBODY DESERVES THIS KIND OF TREATMENT...DO NOT WORK HERE. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!!!
Take care!

I worked for Harbor Oaks Hospital for about a quarter of a year, perhaps a little longer. The company is highly micromanaged, leading to a disorganized delegation of tasks between Behavioral Health Associates, and Nurses (LPN and RN's). In addition to the aforementiod  management of duties, lack of appropriate staff ratios, made the job that much more difficult. There are many third party nurses, recruited from staffing agencies, that are thrown into the fire, at the time of their contracted employment there, for that assignment. I have had to check the PSI of the emergency oxygen tank, saved for code situations, should one ever arise, because the nurse trying to do it, didn't know how to crack the main tank valve and assemble the regulator. I have also had a nurse there, not be able to distinguish Long interval PR, on a patient EKG in the chart (not that it made a difference because patients there are considered stable enough for no long term medical intervention, and that EKG would have been taken prior to admittance, or if said patient was admitted to a real hospital in their time at HOH). All that being said, I don't feel that the staffing ratios are adequate, along with nursing staff being well equipped for emergent, and or violent situations.  The best part of the job was the patients, being able to not care for the great number of patients, at my full potential, was the worst part. I can not tell you how many times I have seen staff take vital signs and not line up the arterial line of the blood pressure cuff correctly, just make up a number of respirations per minute (perhaps because they were too lazy to count the number in 15 or 30 seconds), and not be able to convert Celsius to Fahrenheit whilst taking a temperature. God help this establishment, in the event that a patient becomes anything less than stable enough to sustain vital life functions.

Fear motivation ("I don't want to get in trouble") guides the actions of too many employees, who are managed by those who exemplify the Peter Principle. Employees receive inconsistent guidance, support from a select few (who eventually leave before being tainted by the 'bad barrel'), and unmanageable workloads ("if you need help prioritizing ..."). Employees who work through the crises and miss meals are written up for not taking lunches (they don't care if you eat or break, they just want to make sure you clock out so it LOOKS like you took a break). One manager admitted (I think without realizing) that she would just go into the computer and change my time clock punch times; I did not get paid for mandated time, was mandated against union rules, and realized that although people spoke of a positive atmosphere, they did not practice it. They pitted employees against one another, as though if the employee "told" on another the teller of stories would receive favoritism. Unprofessional managers who make an effort to look for the tiniest of mistakes to use to call you into their offices, and rarely if ever gave a word of thanks or praise. Also noted to a great degree people who created their own positions, moved their friends into management positions (often the worst choices), and built self-aggrandizing empires.

There are good people there. There are fabulous nurses and wonderful managers (not all, but yes, some). The turnover speaks for itself and is the highest I've ever seen. I really tried to stick it out, to work with them, I wanted to be a good nurse, provide excellent care to patients in their times of need, and prove all of the negative press and reviews wrong, but I could not.

HOH is a good place to get your foot in the door or to pick up some extra hours, however, the administrative team make it clear that they do not care about their employee's concerns or safety whatsoever. The staff does have a union, but it's fairly new and weak. Unfortunately, HOH administration has the attitude of "there's always a new graduate looking for some experience" and does nothing to try to remedy the many issues, even those easily resolved. In addition, despite the retention rate of approximately 1 year, the administration team does not even conduct exit surveys, further displaying a complete lack of interest in attempting to make HOH a lifelong career and not a career step.

A place that CAN be an incredible place to work, but you have to find the incredible part of the job. It will not be given to you, this is something that must come from within. You MUST have Passion for the mental health field, if you do not, this will become a frustrating place to work in a very, very quick fashion. If you believe in helping those that struggle with mental health, and wish to bring that passion to the forefront, you will find joy working here.

However, the culture in the building is broken, negative, and frustrating to be a part of. The hostility between management and floor staff is toxic, and becomes exhausting at times, and neither is willing to budge to make it better. At times floor staff do not work well together. But you can meet some of the best people you will ever encounter as well, life long friends can be found.

Benefits are fantastic, Pay is adequate(around the national average), work life balance is up to the individual.

I worked here for several years. he pay is dismal despite most techs possessing bachelors degrees, the management team did not know my name after years of me working there, those they promote are usually the only ones in the company who applied. They do not look outside the company to hire management. Therefore, management is completely out of touch because they have been off of the floor for years. A staff member was injured at least every day (with serious injuries happening at least once a month) because of short staffing and the incredibly violent patients. Patients accepted here were incredibly violent and often had been rejected by every other psych hospital in Michigan. All they care about is money, so the beds are constantly full of the most violent and unstable patients.

What is the best part of working at the company?
Harbor oaks hospital has poor management.  They never have enough food for the patients. Staffing is horrible. Nobody listens to suggestions to make things better. The pay is not good.

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
I would not recommend working for this company.  They do not care about their employees safety,  mental or physical health. The hospital is poorly ran and they never have enough staff.

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
It is a very negative work environment.  The people they hire have not mental health experience,  they also have no work ethics, and the turn over rate is alarming

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Stressful because there is not enough staff. It's a very unorganized place to work. They don't care for the patients properly so it's frustrating

Be ready to run for 12 hours straight, rewarding to work directly with patients. Can also be dangerous working so closely with patients. This is a psychiatrist facility, so be ready for the unusual, never a dull moment. Just when you think you have seen it all a situation will arise making you just shake your head in bewilderment. It is also fascinating learning and meeting people with different mental health diagnosis’s. I love my job, not because the hospital is run well, but because  of the individual growth and knowledge I have obtained while employed here. Every part of this job is truly fascinating to me. If I can make one patients stay a bit more comfortable it is a win for the day. This job is definitely not for everyone, but if you love to be thrown into a bizarre and unusual world for 12 hours a day this might be good fit

Behavioral Health Associates and Technicians at Harbor Oaks Hospital are not compensated adequately. You are also forced to work 4 hours after the end of your shift at least twice per week while you are new at the company. There is constantly a new hire orientation because people quit weeks after starting. There is no respect for nursing staff from management. You are seen as a staff member who lives to work, not an actual person. I have a bachelor's degree, and should be making more than $13 an hour. I do not feel adequately trained to handle patients who are escalating and become verbally/physically abusive. I also do not feel adequately trained to lead groups.

This is a job you need to love love the work you will be doing or at least slightly like it, if not, this job is not for you. 12 hour shifts or 16 depending on the mandate schedule will be tiring at times. My best advice for anyone starting at harbor oaks is to jump around units for the first two weeks after orientation and try to get on a unit that you connect with the most. Management will try to convince you what unit you will be good at, stick to your choice and make the change happen. Harbor oaks is far from perfect and management has a lot to work on but, the staff you will work on the floor will make or break your shift. A typical day as a BHA/BHT is doing rounds and groups with the patients, the days are long but rewarding.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Therapist 18 salaries reported	$28.75 per hour
Behavioral health professional 12 salaries reported	$17.83 per hour
Registered nurse 1 salary reported	$41.50 per hour
Licensed practical nurse 8 salaries reported	$26.13 per hour
Dietary aide 4 salaries reported	$14.66 per hour

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