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[mefree]

Submitted:  Tuesday, November 10, 2009
Last posting: Thursday, January 14, 2010

It is hard to explain the depth of this scheme without having lived it yourself; however I sincerely hope this account prevents at least one desperate individual/family from investing a significant amount of money into a disgusting scam.

Firstly, Narconon Vista Bay is a drug rehab facility that runs $29,000. Given the nature of drug rehabs and the financial commitment in particular of this one, the incredible majority of interested parties are in a state of absolute desperation. The Narconon sales team, Mike Dipalma in particular are aware of this and do everything possible (such as calling constantly for status updates when a family is trying to make the decision, lieing - I will get to the use of this word in this context later - and declaring that unless patient X leaves TODAY there will not be any beds left, and pushing cheap plane tickets if you purchase them NOW among many other tactics).

Pushing "time sensitivity" alone is dispicable; however the sales team also lies, glosses over, and intentionally omitts an unbelievable amount of information. For instance patient Y was told she had to reserve a bed and be on a plane the same day as the phone call or there would not be a bed available. Upon arrival and for the subsequent 2 months at no point were all (or even close to all) of the beds at the Vista Bay location alone (there are two other locations: Placerville and Tahoe, which have availability always and take 'overflow' from Vista Bay) taken.

........One final story; at night they have one ex-addict, ex-graduate watch over the 50-60 "students" sleeping at Vista Bay (by the way the staff-to-student ratio is no where near 1:1. From my count ~15 staff dealt with students on a daily basis and at least 8 of those were in secretorial/paper pushing roles. The only individualized attention given to a student is when he/she speaks negatively of the program). One night the night duty man Craig showed up so high on heroin he could not walk. Students saw him visibly fall a number of times, slur his words, have eyes that were "pinned" (extreme opposite of dialated and a distinct sign of an opiate high). Students were then forced to deal with this situation and call in other faculty from off site. The next day when students pressed the faculty they said it was said and to leave it. I told them they should make an announcement, which the ultimately, and reluctantly did. During which they explained the night man was no longer working for them etc.

At this point I asked for the faculty to be UAd (Urinary Analysis) by the students (the faculty had UAd the students 2 days prior because drugs had been discovered in the facility). I said that for the students to take seriously the word of the faculty they should prove they aren't using and if they aren't they have nothing to fear. Approximately an hour later I was told I was being suspended for "telling another student he should sue narconon for taking him off anti-depressants cold turkey".

1. I never said anything of the sort

2. The student in question to my knowledge had never taken anti-depressants in his life

3. The student himself says I never said that

4. When asked to speak with the staff member who filed the report I was denied

5. When asked to see the report I was denied and told flat out "one probably wasn't even written up"

6. My family and I were told we would recieve a refund before I left.

7. They dropped me at the airport fully aware that I had no credit, debit, or atm cards. No cell phone, no phone cards. In other words I was on the West Coast with nothing in the middle of a tiny airport and they drove away.

8. We have since sent them registered letters concerning their promise of a refund and now they avoid our phone calls or say "hold on, I can give you his/her voicemail" - needless to say the calls are not returned.

Save your money. If you have the least bit of intelligence this program will make you go insane. I have since attended a program in Michigan for significantly less money and have been clean ever since.

First of All I was also Enrolled at the Watsonville, CA facility. We constantly ran out of well water, and I personally had to hike up a mountain 1-2 Miles to unclog the "water box" or whatever it was called to get water to run to the well. I did this while on a Ethics Cycle with Dustin and Hung who where both "maintenance guys". I also had problems with the staff who where 2 punks named Chris and Brian who where in charge of all the "problems" and "ethics" cases. They where basically 2 guys who tried to intimidate you with looks and bad ass talks. After being there for about 2-3 months and was almost done with book 3 I ended up having feelings for a girl and we ended up messing around. Nothing too serious. I got suspended for this. THEY DROPPED ME OFF AT THE "GREYHOUND" STATION IN WATSONVILLE, CA THAT WAS CLOSED! I had no way out. My cell phone was dead on their behalf, and they did not care.

