Brookdale

I moved my father out in December after multiple emergency low glucose incidents. Admin does not return calls, the nurse does not review emails with new medical indications in a timely manner nor do they provided staff who administers medications with updated information in a timely manner or follow-up with them. Wait time for assistance with incontinence takes a while and residents develop rashes. Service rates for care are not discussed before being added to residents bill as the contract states. I think, but I could be wrong, staff turnover is high and there is minimal staff on hand to assist residents at all times of the day.

EVERYTHING costs extra and almost nothing is included. Need to use a van for a medical appointment? It only runs a couple of times a week. Take an Uber. Need oxygen? Pay $[removed] for the extra electricity. That charge does NOT include them helping you with it. "Entertainment" consists of the residents walking around in parades and old movies shown on a TV screen. If you only need an apartment with food provided, congratulations. It's only about $[removed] for a room the size of a jail cell. Think your room will be cleaned? Dirty dishes left in the sink until they mold. The ONLY reasons we're still there is that we paid a non-refundable $[removed] move-in fee and the some of the employees are amazing. But don't fool yourself. The owners of the place are only out for money. They don't care at all about providing the services residents needs to enjoy the last years of their life. If you're looking for something for a parent, look for a place that puts residents before profits.

Brookdale was under equipped to provide safe support for my brother. After returning from the dinner hall on his scooter, and waiting for a half an hour to be transferred to his recliner. He attempted to move himself falling and breaking five ribs and hitting his head. This led to 5 weeks in the hospital. As industry professionals, I'm sure they knew he would have been better off in a board and care facility with a small number of patients, but I guess the potential income was too much temptation to resist. They are very lucky I didn't sue them. A perfect example of their attitude, they were very helpful when we moved in. When we moved our brother to a board and care for his safety, turn off absolutely no support other than to show us where the moving cart was.

My mother lived here for 1.5 yrs and we moved her out due to issues with staff. The main problem is the executive director,[Name Removed]. His management style is weak and ineffective. The staff seem to have no respect for him and it shows in the quality of care. Most caregivers are awesome (Names removed) but the last straw for us was finding a caregiver watching SpongeBob SquarePants on her iPad during dinner. Instead of helping residents, she chose to watch her cartoon while they waited to be served. Most of the residents on her wing weren’t even seated in the dining room as she left them to either watch tv or sit alone in their rooms. When it was obvious [Name Removed] was doing nothing to resolve the issue, we gave up. Our mom now resides at The Meridian at Carolina Lakes and pays [Amount removed] less per month for beautiful facilities that far outshine the outdated and drab building Brookdale uses. 1 star. I do not recommend Brookdale.

There have been ongoing concerns related to communication, consistency, and follow-through on services. Some basic services were not always performed as expected, and there appeared to be gaps in staff training, oversight, and accountability. There also seemed to be frequent changes in leadership, which may have contributed to inconsistencies between management and day-to-day care. Families may want to ask detailed questions about what is included in base costs versus additional services, and how consistently those services are delivered. It's also important to check in regularly, as some residents may be hesitant to speak up about concerns.

So sad on my choice I believed everything the sales guy said, and not one bit was true. Wish I asked more questions

We really wanted to love Brookdale RH! And the first 6 weeks, we did! Then the honeymoon ended and the REAL Brookdale showed up. From questioning the business/managment structure of Brookdale in general, to their lack of compassion, little to no genuine kindness, ALWAYS under staffed, a nurse that would rather sit at her desk and focus on her disgusting and quite immature social media, to staff that complains non-stop, to refusing to provide the services we were paying for such as escorting our mom to and from meals and to all activities. Oh, and two BIGGIES: not dispensing mom’s meds and not feeding our mom on more than one occasion. And, even though they all knew our family used the cameras in mom’s room, we have a lot of footage, it didn’t seem to change their irresponsible, unprofessional way of handling their business or their residents! So much more I could say but… We’re not sure who is actually running that community but it’s definitely not the management. Beware!

It was awful. We have taken my parents out of there. Would never recommend!!! Don't ever choose this facility. Very poorly managed

It was nice looking but the guy [name removed] who toured us made us uncomfortable. I felt like we were buying a car car not getting help for my mom

The staff doesn't answer the assistance call button for hours, the food is horrible, the residents rattle door handles at all hours and my mom had someone break a key off in her lock.

I would not recommend this facility.

