FAQS

There’s no easy answer to this question. That’s partly because it’s a different experience for everybody and partly because there are different levels of care.

Residential treatment is the most intensive form of treatment. It involves living at a treatment campus, going to group and individual therapy during the day, and attending various recovery meetings during the evening. You will also meet with your counselor regularly. If you are receiving medication, for any reason, you will also meet with a physician periodically.

Then there are other levels of care like partial hospitalization and intensive outpatient. During these, patients attend group and individual therapy while living at home or in a sober environment. These types of treatment are less structured and involve bridging the gap between “treatment life” and the real world.

Regardless of which level of care you or your loved one seek, the actual experience is going to be largely based from your treatment plan. This is a mix of diagnoses, goals, and individual treatment strategies drawn up by clinicians. The master goal, though, is the same for everyone – a life of long-term recovery free from mind and mood altering chemicals.

Another way to put it might be that treatment is a time for focused and intensive growth. It’s a period of reflection and challenging ingrained behaviors. It’s sort of like college – where you learn how to live free of chemicals.

For more information on what treatment is like, call our admissions department at 610-MALVERN (625-8376).

The vast majority of insurance plans do cover treatment. We’re in-network with all major commercial payers and Pennsylvania Medicaid. This means that, generally speaking, insurance will cover some or all of treatment at Malvern. There’s an important caveat though – everyone’s insurance is different and there’s no way to be sure that your insurance will cover the cost of treatment without running a verification of benefits.

If you’d like us to run your insurance and see whether it’ll cover the cost of treatment, call us now at 610-647-0330!

While there’s no set length of time, your treatment team will work with you to identify what your course of treatment should look like. The Detox portion of your treatment can be anywhere from 5-8 days. The Rehab portion of your residential treatment can be up to a month or longer. Ambulatory treatment such as Partial, Intensive Outpatient, and Tradition Outpatient Treatment can last several months.

Malvern has been around since 1948. In the almost seven decades between then and now, we’ve come to rely on a few things. The most important of these is evidence-based care.

So, when scientific and academic research suggested three months of treatment, we took this idea to heart and came up with the 90-day treatment model. It’s comprised of the following elements:

An Extended Detox Phase – usually 8 days
Residential Treatment – between two weeks and a month
Partial Hospitalization – between two weeks and a month
Intensive Outpatient – between two weeks and a month
General Outpatient – as long as needed
Aftercare & Alumni Involvement
These time frames are based on both the effectiveness of care and on how much time we can get from insurance providers. Find more information on insurance below. For now, know that we make sure our patients get the treatment they need to successfully move from active addiction to long-term recovery!

Again, there’s no quick answer to whether treatment is the right choice. It’s a big decision to make! After all, successful addiction treatment doesn’t just happen. It’s a process that involves self-searching and growth of every kind.

Still, there are some general signs that treatment is a good idea. Ask yourself the following questions:

Is my drinking or drug use – or my loved one’s use – bringing about negative consequences? These can be financial consequences, but also emotional, mental, familial, social, or spiritual.
Have I ever lied about the extent of my drinking or drug use? Alternatively, has my loved one ever lied about the extent of their use?
Can I stop drinking or drugging without physical or mental withdrawal symptoms? If so, why haven’t I?
Ask yourself those questions. The answers aren’t going to come easy, but they will come. If you think treatment is needed, or if you’d like to learn more about what treatment is like, call us today at 610-647-0330.

After deciding treatment is the right choice, the next step is as simple – and as complicated – as reaching out for help.

This help can take many different forms. You can call us and we’ll guide you along the path to admission to Malvern. You can turn to your primary care physician. You can seek help from the nearest hospital.

Regardless of how you seek help, the important thing is that you’re doing it. This is true if you’re looking for help for yourself or a loved one. Addiction thrives on stasis and isolation. Something as simple as picking up the phone and saying “I can’t do this alone” breaks this cycle. It opens the door for recovery and an entirely new life!

Packing for treatment's a surprisingly simple task. It requires the same amount of preparation as packing for a vacation, albeit a different kind of vacation than most of us are used to.

Make sure to bring the pack the following items:

One bag or suitcase’s worth of items
A week’s worth of clean, comfortable, and appropriate clothing. Emphasis on comfortable here – you’re going to want to be cozy in treatment!
Cigarettes
Up to $25 worth of change or cash for our vending machines
Shampoo, conditioner, face wash, a toothbrush, tooth paste, and other toiletries that don’t contain alcohol
Recovery, religious, spiritual, or self-help literature
We told you packing for treatment was easy!

