Eldorado Heights Community Testimonials

While I have received mixed reviews from residents and their relatives regarding Eldorado Heights, I have never personally seen anything that would make the facility one that I wouldn't recommend to others. From what I've seen the residents are happy, comfortable, and cared for. They always appear showered, good hygiene, clean and matching clothes, etc. I have noticed throughout my visits that the staff members really adore and dote on the residents. They will go out of their way to tie shoes, bring a resident a tissue or blanket, walk their small dogs for them when they are busy or under the weather, make family visits fun for the resident and enjoyable for the family, and so much more. In addition, they do all of these things on their own accord without being asked. The staff members here seem to be very observant, if they see that something's amiss, they will take care of it right then and there. They don't wait for someone else to come along and do it for them (which is a popular mindset in many facilities).

The complaints that I have heard mainly involve poor resident treatment, the staff not following individualized care plans, and the staff not keeping families updated and in the loop about going ons around the facility and the current status of their loved one's. Now, I am sure that some of these complaints are valid as no one facility is perfect and every facility has there moments, however, this is my reaction to these complaints...

As far as resident treatment, I have not seen any staff member treat any resident poorly. They are very personable and loving with the residents, they encourage the residents to maintain as much independence as possible while still being close by for assistance if needed. I have seen the staff celebrate with the residents over personal milestones and triumphs. I have seen them act as an listening ear, a shoulder to cry on, and a supportive arm to help them through. I have seen the staff members go above and beyond to make the daily lives of each resident as worry-free, stress-free, and as easy as possible. They are not satisfied unless the residents feel safe and are happy and comfortable. I have seen them several times working with residents who had just moved in to the facility. They were so gentle and encouraging with them, they introduced them to residents they thought could potentially be great friends (they wouldn't be able to do this unless they really knew each resident on a personal level), they joined in activities with them, sat and ate meals with them, and they supported these new residents until they had completely adapted to the facility and felt comfortable and confident enough to go out on their own. I had one son of a resident tell me that there is a med tech who gives his mom a hug and a kiss on the forehead every night before bed when it is time for her nightly medication. He told me that this makes his mom feel so special. He said that for so many years his mom tucked 6 kids in to bed every single night with hugs and kisses on the head, and now the tables have turned and someone is in a way "tucking" her in to bed, which she greatly deserves. He said that this is her time to let people take care of her and make her feel safe and special the way she did for her kids everyday and night for all those years. When I heard this story it just reiterated how I already felt about the interaction between the staff and the residents. So as far as the treatment of the residents, I think it is exceptional. It takes a special type of person to do this job, and every one of the staff members at Eldorado Heights is that type of person.

Now onto the issue of the staff not following the individualized care plans. I am sure there have been mistakes made when it comes to the care plans, when you have approx. 68 patients with different care needs as inexcusable as it is, there are bound to be slip-ups. Again, when it comes to resident care, this is where the staff need to remain organized, strictly adhere to each residents chart, and keep each other notified of changes to the care plans. Being on the same page, crossing their i's and dotting their it's, as well as keeping the care plans updated could seriously reduce the chances of inaccuracies. Throughout my visits, sure, I have seen a couple issues regarding resident care plans, but the few instances I witnessed were very minor. They weren't issues that could have potentially led to injury or illness, such as medication errors or not following diet plans - such as food allergies. For example of the care plan problems I have seen firsthand, one of the issues that took place while I happened to be visiting the facility was when a resident got a minor rash on her skin because the staff member had failed to note in the care plan that the resident had very sensitive skin and needed to be bathed with only fragrance-free soap. This error could have easily been prevented if the staff member had just looked at the chart. I know that the staff can get very busy at times and there are so many little details in the care plans that could easily slip the staff members minds, but that is why it is so important to stay organized and work as a team. Because the staff member either didn't remember or didn't know in the first place that this resident needed to use a special kind of soap it caused the resident discomfort because of the rash, and it just led to more work for the staff member as they now needed to deal with the rash that was making the resident itchy and uncomfortable. So while the error was not a matter of life and death, it was something that never should have taken place. I am understanding of facilities who make mistakes, every once in a blue moon (as long as they are minor oversights) as no one is perfect. However, I am not understanding of those facilities who make care plan errors on a regular basis, and believe me, I keep a journal of all of the facilities I visit and in that journal I right down everything about the visit, positive and negative, so I am able to keep track of how many errors are made in each facility. With that being said, I can confidently say that Eldorado Heights is one of those facilities where care plan errors are a very uncommon occurrence.

As for the issue of the families not being updated of their loved one's condition on a regular basis... I am sure this happens, the staff deals with many residents and even more family member's so I am sure there have been times when the task of updating a resident's family has been overlooked. From what I have seen, the staff are pretty good at keeping families in the loop. The staff members know the residents so well that they pretty much able to ramble each resident's current status off the top of their heads. They also are very familiar with each resident's family members, they know their names and special details about them such as if a family member bought a new house, went on vacation, got a promotion at work and so on. The staff members will always stop and chat for a few minutes when families are visiting. I have also over heard the staff members making many calls to family members to inform them of either something that is happening with their loved ones or to tell them about some fun event coming up. Also, many families have told me that the staff are great about keeping them informed of their loves one's status. So again, while I am sure that there are times where family members have not been contacted, and I know for family members, it is a big deal to be kept informed of changes/issues with their loved ones, so it is a big concern if facilities are failing to follow through with this. As for Eldorado Heights, I know they are following through, I have seen it first hand on every visit. I am not saying they don't forget to call a family member now and then, I know it's happened, I am just saying that it is very rare when it does happen. Keeping families involved and informed is a major focus of theirs.

Overall, I believe Eldorado Heights to be a comfortable, safe, and friendly facility where the staff is exceptional and the residents provided the highest quality of care. I have always and will always continue to refer people to this community. I suggest that people take a tour and see for themselves how great the facility really is..