Constance A.
Yelp
I can't believe I'm about to write a review for Trenton Psychiatric Hospital (TPH). I have a long history with this place. No, I was NOT a patient there. Haha. I went to college nearby from 2006-2010. I remembered getting emails once in a while about being on high alert due to an escaped patient from TPH. But it seems security has got better because I returned to my alumni for a graduate school from 2012-2014 and never got that email during my stay. Actually, I lived literally right across from the hospital during graduate school. It wasn't bad, I never felt I was in danger.
Fast forward to 2017. On Thursday, I got a chance to go INSIDE! I had to be there for mental health court. This hospital is huge, almost like a college campus. There are many buildings. There are signs throughout pointing out the direction to different buildings. The security guard at the entrance was very nice and helpful in pointing me to the right place. Why the 3 stars? The staffs I encountered were unprofessional and communication was poor. I was told court starts 10am. I arrived 9:45am and was told to leave my phone in the car. I was put in a small enclosed room to wait for court to start. By 10:30am, I asked the security guard to notify the court that I am in the waiting room. He stated that he will. By 11am, I felt claustrophobic and needed a breathier. I left the small enclosed waiting room and went to the car. I checked my phone and saw that I have several missed calls and a voicemail from one of the court staffs asking me if I was running late. What! I quickly ran inside and told the security guard I needed to be in the court room. Upon arriving in the court, I told the staff I need to meet with the patient for a few minutes before court starts. He stated that I can't because I was already running late. I told me I cannot go into the court room without meeting with the client. So yeah. This was not a good first impression. It gets worse after court ended. But I'll leave that detail out due to my work. TPH needs to improve on communication and professionalism when it comes to their staffs. I can only imagine what the patients are dealing with on a daily basis.