Cell phones are a source of both temptation and distraction. Because the therapy you’re being provided to overcome your drug and alcohol problem requires your full attention, you’ll be asked to lock up your cell phone upon arrival and focus on getting better rather than your device. You will be able to access it if you should need phone numbers.
You’ will have access to a facility landline phone, at designated hours, in order to make personal calls

Just as important as what to bring to treatment is what not to bring. There are certain items we don’t allow at Malvern. This is for the safety of our patients and the successful completion of the treatment process.

Don’t bring the following items:

Cell phones, tablets, laptops, and other electronic devices
Jewelry or other expensive items
Inappropriate clothing – this can be clothing that contains drug, alcohol, or violent references, sexual suggestive clothing, or simply fancy suits or dresses. Remember, the name of the game here is comfort!
Weapons of any kind
Drugs or alcohol
Call our admissions department today at 610-647-0330 if you have any questions about whether something is or isn’t appropriate.

Yes. We ask that belongings are dropped off during the week, during set business hours, Each facility has their own drop off schedule:
King Rd: Monday thru Friday, 8:30am-4:30pm
Willow Grove: Tuesdays, Thursdays, & Saturdays 10:00am-11:00 am

Please review the FAQs above to know what can be brought to Malvern and what should be kept at home.

Unfortunately, due to COVID-19, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has issued guidelines to ensure stringent infection control practices and patient screenings at all Malvern locations. We have revised our visitation policy in which we have temporarily suspended non-essential visitor access. Patients can accommodate phone calls and virtual family therapy sessions.

Patients can call, and receive calls, everyday with the exception of first five days if they are detox level of care.

Patients can also receive mail while in treatment.

The most important thing you can do when your loved one’s in treatment is to take care of yourself. It doesn’t matter if it’s your child, parent, sibling, significant other, or friend – take care of yourself first!

Addiction weighs on the family and friends like no other disease. It evokes anger, disappointment, helplessness, resentment, and fear. In order for you to be as strong as possible, deal with these negative emotions!

Take care of yourself mentally, emotionally, and physically. Seek therapy. Take a walk. Go for a run. Take a class. Indulge a hobby. If there’s family tension, seek family therapy.

You can also become involved with the various family programs we offer. These are things like educational seminars, therapeutic techniques, and recovery options that are perfect for any family’s unique situation.

Take the time to listen to this brief podcast given by our Director of Intervention Services, Al Hart, who discusses options for support and healing for family and loved ones. https://www.malverntreatment.com/the-malvern-minute-intervention-family-support/

For more information on our family programs, call us today at call us now at 610-647-0330!

Again, there’s no easy answer to this question – that’s because what happens after treatment is largely dependent on you or your loved one’s desire to stay sober.

It’s also because there are multiple levels of care. We touched on this above, but you or your loved one’s treatment experience may not include residential rehab. It may be PHP and IOP. It may be IOP and GOP. It may be individual counseling at one of our many campuses. Whatever form you or your loved one’s treatment takes – afterwards is when the rubber meets the road. It’s when your resolve to stay sober and grow is put to the test.

We always recommend a few things to our patients when they complete their current level of care:



We recommend taking advantage of our PHP, IOP & GOP programs and continuing along the full continuum of care.
We recommend becoming involved with local 12-step fellowships.
We recommend involving your family in the recovery process. You’d be surprised how much this simple step helps.
We recommend becoming enrolled in our Recovery Oriented Community (ROC) program during admission and using it after treatment. The ROC is too complicated to explain in full here, but find information about it – and its many benefits – on our ROC page!

Relapse happens. That’s the unfortunate and heartbreaking truth about addiction. It’s a progressive disease, which means that over any given period of time it gets worse. So, even the strongest desire to get and stay sober can be sidetracked by a relapse.

There are a few nuggets of good news to keep in mind! First, the relapse rates for addiction are on par with those for any other disease. There’s no doubt the stakes are higher when it comes to addiction – this disease is life or death – but it’s not any harder to get sober than it is to recover from diabetes or any other treatable condition.

Second, relapse doesn’t mean you lose the knowledge you gained over time in recovery. Relapse happens and it’s heartbreaking when it does – but it doesn’t mean all hope is lost! Finally, and most importantly, there’s a huge group of supportive and helpful Malvern alumni! Check out our alumni and aftercare page for information on this thriving community.

If you or your loved one attends treatment and relapses, all hope isn’t lost! You can easily get plugged back into the alumni and recovery community. Remember, recovery is a journey, not a destination. Sometimes that journey is bumpy or rough, but it always gets better!