Bethesda Senior Living Communities

I have had no negative interactions and observed no negligent actions to date. Everyone I have encountered has been courteous and committed to the residents. They contact me often with care needs and medical concerns of my father. I have no major complaints.

My mom is happy here. The staff is wonderful, especially her aide, [name removed]. Right now they don't have an activity director, and she misses exercise classes. They are hiring a replacement. [name removed] at the front desk is amazing. The food (which is such an important part of daily activity) doesn't have a lot of variety. Overall, thought, it's a great value and we are satisfied.

What they could improve on would be Contact information for everyone that works there; Name, email, phone. Or at least the administration contacts. Maybe Schedule of activities posted on web page or bulletin board at the entrance. Bulletin board maybe somewhere already, not sure

It's a great place to be. Everyone is so friendly and accommodating. They don't do light housekeeping like I was told when I moved my mother in. Other than that...that is my only "gripe" with the facility. Pricing was the main reason we chose this facility. There is not an upcharge depending on the level of care.

The environment is very laid back, there are lots of families coming and going. The apartments are basic, but very nice. The dining experience is always busy and friendly.

Only complaint we've had was the initial turnover rate in administrative staff. It's since been more stable. We would recommend this community to other families based on our experience. We are happy with our decision to place her at Bethesda

The biggest problem we have had is with the nursing staff, promises made but not kept & there has been a big turnover in the [time frame removed] my parents have been there, with nursing staff & Dr. Prices have gone up significantly in the past [time frame removed] as well.

Ask for an additional charge list. Certain diagnosis (I.e. memory issues) require payment for med management or an additional charge for special services (i.e. daily blood pressure monitoring). There is a fee for a pet which can be waived if it is a certified comfort animal. The menu sometimes does not appear to include MDR for protein. Ask about specific services from visiting nurse practitioner or physician. Ask if music is available during chapel services. Dining services are slow due to staff inefficiency.

The staff know what's going on with the residents, which is helpful when your loved one is struggling with memory issues.

I gave 4's because there is always room for improvement! But the facility is very clean and staff are friendly.

After a tour it seemed nice, clean, with helpful staff. The overall facility is very nice and clean. But the memory care wing is older and not as nice.

My LO has dementia, and although the staff were all good to her, the residents were not. They were very cognizant, mentally able, while my LO was not. She seemed to be more of a bother to the other residents. They yelled at her, told her she wasn't welcomed, told her to go live at a place with "her own people". She cried daily, knowing that they didn't want her around. While the staff were nice, they didn't help in getting the others to include her.

Better than some others I looked at. The food was only a 5 out of 10. The staff tried to help when I wasn't there. The only thing I can say is be there as much as you can. Your loved one gets better help if your around. My wife never fell out of her wheelchair while I was around, but I had to go out of town and they called my daughter in law and told her my wife had fallen 3 times out of.her wheelchair. So make your own decision.

The staff are very friendly and helpful. My grandma has a hard time seeing and tremors and they always make sure her menu is filled out at lunch and help make sure her menu sure her food is cut up for easy eating.

The facility is older, but it is in decent shape. The grounds are spacious and well tended to. The care givers are attentive and treat the residents well. The staff has responded responsibly to the cases of covid outbreaks by following all expected protocols. It has overall been a good experience for our family.

We love having mom here. I was impressed with the number of years the staff has been there when I was making the decision of where to move mom. There have been a number of staff changes, but the replacement have shown to be even better than the original staff, which I didn't think was possible. I'm not sure they can improve the food without a bigger budget. Fresh fruits and vegetables are probably too expensive. I like that they always offer a ham and cheese sandwich as an alternative or hamburger, if the meal is not to her liking. They do always have apples and oranges available.

To be honest we are probably going to have to move my mom to a skilled nursing facility. The Gardens have been good - they are good to mom and communication is good too.

The staff are some of the kindest people I have ever met. I wish there were more activities, especially in memory care, but I'm not sure any facility has great memory care activities. That's a huge challenge. but the staff is top-notch. And that's the most important thing.

Don't spend too much money on clothing or bath towels because they will disappear. Wipes adult underwear and pads will too. They were the best choice at the time.

The caregivers are very attentive, personable, responsive and genuinely care about the residents and go out of their way to make this positive and safe for them. The food and choices are ok to good, but in memory care food is "brought over" from the main kitchen and the caregivers have to not only help residents get to their places but also serve all the food. The result is often cold food, don't know what the food is, and no real ability to choose an alternate option if the "main course" isn't appetizing. This wouldn't be an issue in regular AL, just in memory care. The activities for memory care are just not activities--at least for a resident who is mostly with it with only minor memory issues. There's little interaction, the care staff doesn't have time to encourage/help them get to activities, and the activities just aren't anything worth doing...."memory boxes" every day, virtually no "arts and crafts", minimal physical activities, nothing to encourage resident interaction, no variety. They have things on the schedule, but there doesn't seem to be emphasis or engagement. The admin staff are all very nice and polite but extraordinarily over worked/tasked with the administrative tasks of running the facility. It has been hard on us as the family, I think our resident is doing as well as could be expected.