I had an appointment scheduled some time ago. I waited about a month and a half for this appointment and had checked ahead of time to make sure emotional support dogs were allowed. When I showed up early for my first session with my dog, the woman at the front desk told me they didn't allow pets in the office. I explained that this dog was not just a pet but also an emotional support animal, and that a psychiatrist from my last city of residence had documented that in my records. Now, in an office which HAS it's own support dog, and whose practitioners actively recommend and advocate for their use by individual patients, one would think it not surprising for them to actually SEE one in practical use. But no, apparently the absence of an identification vest, which I might add is NOT a legal requirement for ANY assistance animal, and often not used by individuals wishing to avoid stigmatization, was enough for this ignorant and obviously untrained employee to assume I was a liar. Guess it was too much to hope for, that a psychiatric offices' staff would display some small degree of empathy and decorum, and give a new patient the benefit of the doubt. Or at the very least, let the professional practitioner make the judgement call as to whether or not this was a legit therapy dog with a patient needing therapy, or a vicious attempt by a troublesome local, trying to sneak his pet dog into an appointment. Nevertheless, she ignored what I said and assumed I was the latter, and again stated I would have to leave the PET outside or leave the premises. So I asked that she make sure and tell the practitioner I was supposed to see, that I WAS there, on time, and why I was missing the appointment, and I left.
Once at home, I waited several hours for a phone call from the practitioner, but it never came. So I called back myself. I explained to the person I was talking to, what had happened, and stated how frustrated and angry I felt. I further explained that the front desk staff should be better trained to understand the intricacies of emotional support dogs and assistance animals in general, to avoid causing future harm to patients with severe anxiety disorders. I also stated that I had not been contacted by the practitioner I had my appointment with, or anyone else from the practice, and could someone please call me to discuss rescheduling my appointment, with assurances that this would NEVER happen again. So did ANYONE bother calling to say sorry about the misunderstanding, and get me squared away with a new appointment? Nope. Nothing. Notta. Now, can I say whether or not this is a good place to go if you meet some criteria in the DSM-IV or V or whatever number they're up to? Can I tell you whether or not you'll like your therapist, nurse practitioner, or doctor if you go to Northern Psychiatric? Not really, I suppose. But what I can say, is that nobody there seemed to care enough about ME to just pick up the phone and make sure I knew I was welcome there, WITH my emotional support dog. And, that they were sorry that I had to experience totally unnecessary feelings of shame and anxiety because of a staff member who they hadn't properly trained. Personally, I will never give this business another opportunity to treat me badly if I can help it. I'd rather give another practice a try. Maybe if they had bothered to check on me, I could chalk this up to an anomaly, just a bad day. But no acknowledgement, no "sorry, how can we do better?".
So if you do decide to throw caution to the wind and make an appointment and go with an emotional support animal, make sure you have a vest on said animal with big bold letters in English which identify you as a patient needing EMOTIONAL SUPPORT! Because they will check! I'd also recommend that you have WRITTEN DOCUMENTATION that is signed, dated, and notorized, because they might not believe you otherwise. It's a cruel world out there folks, so protect yourself, and be warned.