VOA - Outpatient Services - Laramie, Wyoming

Dusty R.

NEGATIVE Five Rating. Do NOT go to this facility. They like to over medicate their patients and don’t listen to them when they say they are having problems. Just increase your dose. Carolyn is a pill pusher and gets angry when you say things aren’t working. Says “you aren’t giving it time to work”. They had me so messed up on medication that I thought I was going crazy and actually had suicidal thoughts. I spent over $16k on tests which showed I was on the wrong medication. Her response? “Who gave you the right to have those tests?” I don’t need permission to help myself. I went to this facility for help. All they did was mess me up even more. Plus they lie about what they are charging you. Say one thing and then charge your insurance something else. Never give you a statement and then one day spring a huge bill on you that you know nothing about. Save yourself. Don’t go there.

Kara K.

This is a bit lengthy but I hope it can help some folks out if you're looking for mental health care in Laramie.

A trusted doctor once told me to pay attention to how a clinic runs their most basic operations, because if that's a mess then so is the rest of the organization. Ultimately, that's why I'm not going to be pursuing care with the VoA, there are just too many red flags for me to want to trust my mental health to these folks.

A first red flag was that in order to get any appointment with a provider you had to do a clinical assessment (that's fine); the only way to get a clinical assessment is to call at 8am to get a same day appointment, they don't schedule further out. If you don't get in you just have to call back the next day. They do tell you to call as close to 8am as possible as they fill up quickly. In my experience if you call later than 8:03am you're out of luck for the day.

However, I finally did get an appointment which kicked off another series of red flags. The only place I could find their address was on Google, and even then it's not really in the right place so you have to wander the parking lot a bit. I couldn't find an address to confirm I was in the right spot on their website or in any of the email signatures or on any paperwork I was sent. When I arrived in the office I learned that the time I was given was different from the one the front desk had which was different still from the one the doctor had so I had to wait around for a while. I then learned that my clinical assessment was going to be a zoom call instead of an in person appointment but that I still had to come in person and couldn't just have done it at home. But they didn't have their system set up so I was bounced between rooms a couple times with a front desk person as they restarted computers and plugged in credentials that didn't seem to work. Finally I got settled in a small room that had a compressor next door which would intermittently kick on and make a loud rumbling sound for a couple minutes before shutting off.

The appointment itself was unremarkable, I can't really speak against the practitioner. We ended with the plan that they would confirm my insurance for a specific provider and then get back to me with that and a referral by the end of the week. They never called and when I called them back they said the practitioner I met with hadn't done either of those things yet. So they said they'd follow up and call me back. They didn't.

I'm taking it as a sign that I need to be looking somewhere else.

Colter

Would give 0 stars if i could. This place is a joke. Spent HOURS going through preliminary screenings and applying for Medicaid despite having private insurance, just so they can make sure they get their state funding. Waited weeks for the appointment for them to not even notice that they set me up on a zoom call despite wanting and waiting in their office for an in-person appointment.

S V.

VOA of Laramie .I was ignored, unnotified, and they only got in contact with me for payment. I was currently going through the worst depression and anxiety and was in a chronic time of need and I was set up with a Trauma Specialist Amanda via Zoom . I was so excited for my first zoom meeting that we had planned for I believe over a month had it all planned with my job for a month that I was going to be leaving early attend my first appointment , I was met with no one answering the zoom meeting so I called the office and asked them what was going on, and they said that my therapist had moved ,so they neglected to tell me this and get a hold of me about this they said they would give me a call at a later time to discuss, The next moves regarding getting set up with a new therapist. Months went by and even called and left a message and nothing has been done. I received a bill in the mail for my assessment that I took to get a therapist and got no help . I paid my bill and told them I do not need anymore of your guys nonexistent services. I said “Discharge me because no one called to help me figure out my next steps, and I had to Get myself through a really hard time in my life .”so needless to say, they are very negligent their office people don’t seem to know what they’re doing when it comes to notifying their clients about things that are very important. They Definitely made sure to send me a bill of what I owed, but could not follow Through with trying to get me set up With a new therapist and get me the help I needed.

Branden C.

Just got a call from a collection agency for my few (3) appointments at VOA that are over $300. I am/was a graduate student and could not afford to pay the regular prices. The front desk told me one thing about they're financial assistance program but it was apparently a lie since I have insurance through the school yet that insurance was absolute trash and didn't really cover much of the price. Zoloft clocks and big pharma merch throughout the building. And they didn't have any male therapists at that location, only younger female therapists available. The male therapist they set me up with was online from another location. He was one of the worst mental health workers I have spoken to. This place just cares about making money off the unwell or forced probation as I've seen in the waiting room. I have gotten therapy through online institutions after which were actually decent and upfront, the therapist I got used to work here ironically and did not have a single good thing to say about it.

Phyre K.

Sadly over the past year this place has gone down the drain and it causes me more issues than it ever helps.
They ‘lose’ your appointments and can’t reschedule you for weeks. The front desk always tells you something different. They charge you for appointments you cancelled and didn’t go to saying you didn’t cancel them. They go through therapists so fast you can’t even keep one for more than a few months.
I’m sad to say I no longer want to go here. I used to love it but after the past few years it really has just become a s**tshow.

Chris S.

