Bickford Senior Living

No one expected my visit, as they thought I was going to Rockford. With that said I was greeted warmly. But after sharing about [name removed] I was told, they had no room for him. Then why bother talking to me?

Not to happy with the place . We decided to put Mom in Bickford the first week she was there we had to hired a caregiver to sit with her for Memorial Day weekend because they were under staffed . Mom ended up paying for a caregiver an what it cost her for the month. She only been there. Week I hope thing get better

Mom moved in in August. The food is not very good and is usually cold. A lot of times no one answers the phone in the office. Is pretty pricey which is why she's moving in November. The weekend nurse sometimes forgets her meds.

We had our loved one there for 2 weeks in Memory care. The experience was very negative and the reasons are: They treated our loved one (let’s call our loved one Ginger for this comments) as a person needing only assisted living, which was not the case by suffering Dementia at an Intermediate stage and being stated in the doctor’s notes. These are some examples: 1. It was asked for - and they did not provide - every 2 hr bathroom use reminders (as suggested for dementia patients) and showing Ginger where the restroom was. Ginger was expected to find the restroom independently, which did not happen by being in a new environment and being naturally confused, and Ginger ended up urinating wherever considered restroom. [That had never happened before (or after). That only proved that they were not providing the Memory care necessary for patients with memory loss, confusion, etc. When Ginger is reminded and guided Ginger goes in the right place at the right time]. They used this “misconduct” against us to justify the need for him to leave their place. 2. They did not provide any notice of Ginger needing to leave, in fact, when during those 2 weeks stay another sudden health situation occurred to his caregiver, we asked for Ginger to stay a couple of extra days and that’s when they said that they would not allow that, that HE HAD TO LEAVE at the agreed date. 3. A medication run out during the week, the nurse never called the pharmacy to refill the prescription or contacted the family to suggest refilling the prescription before the medication would finish. 4. The nurse did not deliver the hearing aids promptly in the morning at wake up time, in one occasion it was 11:30 a.m., Ginger was dressed, had breakfast and no hearing aids yet had been delivered. 5. They did not keep up with Ginger’s daily personal hygiene and care: brushing teeth, brushing hair, etc. 6. Not good room cleaning maintenance. 7. it was agreed on paper on the 1st day of our arrival to have Ginger showered 2 times per week. They only did it once a week and after being reminded. 8. Meals: nobody would assist Ginger in eating or invite Ginger to eat. 9. No laundry, linens, towels, bathroom essentials, baskets, trash bags, Kleenex, bed stand, chairs, hangers, soap, cleaning products provided during the 2 weeks stay. 10. The Bickford of Carmel certainly did not get out of its way (or do the bare minimum for the price charged) to catch our attention as potential “customers” for the future. 11. Bickford of Carmel strongly invites you to visit as frequently as possible and to “feel” like it is a new home for the loved one and for family members, so we did visit almost daily. Then they used that against us saying: because you were there so frequently, we did not perform all the care we generally do because you were there. Which is only partially OK as a reasoning, we should have still arrived at 9:30 or 10:00 a.m. and if Ginger was awake by then, Ginger should have had the teeth brushed, the hair combed, the disposable underwear pulled off, the hearing aid provided, etc. What about the times that we were not there? They did not take charge and care of Ginger (as appropriate for a dementia resident), hence the urinating accidents. This was our experience, hence the skepticism on any place that offers both Assisted living AND memory care. We were suggested to stick to MEMORY CARE ONLY facilities if your loved one has dementia or Alzheimer; they have the proper care for such patients. TIPS: - READ AS MANY REVIEWS AS POSSIBLE BEFORE MAKING A DECISION - HAVE YOUR LOVED ONE EXPERIENCE ANY POTENTIAL FACILITY FOR 2 WEEKS (IF POSSIBLE FOR YOU) AND ONLY THEN YOU WIL HAVE A REALISTIC IDEA OF THE QUALITY OF CARE THEY PROVIDE - VISIT FREQUENTLY AND UNANNOUNCED, THAT’S THE BEST WAY TO WITNESS THE QUALITY OF THE FACILITY, STAFF, ETC.

