MorningStar Senior Living

MS is basically a dorm for seniors with RAs on staff there to help when you ask them to (and can reach them); don't expect much more. They do dispense medication but family really needs to pay attention to make sure it is correct (confirm, reconfirm and then check what's actually in the cup) and to notice changes in health (weight gain/weight loss, wearing same clothes for consecutive days, room not being picked up, etc). The food is not good and it's deteriorated significantly over the past few months. I now bring in most of my dad's food in. I feel sorry for the ppl there without family to bring them good food every now and then. This is an easy fix but it's not happening. There has been a lot of turnover in staff lately and there is no transition, making it hard to know who to call for what or to know if the person you are giving instructions to will relay the message to the right person. They have activities, but it's up to the tenants to get out of their rooms and go (and not many do). For [fee removed] a month, I expect (at a minimum) meds to be correctly dispensed and the food to be tolerable. It's an overall disappointment but this is my first experience so I don't have anything to compare it to. Honestly, having now experienced it, I feel it's better to continue independent living with a full time caregiver vs moving them to MorningStar; at least then you know they are getting individual care.

Beautiful facility. It has management problems. There are some fantastic people. They are not ADA equipped for vision impaired They use QMAP people for meds. Not well educated, but they are following Colorado law. Just wished I knew

The food is very good, beautiful facility, my Mom really enjoys the chair yoga.

We had a wonderful tour of Morning Star and had a nice conversation with the coordinator. We were told an assessment was necessary and that we would be contacted on Sunday. We were all in! Sunday came and went with no call. Monday no call; my sister called and left a message. Still no call. After another person involved contacted them, my sister received a call late Monday afternoon. By that point we were very discouraged. We thought that if they couldn’t follow through with a phone call, what were the chances of her husband getting the immediate care he would require. It’s a very difficult and challenging decision to make placing a loved one in a facility. This wasn’t handled well.

We toured MorningStar Assisted Living and Memory Care of Littleton during our search for a Memory Care facility for our loved one. We decided to continue on with our search and to tour other facilities.

The care staff is amazing. I have seen meals that I would not feed a dog. Activities are almost non-existent, there is no thought or effort put into the activities. Watching YouTube is considered an activity. Instead of seeing what the residents are interested in, they just keep doing the same old things that take no effort. They keep raising the price and provide sub par food and activities. I have expressed my concerns several times and nothing changes, we are to the point where we will look into something else, my mom loves her care staff, but the rest is terrible.

Our family had an in person tour with MorningStar Senior Living of Parker and it was too expensive and they were not budging on the [fee removed] move in fee. IT also was not homey at all.

Improvements that this community could make is when tenant has empty oxygen tanks despite repeated attempts to correct this issue. Tenant had to sleep in soiled bedding told by staff that it was okay. Room smells bad because soiled adults diapers left in trash. Tenant told she must go to bed immediately after dinner. Tenant concerned with retaliation if she complained

My loved one lived in this facility and our experience was not good. The place is beautiful and gives a great first impression, but when it comes down to actual care of the residents it's not so great. There was so much miscommunication within the nursing staff and communication with the family could have improved also. The level of care that I ended up paying for was expensive, but I was assured that my loved one would get the care and assistance that she needed. However, she didn't get it. I was really disappointed with this facility. My tour was nice and it seemed like this facility was going to be a good place for my loved one. Things just didn't work out and we ended up moving our loved one to a different place. I have a couple of friends who had loved one's at this facility and also ended up moving them to a different place. From medication mix ups/not being given, to assistance for my loved one to get to and from the dining room (which they assured me several times that they would do and did not), to my loved one having a gouge in her forehead that I only knew about when I visited but was never notified of from the nursing staff....just not a good experience. I would not recommend this facility to family and friends. Again, the residents seemed overall happy, it's a nice atmosphere with a great mountain view, it's clean, the dining room is nice. But the care that is given to residents just isn't great, from our experience anyway.

We feel stuck, she has a nice apartment, the care staff is amazing. She has made some friends so we hate to move her. Management does not seem to have the residents best interest at heart. The dining room and food is a total disaster. Activities are almost nothing.