After being out of the program suffering from mental abuse from he program I decided to try to take my life. Luckily my mother found me half way dead in the kitchen and called the cops. After months of talking and working the situation out there is no doubt in my mind it was contributed by Narconon of Watsonville, CA carelessness about anyones life, and just getting money into their program.

more at http://www.ripoffreport.com/healthcare-centers/narconon-vista-bay/narconon-vista-bay-vista-ba-37948.htm

Submitted:  Tuesday, June 08, 2010

I sent my son to what i thought was going to be a good rehab.Wow! was i dissapointed.the rehab personel lied to us on the phone as to the employes working there.They said they had a full blown legal team,medical staff,along with therapist.All they has were ex-drug addicts which had no education,they were trained at the facility,the legal team was also a ex-drug addict which all she done was send out letters    to the courts,she was not a lawyer or had no specialized training.

this program was a 29,000 dollar mistake.They suspended my son twice and gave a 5hrs to get him off the propery and we are over 2000 miles away. they took him to the airport when they had no flight scheduled .He had a cell phone which was dead,no money, and they left him there.

http://www.ripoffreport.com/employers/narconon-vista-bay-r/narconon-vista-bay-rehab-lies-4dbdc.htm

Submitted:  Saturday, June 05, 2010

Vista Bay Rehab appears to be a legitimate drug detox facility with a medical background. They tell you that they take your insurance and even told us that they would pay $2000 for the interventionist to help get my brother get into their rehab for his heroin/oxycontin problem.

These are all COMPLETE LIES!!! They claim to have a 72% or higher success rate when in fact everyone relapses at NarCONon.

There are no doctors, no nurses, no drug specialists anywhere on the facility! People have died because they neglected their medical conditions. Vista Bay subjects patients to 5 hours of sauna a day combined with toxic levels of Niacin, which put the patients in a daze and euphoria so they feel like they are getting better and more clear-headed when really the scientologists at narconon are only weakening them to increase their vulnerability to mind control.

They utilize TRs.. scientology term for Training Routines and they tell ex-addicts it will improve their communication skills when in fact the TRs serve as brainwashing to dull the addicts into accepting their nonsense scientology bullshit

Addicts receive no real training or counseling in how to manage their addictions. Instead, they are put through a dangerous sauna program which is supposed to cleanse their bodies of the drugs and cravings. While this is an appealing methodology there is no scientific basis for this technique and it is used in all of scientology's front organization and scientology itself, there is no proof and all the studies they cite are fake.

All of the staff are ex-addicts themselves, all informally trained at Vista Bay even though they claim to be certified substance abuse counselors.

Worse of all... Narconon will take $29,000 and not do anything to help your loved one. My family went in thinking we had 75% insurance coverage because that is what the insurance people at Vista Bay had told my mother. The facility asks you to put all the money down at once, none of which you will get back without an aggressive lawyer.

NarCONon IS SCIENTOLOGY and Scientology is the master of all scams. Vista Bay takes advantage of desperate families in need of real help and worse, takes their money so many of them are left without resources to achieve any legitimate care for their loved one if they are lucky enough to bust them out of there. Please shut down this horrid facility. They are all over the world, wrecking lives left and right. Scientology and Narconon must be stopped!

http://www.ripoffreport.com/cult-organizations/vista-bay-drug-rehab/vista-bay-drug-rehab-narconon-85a84.htm

[Lorelei]

Has someone alerted David "Intelligence" Love (who is battling Narconon Trois Rivieres in Canada) or Sen. Nick Xenophon (asking for a public benefit test / inquiry into Scientology / Narconon and other dodgy groups in Australia) about these reports? They can only help.

[mefree]

The Magic 8 ball says, "Yes."

[Lorelei]

Excellent.