This place is way over priced. Amy Orlando says anything she can to get your money. That's all they care about. Half the staff is incompetent. For the money that is paid the residents deserve so much more. I would not recommend this place to anyone. Definitely go elsewhere!!

It was awful. They had bed bugs and they couldn't get rid of them, his glasses broke, they were hard to contact. The billing kept getting confusing, and the billing itself, they'd nitpick one thing after. He was never shaved, and he'd lose things constantly. When we went back to get his things after he passed, he was missing his vets hat and they couldn't find any of his belongings but his suitcase. When we went to interview, it was beautiful, but it is not suitable for a person with Alzheimer's. When you get off the elevator it's very cluttered and they don't have closets, they have armoires on wheels. Once those come in the room they completely took over. It's a memory unit, but it's not good for any kind of memory problem. He got in a fight with one guy and he got in trouble and they made a huge stink about it, but that's just part of the disease. They never changed his clothes. He had pneumonia and they said nothing was wrong, but eventually he wound up in the hospital. Sunrise threw all his medicine away while he was gone so he had to pay for all new medicine. It's part of their protocol. He'd just got new medicine, hadn't even used them, and they had to toss them. That medicine cost well over $300 out of pocket. We were very unhappy and took a long time to get the billing correct. He wasn't even there a lot of the time, he was at hospice, and they charged for everything. It comes on looking very good, but once you get there, it's not.

My mother was here for 6 months and during that time I observed many things that were disturbing. The residents were treated with dignity BY THE COOK and that is all! The support staff was otherwise inattentive or condescending and were friendly only if a family member, such as myself, was around. Residents were allowed to sit up sleeping in their wheelchairs in the main lobby/living area for hours. It reminded me of an old-fashioned nursing home atmosphere where I volunteered as a teenager years ago. The only structured game time was "BINGO" and the "prizes" were always small pieces of candy bars, and most of the residents, including my mother, were diabetic!! Not an appropriate "prize" for most. At a "family" meeting for all family members of the residents it was revealed that one of the residents did not like the "new look" the support staff was wearing--- indeed, most of the young CNAs and support staff were sporting the "goth" look by wearing black nail polish and dying their hair black, etc. Lots of heavy make up, etc. This resident told an administrator (supposedly in confidence) that the "new look" was scary and reminded her of witches. Well, this administrator TOLD the young staff what the resident had said and THEY got up in arms and said they didn't like being referred to as witches! Who did this administrator support? Not the residents, that's for sure! The whole place was not run properly in my opinion, or even humanely. Residents were expected to line up in a tiny hallway before or after meals to receive their medication. Really? They all needed their meds at the same time each day? My mother died there and I wish I had had the means to at least have her pass in a place that cared for her as a person. This was not that place. One more thing: There was a housekeeper there that went around to the residents to sell her baked goods at Christmas time, telling the residents that their family members would like to receive fresh baked goods from them (residents.) And for an EXTRA fee she would also do an EXTRA good job cleaning and dusting their room! This woman was not reprimanded for her behavior.

There is not enough staff for the care that I need. I'm paralyzed on my right side so I need help getting to the bathroom. I have to schedule when I need to brush my teeth and go to the bathroom because they have to make sure there is someone here to help me. I don't have a roll in shower and they promised me I would get a roll in shower. I had to purchase my own lift because they only have one in the whole building. It hasn't been a good experience. I'm moving out soon.

Bed and breakfast for active seniors at $92/day.($2800). poor parking in downtown Bexley. Furnished apts. with phone and utilities incl.; cafe bistro off the dining hall for snacks, but narrow hallways and elevator for 3 floors. small rooms with armoirs, no closets.

