9Livesdesign

Review of Mesa Christian Health & Rehab

Medicare rates this facility in the 4-5 star level...

Medicare rates this facility in the 4-5 star level which helped me pick it out in the first place. If it gets that kind of rating its more like a 5 star rating for the abject poor. I would say up front...outdated environment, understaffed, and in need of some attention to making it a more pleasant environment to stay in. My mother was placed there at two different times June to Sept 2016 and Jan to March 2017 and so I was at the facility frequently and in the end before my mom died (at the facility) I was there every day. Here's some observations and comments about my experience from 2016-2017. MY BIGGEST GRIPE with this facility is that she had been in their care a second time for over 3 months and when she died I did not get ONE CALL from the administrators to give their condolences. They all knew who she was. I had all the nurses always offering me condolences as her time got closer but was APPAULED that administrators didn't even have a policy in place to at least give a condolence call or card considering they had known her two seperate times of at least 3 months each stay.**The appearance inside of the facility needs a complete update and rennovation. It was more like being back in the 60's and the rooms are more like small shared hospital rooms. Although some residents have some personal items thrown in, and there is a TV and sometimes a dresser in the rooms, its still very clinical rather than invitingly homelike. Even though the place is divided into different areas for different levels of care, more attention should be put into making it feel more like home and less like some hospital camp they got sent to. Especially for the long term patients, this becomes their home and it should be a lot more individually tailored if they are going to stay there for years or die there. It should be more like a motel, rather than a hospital environment of just a bed. **The Staff were always cordial and nice to me, the receptionist, the nurses and aides, all the way up to the administrator (Marlena and Kim at the time) and my mom stayed at several different stations within the facility. All around I felt the staff did a good job considering the patient load they had, and the demanding nature of those elderly patients. I never came into see my mother dirty or smelly. My moms personal clothing often got lost (in their laundry system) and personal treats for my mom I brought in never really got used by her. When around staff, I did not hear too much gossip" about the place" or much dissention from the workers about working there. Mostly staff were doing their jobs, at their stations, or in with patients. But they are understaffed big time. **Medical attention and cleanliness: The facility was always clean but did frequently smell of urine or feces as you walked by certain rooms, but considering many of the patients were bedridden this is not uncommon for the type of facility. Still they seemed understaffed especially when It came to general upkeep of patients individually. There is no resident doctor there every day there should be a doctor on site 24/7 not just a NP who comes around once or twice a week. Although my mom, on her second placement there was in much more decline they took good care of her until Hospice was called in for her. That does not mean that it was a good environment for her or for anyone living out a monotonous existence or their last days of life there. It was sterile and depressing. After Hospice was called for her, it seemed "too many cooks" and I had to consult with so many people just to get the point across that I wanted her comfortable as she waited to die. My mother died there in March 2017 in the middle of the night, I missed her last breath by 10 minutes (at least they called me but called me too late) and they removed her body shortly after I got there. I give it 3 stars only because it was clean, and staff were friendly. So many other areas needed improvement or revamping all together especially environment., individual care and some policies.