Before you consider doing business with this company, you should really look up one of their employees Sharon Gay, also goes by the name Sharon Pittman, Sharon Link, Sharon Seward. She is under investigation by the State of Wyoming and the State of Oklahoma for violation of privacy and leaving medical records, with patients private treatment information such as social security numbers, all personal info etc. I blew the whistle on this and posted on my blog and sent both Licensing boards the info. This crazy woman went and got a protective order in Wyoming against me and I am in Oklahoma. This was her attempt to silence me and try to keep her bad deeds private. She always claims to be the victim. Civil lawsuit is being filed soon. Peak wellness is aware of all of this. Let me add that I haven't spoke to this woman since August 2012. I haven't talked to her by phone. All I've done is posted on my blog and notified all agencies and her work about her. She was also fired from Multi-County Counseling in Oklahoma for releasing patient information. This womans license needs to be terminated by the states.

Heidi T.

It is very difficult to set up scheduling because very seldom does anyone answer or get back to you. I have been trying to work with Cassidy on a simple task which has taken 2 weeks and is still not resolved. She does not respond to phone calls or emails.

Dusty R.

NEGATIVE Five Rating. Do NOT go to this facility. They like to over medicate their patients and don’t listen to them when they say they are having problems. Just increase your dose. Carolyn is a pill pusher and gets angry when you say things aren’t working. Says “you aren’t giving it time to work”. They had me so messed up on medication that I thought I was going crazy and actually had suicidal thoughts. I spent over $16k on tests which showed I was on the wrong medication. Her response? “Who gave you the right to have those tests?” I don’t need permission to help myself. I went to this facility for help. All they did was mess me up even more. Plus they lie about what they are charging you. Say one thing and then charge your insurance something else. Never give you a statement and then one day spring a huge bill on you that you know nothing about. Save yourself. Don’t go there.

Kara K.

This is a bit lengthy but I hope it can help some folks out if you're looking for mental health care in Laramie.

A trusted doctor once told me to pay attention to how a clinic runs their most basic operations, because if that's a mess then so is the rest of the organization. Ultimately, that's why I'm not going to be pursuing care with the VoA, there are just too many red flags for me to want to trust my mental health to these folks.

A first red flag was that in order to get any appointment with a provider you had to do a clinical assessment (that's fine); the only way to get a clinical assessment is to call at 8am to get a same day appointment, they don't schedule further out. If you don't get in you just have to call back the next day. They do tell you to call as close to 8am as possible as they fill up quickly. In my experience if you call later than 8:03am you're out of luck for the day.

However, I finally did get an appointment which kicked off another series of red flags. The only place I could find their address was on Google, and even then it's not really in the right place so you have to wander the parking lot a bit. I couldn't find an address to confirm I was in the right spot on their website or in any of the email signatures or on any paperwork I was sent. When I arrived in the office I learned that the time I was given was different from the one the front desk had which was different still from the one the doctor had so I had to wait around for a while. I then learned that my clinical assessment was going to be a zoom call instead of an in person appointment but that I still had to come in person and couldn't just have done it at home. But they didn't have their system set up so I was bounced between rooms a couple times with a front desk person as they restarted computers and plugged in credentials that didn't seem to work. Finally I got settled in a small room that had a compressor next door which would intermittently kick on and make a loud rumbling sound for a couple minutes before shutting off.

The appointment itself was unremarkable, I can't really speak against the practitioner. We ended with the plan that they would confirm my insurance for a specific provider and then get back to me with that and a referral by the end of the week. They never called and when I called them back they said the practitioner I met with hadn't done either of those things yet. So they said they'd follow up and call me back. They didn't.

I'm taking it as a sign that I need to be looking somewhere else.

Colter

Would give 0 stars if i could. This place is a joke. Spent HOURS going through preliminary screenings and applying for Medicaid despite having private insurance, just so they can make sure they get their state funding. Waited weeks for the appointment for them to not even notice that they set me up on a zoom call despite wanting and waiting in their office for an in-person appointment.

S V.

VOA of Laramie .I was ignored, unnotified, and they only got in contact with me for payment. I was currently going through the worst depression and anxiety and was in a chronic time of need and I was set up with a Trauma Specialist Amanda via Zoom . I was so excited for my first zoom meeting that we had planned for I believe over a month had it all planned with my job for a month that I was going to be leaving early attend my first appointment , I was met with no one answering the zoom meeting so I called the office and asked them what was going on, and they said that my therapist had moved ,so they neglected to tell me this and get a hold of me about this they said they would give me a call at a later time to discuss, The next moves regarding getting set up with a new therapist. Months went by and even called and left a message and nothing has been done. I received a bill in the mail for my assessment that I took to get a therapist and got no help . I paid my bill and told them I do not need anymore of your guys nonexistent services. I said “Discharge me because no one called to help me figure out my next steps, and I had to Get myself through a really hard time in my life .”so needless to say, they are very negligent their office people don’t seem to know what they’re doing when it comes to notifying their clients about things that are very important. They Definitely made sure to send me a bill of what I owed, but could not follow Through with trying to get me set up With a new therapist and get me the help I needed.

Branden C.

Just got a call from a collection agency for my few (3) appointments at VOA that are over $300. I am/was a graduate student and could not afford to pay the regular prices. The front desk told me one thing about they're financial assistance program but it was apparently a lie since I have insurance through the school yet that insurance was absolute trash and didn't really cover much of the price. Zoloft clocks and big pharma merch throughout the building. And they didn't have any male therapists at that location, only younger female therapists available. The male therapist they set me up with was online from another location. He was one of the worst mental health workers I have spoken to. This place just cares about making money off the unwell or forced probation as I've seen in the waiting room. I have gotten therapy through online institutions after which were actually decent and upfront, the therapist I got used to work here ironically and did not have a single good thing to say about it.