They were very short staffed. They were not patient with my loved one. She was there for just 12 days and they would miss taking her to meals, they never bathed her or assisted her. They never answered the call button to assist her to the restroom so she sat in urine for hours. She was supposed to stay for 30 days but I took her out early. I have been trying to call them for a month now and I have even stopped in and no one will talk to me to give me a refund. They told me they could handle her care when they came to assess her, but clearly that was not true. I think they just wanted the money. Overall it was a terrible experience and I do not recommend them.

They were supposed to provide care to my loved one and it didn't happen. Her bed would be wet, she smelled like urine. They would wake her up and get her up and tell her to go to the dining room. She would go to meals with no hearing aid in. It was a constant battle. We had to go to the head nurse regarding our concerns. We had to leave notes all over to guide her teeth where brushed, etc. Those were totally ignored. We had found our loved one soiled and sick. They left a soda and soup beside her bedside. It was a week before the feces was cleaned up off her carpet from her room. We had to have numerous meetings with staff and come see everyday what was being done and not being done. The director of nursing didn't address all these issues and her ADL's not being done. She did not want to hold any staff accountable for anything they did or didn't do. We had to show the Director her bed had urine in it, her bridge was in her bathroom, hearing aides left in her room and it was close to lunch time. No accountability.. We told them she needed a UA, they didn't do it and she had a bad UTI. They made excuses why they couldn't see through her getting a urine sample. Blaming my loved one, who has dementia. She was taken to the hospital and it was so bad it required hospital admittance. She declined rapidly after this. We had to remove her from Bickford and place her somewhere else.

I would never ever recommend this community to anybody, not even my worst enemy.

Our loved one never had the chance to move in, but we were so excited to get them into Bickford that we paid in advanced to hold a room for them. When it came time for the director of nursing to give our loved one an evaluation and asses their health level, she never showed up. We called the community that day, and they said there had been a covid outbreak and the director of nursing was in quarantine. We asked if they could send someone else, and they never did. Our loved one ended up passing away before moving in, and when we asked for a refund of the money they said the check would get back to us within a week - it took almost 2 months and it ended up only being a portion of the money. Every time we asked questions there was always an excuse regarding covid, they pride themselves on treating families with respect but we did not feel respected, they never returned calls or thoroughly answered our questions. Very unhappy.

I would tell others never to put their loved ones there. It's very disheartening witnessing people not receiving the care that they need and are paying for. The staff is constantly changing. There were so many fired and so many quitting all the time. The staff they had were excellent. They tried hard, and were good workers, but you didn't have the same staff from week to week. We heard from many of them that corporate was horrible to them. The food is horrible, often inedible, and they can't keep a cook. The nurses were having to help serve food because they couldn't keep kitchen staff. And then that took the nurses away from the people they were supposed to be helping. On their website, they say they cater to your dietary needs. They never complied with our loved ones dietary needs one bit. They couldn't keep an activities director. They're trying to do what they can, but with Covid, there wasn't much going on. Basically the director has been having to do pretty much everything because of their staffing issues. The sales person who sold us on Brighton never even spoke to us again after we moved in. She would hide because they did not deliver on anything they promised. She promised everything in the world, and it wasn't even services that they offered. They have owed us money ever since we moved out. Every time I call, each person has a different answer and a different reason that they cannot reimburse us the money that hey owe us.

We would not recommend Bickford. The billing department was not good, I never knew what I was paying each month. It seemed like it was never cleaned. The administrative staff were not responsive and would not return phone calls or emails. My mom was unhappy here and we did not have a good experience.

I would want others to know that we did not have a good experience with Bickford of Midland. Our loved one was a known fall risk, they did not protect her and she passed. Whatever they tell you, it does not seem to be carried through with. They did not give the care that they said they would. The other thing is they weren't washing her or cleaning her after using the restroom. We did her laundry and there was feces all over her clothes.