My father was there recently and the staff turnover is abysmal. They cannot seem to keep staff more than a few months. It takes such special people to work with these clients, and they should be paid accordingly . The management is not friendly and is ugly to staff, which probably does not help. I would talk to staff about whether they like working somewhere before placing a loved one in any facility.

I am an occasional visitor of a friend who resides there. Her health has declined, she has lost weight, seems lethargic at all times. She is in a wheelchair when she was very capable upon the start. Now she is too weak to walk. Her room is dusty, stains on her carpet, smells of urine, she has had her wedding rings stolen- she never took them off...and replaced with a cheap ring. Her toiletries are her own responsibility, yet they are always taken. The center is impressive, however. Understaffed resulting in lack of care for those that need it. Some of the staff are enthusiastic lately, but they must be the contracted ones because of being short staffed. Some have been very lazy, on their cellphones and looking bored. I witnessed staff walking around just to get there shift over.

At that time, a lot of tours were virtual, including our tour at MorningStar. At the same time, another place we ended up choosing allowed in-person tours. Even through a virtual tour, I could see that MorningStar was an older facility and not as nice. The people leading the tour seemed like typical salespeople, like real estate agents that didn’t want to sell real estate anymore, using all the language that just made you feel like they’re trying to sell you something.

We moved my mother into this facility thinking it was a great place. The sales person assured us that there would be wonderful activities and amenities but they do nothing activity wise for the residents. There was also an issue for me as I cannot wear a mask but was also assured that it was not a problem. That lasted one week and by the second week the sales person and receptionist tried to cover up that I was being let in mask free to the ED in charge who micro manages everyone and everything, and then I was forced to wear one. Since I can't wear one now I can't get in to see my mother. My mother is very unhappy there and can't wait to leave after only two weeks. We are moving her somewhere else. I would not recommend anyone to put their loved one in there.

The care services they provided are good, but how they delivered them and carried through with them was the issue. The people were very nice, and the building itself is very beautiful, however they do not respond to the call buttons which went on for months, which was unacceptable. We took this up with the management, head of the memory care and the individual who oversees the entire community and it was never addressed and followed through with.

Be prepared, the community is very disorganized and the onboarding process was not good. They are under new management so i don't know how it is now. Based on my experience I would not recommend this facility

Morning Star has an insufficient amount of residents in the memory care unit, which means there are not enough residents there to stimulate our loved one has far as having a relationship with them. We do know COVID has played a role in which they have to space out the residents for safety purposes, but that makes it harder for our loved one to develop relationships with the other residents. We are little unhappy with the house keeping. Every time we come visit it seems like we have to always vacuum. Our loved one spilled cranberry juice on her carpet, we have brought it to their attention but it still has not been cleaned up. The care take is great when she helps out of our loved one, but their is a language barrier. Our loved one is hard of hearing so sometimes it is hard for her to understand her care giver. We also aren't really sure what the difference is between assisted living and memory care. We thought the staff on the memory care side would be more on top of things, but they are not much different from the assisted living side. Also, the food is terrible.

Be careful what you ask, you may not like the answer. Comments are pre Pandemic How's the food? VERY high in carbs - not healthy for most residents. And, not very good either. Certainly not worth what you pay for it. How is the housekeeping? When you have to clean after the housekeeper has been there, it's not what is advertised or what you pay for. What about assisted living care? Under par!!! They seem to make their own rules - give meds when they want as opposed to when they are due. Too many problems to list. I hope you don't need the program. And independent living? They tell you when you can eat and if you are late you may or may not get something. You feel as if you have a curfew. You are supposed to tell them when you come and go. Activities are great if you're 80 something. Or older. Not much that might interest younger people. What are the rents? They vary by apartment size, and sometimes by who is renting. And they have constantly gone up 5% - 7% a year since the new owners have taken over. Garden Court was once a great place to retire. Not any longer.

I think they are understaffed. I think some of the staff takes their job seriously and some do not.They were not following her care plan. She is required to have two showers a week. The aides were coming in to give her a shower and marking that she refused. They should be trained to handle these situations. I don't feel they follow-up with me often enough. I check on my mom often, she means a lot to me.

Not the right "feel" for my mom. Great amenities but my mom would not use all they offer.