My mother’s blood pressure was 220, and she was never properly checked on afterward. One day she asked for two bottles of water and was told there were no bottles available. Instead, she was given a single glass of water. Two months later, my mother passed away. Since then, the facility has refused to release the necessary paperwork to the insurance company. I had private insurance through MetLife that would have paid for her stay. Instead of submitting the documentation so they could be paid directly, they are attempting to sue me for the balance. The insurance company is still sending me requests because they are waiting on this facility to provide the required documents so the claim can be processed. The facility is severely understaffed. Despite claims that there are RNs on duty in the four quads, there is only one RN and one LPN, and they are located on the opposite end from where my mother was. The RN only works Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. I was also charged for cable service, but there was no cable available. I had to use my own Netflix account just so my mother would have something to watch. One afternoon, while my mother was sleeping, a male resident entered her room, urinated on her bathroom floor, went through her drawers, pulled out her clothes, and then stood over her. When I reported this, I was told that it is a “free facility” and residents are allowed to walk wherever they want because it is their home. I was told that since my mother did not leave her room, it was somehow her fault. The man had dementia and possibly PTSD from his time in the Navy. I do not blame him. But the facility has a responsibility to protect residents and ensure their safety. Instead, they sided with him and blamed my mother. To this day, MetLife is still waiting for documentation from this facility so the claim can be processed and payment can be made. This entire experience has been heartbreaking and unacceptable.

They did not treat him/her with respect Nothing was done that was promised when we toured there. Their billing is awful and the admin is even worse. He/she is no longer there it was so awful. There are people who care and do a great job. We toured many places and wished we had gone somewhere else. I can't believe they can charge that much for the little they did.

A manager or the executive director never called or followed up regarding an investigation over this serious matter to explain or show concern. The home care staff who showed up to make sure she took her medication in Independent Living were late numerous times but we still had to pay and no apologies!

The nurse said that my mother, with dementia, was appropriate for assisted living. She told me mom was participating in the activities and going to the dining room on her own. That was not true. Mom couldn't even dress herself

I'm being generous. We had a very bad experience with staff and administrator. What they could improve on would be Allowing family members in the room when staff is also in room. My Dad had a skin tear on his arm because they mishandled him and I wanted to be in the room and the staff wouldn't let me. They walked out and didn't check his arm to see he was bleeding. If I had not called the nurse to get his arm wrapped up, he would have bleed all night. The director needs to listen and respond to family concerns. When we had a meeting with her she said she would move him to another area with other staff and never did. My Dad was so scared of that staff. I took him out because the second meeting she had not done anything to help our situation. We had asked to get a food supplement such as Ensure because Dad was not eating a lot. They kept telling me to put it on the white card. I did, but no change. Activities only during week even though they said 7 days per week. Countless times staff would leave the area leaving the resident alone and wandering. Someone was suppose to be there at all times. I witnessed a resident that had urinated during dinner and an aide reprimanded her, threw a towel on the floor, left resident sitting in her urine, and go into that resident's room for 10 minutes. Came out with her phone so you knew she was on a personal call. Then take care of the resident. After removing my Dad from facility, contacted the State and Attorney General's office to inspect their operation. I would never place a loved one in that facility. We have been out of there for 2 years and I still have regrets of placing my Dad there. I don't think I will ever forgive myself or that house of horrors.

In their defense I feel the unfortunate experience I had was with a nurse. I found out she was since let go, but feel it was for a number of things, not just my situation. However I don't think anyone truly cared about our experience. No calls to see if they could help or get any answers

The sales director did not come. I waited as long as possible and had to finally leave because I had another appointment. The facility seemed ok.

Our experience with Brookdale Westlake Village’s Memory Care Unit was deeply disappointing and distressing. My father was a hospice patient there, and we encountered ongoing problems with communication, cleanliness, and decision-making that no family should have to face. His room often smelled strongly of urine, even after repeated requests for cleaning. We struggled to get basic care coordination, including podiatry and medical follow-up. The worst incident occurred when my father—who was on hospice, sedated, and asleep—was sent to the ER for a psychiatric evaluation without proper coordination with hospice or family consent. I had specifically requested that hospice handle the evaluation onsite. The decision to send a terminal, sleeping patient to the ER in the middle of the night was unnecessary and inhumane. Later, the facility abruptly required that we hire a “sitter” for my father with only a few hours’ notice. Brookdale later agreed to reimburse us for a week of sitter costs

So many reasons as to where to start. The elevator issue, being abruptly removed from her room due a person across the hall with bedbugs (for an entire week) with less than 30 minutes to vacate, insufficient staff for the facility for numerous duties (dining hall, cleaning crew, nursing, laundry service, management, etc.).