[mefree]

The headline on this Narconon Vista Bay Press Release states that physicians are endorsing their program. The article goes on to list some of these physicians. For anyone who is familiar with Narconon's disappearing advisory board, the names will be familiar.

http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Stop-Narconon/AdvisoryBoard/

Paredes is apparently not happy that his name is still being used in connection with Narconon.

Doctors Endorse Vistabay’s Drug Rehabilitation Provo-area Programs

July 2010 – Medical professionals don’t lend their name to just any drug rehabilitation program. They must study the program, follow up with referred patients, and see results before providing any endorsement. When it comes to Utah drug rehabs and those in surrounding areas, doctors often recommend VistaBay and its Narconon approach to drug rehabilitation. Let’s hear from some of the professionals themselves:

Dr. Alfonzo Paredes, M.D. – board certified in psychiatry and neurology and a professor at UCLA School of Medicine – has this to say about the Narconon-based, VistaBay methodology that has helped so many patients at Utah drug rehab

“Addicts characteristically subordinate values such as work, family relationships and community responsibilities to the ingestion and unwise use of alcohol and/or drugs. Social neglect and criminal behavior are frequent companions of drug abuse and alcoholism. Efforts to develop a functional normative system, as it is done by Vista Bay, should result in favorable outcomes. Vista Bay has demonstrated that this redefinition of the normative system of addicts is possible to implement with empathy, compassion, and respect for the addict.”

Dr. Megan Shields, M.D. – a diplomat with the American Board of Family Practice who presents often on substance abuse and public health – concurs with her colleague about the Narconon-based, VistaBay program used at drug rehabilitation Provo area facilities:

“There is not often good news in our struggle with the consequences of alcohol and other drug abuse in our society. I am happy to say that the Vista Bay program is good news. I encourage you to review it carefully and consider utilizing it. Many years ago I did and I have been able to help save many lives as a result.”

found at http://www.officialwire.com/main.php?action=posted_news&rid=192610

[mefree]

And the complaints continue:

http://www.ripoffreport.com/cult-organizations/narconon/narconon-vista-bay-treatment-c-f7a95.htm

[Mary_McConnell]

And this one, answered by our member SUNSHINE! Good job!!

Report: Narconon at Vista Bay
Reported By: JaredG (Argyle Texas United States of America)
Narconon at Vista Bay Looking for any students who were at the facility Between March 2007-May 2007 Watsonville, California

Narconon at Vista Bay
Gaffey Rd
Watsonville California
United States of America

Category: Liars

Submitted: Monday, January 17, 2011
Last posting: Sunday, January 23, 2011


Everything that people have posted about this place is true.  Something that was also failed to be mentioned was the unsafe conditions at the place.  Due to their negligance to secure a proper weight on the basketball goal, a major accident took place where the basketball tipped over and fell on a students head.  The student was rushed to the hospital in an ambulance.  I am trying to find any students or faculty members that were a witness to this accident.  I have tried to get this information from Narconon but do to patient confidentiality, I have not been able to get the name or location of any witnesses.  I can understand that and actually respect that they keep to that but they have said none of the employees that were present can be found.  If anybody saw this or might have been there when this happened, please let me know.  I would be eternally greatful!!

CONSUMER SUGGESTION:
Contact California Alcohol and Drug Program
Sunshine - Warner Springs (USA)
SUBMITTED: Sunday, January 23, 2011
 
POSTED: Sunday, January 23, 2011
 According to the California Code of Regulations, all rehab facilities are suppose to report “Any facility related injury of any resident which requires medical treatment” to the California Alcohol and Drug Program (ADP).

http://weblinks.westlaw.com/result/default.aspx?cite=9CAADCS10561&db=1000937&findtype=L&fn=%5Ftop&pbc=4BF3FCBE&rlt=CLID%5FFQRLT60990302117231&rp=%2FSearch%2Fdefault%2Ewl&rs=WEBL11%2E01&service=Find&spa=CCR%2D1000&sr=TC&vr=2%2E0



ADP will not provide personal information but will provide a report of the incident (Freedom of Information Act) if Narconon reported the injury their website http://www.adp.ca.gov/contact.shtml

Suggestion:

Contact ADP and find out if Narconon Vista Bay filed the required report and then request a copy of their (ADPs) findings.
http://www.ripoffreport.com/liars/narconon-at-vista-ba/narconon-at-vista-bay-looking-bd692.htm

[mefree]

And another one:
Submitted: Monday, February 21, 2011

I am writing this on behalf of a family member who just spent the last 17 days at Vista Bay Drug Rehab in Watsonville, CA. This "facility" is nothing more than a cult who preys on the desperation of family members who are seeking legitimate help for their loved ones. From the start, all they have done is LIED!