Terrible Place. Had a family member stay here and it got dirtier and nastier with the current director - she just doesn't care, all she cares about is filling the place. With people that don't belong there - totally unfit for assisted living. She can put a good show on, but don't believe her. And she's totally unqualified to be a manage or care for the elderly dependent on her. The food is terrible. Cold. Burned. Hard. Over-salted. Staff turnaround is terrible. A couple of staff have been there forever and they are wonderful, but they cannot compensate for the lack of quality in all else. Half the time on weekends there is one person running the entire place, both sides Assisted Living and Memory Care. It's a scary place to have someone.

The rooms they show you are clean. The staff is great when a tour comes through, but that's all. Understaffed. Underqualified. Extremely dirty and poorly managed. See if you can get into the kitchen and observe the filth on the cabinets and floor. Check out the staff breakroom. Look at food that's being served and taste it. Check out the residents that belong in a higher level of care but are there instead. Staff turnaround is a revolving door. Five Nursing Directors in 4 years what does that tell you? Management at this Bickford is terrible and uncaring. Don't be fooled. Too many nice close places (Clarendale in Algonquin 5Star and brand new Melody in Lake in the Hills 5-Star ++).

I would avoid this place. They do a good job marketing it as trying to provide a better option that is more caring, but that it not the case. They over promise and under deliver. They say someone will respond within 5 minutes of a request, but that may just be someone saying ,I don't have time to help you now, I'll get to you later. I witnessed this for myself, and I heard about it from my mom. They'll probably label it a "behavioral problem" that a resident presses their call button too much, when it may be because they don't get any help when they ask for it. They also said that my mom could use the bus to be transported to medical appointments if two weeks notice was provided. This almost never was true. My mom missed appointments because of this. In fact, one physician no longer wanted to accept her as a patient because of those last minutes cancellation. Once a staff person did transport her in her own car. I was horrified by the way my mom was treated in the last weeks of her life. She went into hospice care in April 2020 and was given only two weeks to live. The nurse told me I could visit her and other family members without restrictions due to short time left. She abruptly changed her mind after five days. She tried to say that it was a corporate policy, but she made the choice. No one told me that I could take her outside the facility to see her until I discovered it on my own over a week later. After I took my mom out the first time, the next day my mom told me that the nurse there, Jennifer told her that she could never see me again because people were scared. I didn't get to see her that day. Someone from hospice intervened and the following day I did get to take her out. The nurse harassed my mom for leaving the facility to spend time with me. She also tried to convince me that I shouldn't take her out because if I did then my mom couldn't participate in group activities like Bingo!!!! I was horrified. I couldn't believe it. The nurse never apologized. She continued to harass my mom for visiting outside the facility. My mom lived only 22 days after she entered hospice. Even the day before my mom died, when she collapsed at night and I was told a hospice nurse was going to come assess her, but would take a long time to arrive because she needed to stop at the pharmacy to get drugs, the drugs that would make my mom more comfortable if she really was dying, I was told that I couldn't come see her right away. It is terrible to think of other families who have no idea that residents can leave the facility because staff wants to hide that option, even when people are dying with only weeks left to live. The nurse was clueless about my mom's condition. She didn't recognize that she had stopped eating anything at all and drank almost nothing. My mom became extremely week and wanted to just sit outside the facility to visit with me instead of getting in the car to leave. We were told to leave the premise. We were not allowed to sit outside the facility to visit. No reason was provided. On the day that she died, the day after she had collapsed, we were told that only two people could visit at a time, even though before we were told it would be four. We were also told that we could visit once and then leave, not leave and come back. It sucks to be fooled by the nurse and the marketing guy. They seemed like caring people. Their actions say otherwise. The marketing guy is not going to care for your loved one. Marketing is just marketing.

I was very hopeful that this was the place for my husband. I started the convo off w/ saying he had medicare & aid. They wasted 2 weeks of my time. Did virtual tour, had nurse access him. They assured me of it would all be fine. THEN they sent me to their financial people (ELDER). Since we had nothing to give up for his stay, now they claim they dont take our insurance. WRONG WAY TO DO BUSINESS. SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME FROM THE START.