First off, they lie to get you by telling you that you must put the addict on the plane right away. They lie by telling you that they have doctors and nurses on site and on staff who will help detox the addict. LIES! They have ex-addicts and fellow Scientology members who are not qualified, doing this. If you come to the clinic on anti-depressents they claim that they will wean you off of them when in fact they make you stop all together, cold turkey. Any educated person can tell you that this is dangerous.

more at http://www.ripoffreport.com/cult/vista-bay-drug-rehab/vista-bay-drug-rehab-center-na-dcb9f.htm

[mefree]

It seems this ripoff report may have prevented someone from going to Narconon Vista Bay.

Narconon - Vista Bay Vista Bay Deceptive and False Advertising, Con Artists Watsonville, California
See last posting 5/17/2011

found at http://www.ripoffreport.com/healthcare-centers/narconon-vista-bay/narconon-vista-bay-vista-ba-37948.htm 

[mefree]

Another complaint about Narconon Vista Bay appeared on The Ripoff Report on 3/25/2012

We just lived through this with sending a family member to Vista Bay. This is not a legitimate treatment facility!!! It is absolutely a front for the CHURCH OF SCIENTOLOGY!! we were lied to by every person associated with this place.

more at http://www.ripoffreport.com/cult-organizations/narconon/narconon-vista-bay-treatment-c-f7a95.htm

[Mary_McConnell]

Yes, I read that. Did you see the part about the interventionist? How he lied about not knowing it wthe program was based on Scientology? How later the complaintant found out he was a Narconon grad from seeing him a video on Narconon Vista Bay, lol!

I have to follow up on that because it would be great to know which video and it would be good to comment on both reports -

1)Narconon Vista Bay Vista Bay Rehab Facility THIS IS A FRONT FOR SCIENTOLOGY!!! Watsonville, California

2)Greg Potts with Carpe Diem Interventions out of Long Beach

[Sunshine]

Mary,
Are you referring to Desiree if so see below.

From http://www.california-rehab-referral.com/

Here are some examples of how Narconon's internet hotline and referral service work:

ie: If you call Desiree Romero at the "Drug Rehab Center Hotline", www.drug-rehab-center-hotline.com (800)501-9330, you may think you are talking to someone who is helping you choose the right rehab out of the many rehab programs available. You might believe someone from such a hotline would suggest a rehab that is best suited for you or your loved one based on what type of rehab you are looking for, what your medical needs are, your budget, etc. But it is much more likely that Desiree will only refer callers to Narconon. The evidence is in court cases and on the internet.

Desiree Romero is a highly paid former Narconon employee who works as an independent contractor for marketing Narconon services to various Narconons across the USA. She is listed on Stone Hawk Rehabilitation Center Inc. tax returns as a top 5 highly compensated independent contractor and most likely is paid by all the Narconons she refers people to. You can find her name listed here www.xenu-directory.net/documents/corporate/990s-peopleR.html#ppl000019 and on page 10 of this online non-profit info site document http://204.203.220.33/EINS/383646037/383646037_2006_038B66CB.PDF

[Mary_McConnell]

Hi Sunshine, Thanks. I'm very aware of Desiree Romero. I helped the Narconon Victims who started that site, in their complaints to ADP and in gathering information in their pro se legal complaint against Narconon, although they transferred ownerhip of http://www.california-rehab-referral.com in anticipation of their eventual settlement, to make sure the information remained on the internet.