Sinceri Senior Living

For a smaller, older venue, it was very pleasing in appearance. Everyone, from staff to occupants, mostly were smiling and pleasant, (Rooms are too small, my sister lived in twice the size)

I wanted to share my personal experience regarding The Pines on Carmel Assisted Living Facility. I was a very involved son and did significant research prior to choosing this facility. I interviewed, visited, and had my mother’s health assessment conducted by five other facilities in the South Charlotte area prior to making our decision. It was the right one. My mother was a resident here for ten months. The previous Interim Director/Sales Coordinator has since left. She was magnificent. The new director is very good and proactively collaborating to make appropriate improvements and takes personal responsibility for the facility with entrepreneurial ownership. I originally overlooked this facility due to the pictures on the intranet. These are old. The facility is lovely and they continue to make improvements. They were extremely accommodating and offered several room options. Finally, Cynthia (who unfortunately is no longer there, she was amazing) cleared out a storage area so my mother could have one of the best rooms in the facility. A corner room, with two windows, plenty of light, and completed the updated requests as promised. My mother was an 86 year old retired teacher who loved playing the piano and puzzles. They encouraged her to give concerts to the other residents which was wonderful. My mom was not the most social individual, but did make some wonderful friendships. My mother was the highest level of care due to medications and transfer assistance needs. Please note, no facility is perfect. However, this option is a great value and option for your loved ones for the following reasons: o Agreeable/Accommodating – Allowed me to completely furnish the room to my mother’s liking. It was beautiful as it was her new home. Also, accommodating with miscellaneous requests. Ex. My mother didn’t like to wake up to go to breakfast. They let her sleep in. ? Locks were changed and my mother’s locks were never updated/provided with an appropriate key to lock her door even though requested several times. With that said, nothing was ever stolen and she was sometimes gone for a couple of weeks due to hospitalizations. o Cleanliness – overall very clean. Sometimes the rooms themselves required a bit of tidying where cloths were not hung up and placed around the room. The sheets could have been washed more regularly. Otherwise, clean and visually pleasant o Care – The staff went above and beyond to care for my mom. They were friendly, kind, caring, and attentive. They truly cared about their patients and built personal relationships with my mother. A couple of them have been there for many years. Turnover is relatively high, however, the Director is careful to manage the quality of staffing to ensure excellent care is provided. The staff, with the exception of one, consistently went above and beyond providing quality care with integrity. Management does listen and respond to concerns and work to improve on challenges. The Director is a good leader and the Business Manager is phenomenal and both care for the residents above their regular duties. ? The response time frame to call bells could certainly be improved. There were several times when I was there, my mother and I pressed her call bell and it took 10-30 minutes for them to respond regardless of the time of day. Unfortunately, there were a couple of times nobody responded and I had to physically go get somebody. My mother truly needed transfer assistance and often became impatient and took herself to the restroom or to get her cloths resulting in a couple of falls. Keeping in mind that there were times my mother created the opinion that “they don’t come” and helped herself due to impatience. o Medication Disbursement – The med tech’s were well trained and the med supervisor communicated regarding regularly providing scheduled meds. Appropriate policies and procedures are in place and followed. ? Challenges with follow through when med changes were made due to routine doctor visits or hospital discharges. There were occasions I had to follow up with the “nursing coordinator” to learn the changes had not been administered. Reason given, “The discharge paperwork was excessive, and we overlooked the changes.” This was not acceptable and would have been overlooked had I not followed up. o Food Quality – My mother never complained, however, I did eat with her a couple of times. Food is often reused and repetitive, lacking creativity. The flavor was good. Other residents did share quality and choice of food concerns. Meals are served family style with a choice of water of tea. Overall, the food was adequate, however, the director is aware and diligently working on making improvements. o Activities – During my many visits, I observed quality music, games, celebrations, and appropriate and engaging activities for the residents. o Facility – The facility is clean, lovely, and updated. Each room has its own climate control. Cable is included in the monthly rent which is unusual. The do have leak issues sometimes, however, they repair as appropriate and necessary. This facility is a very good value. The atmosphere is one of happiness, quality care, friendliness, camaraderie, individuality, and pleasantness. The patients are very happy, and it shows. Overall, remember every facility is going to have its positives and negatives. The value here is excellent. Rent is a set price depending on the room and then the level of care costs are separate as in most facilities. Their pricing is incredibly fair for the care and facility provided. Cable is provided free of charge. Phones are at the patient’s expense. I was extremely satisfied with the quality of care, the facility, and the atmosphere of the clients here. Although there were some oversights, as long as you serve as an advocate, The Pines On Carmel is an excellent choice and I would highly recommend. Please note, if for any reason, I was not completely satisfied or I thought my mother’s care was inappropriate or unacceptable, I would have pulled her out in a New York minute. Even though I have been extremely open and honest with specifics, remember no place is perfect. I am more concerned with how feedback is handled than the absence of issues. If there aren’t any challenges, one should be more concerned.

[name removed] was only here 3 months before she passed away. I would tell others to keep in touch with the staff all the time so you know everything that is going on there.

The on-site staff at Laguna was very helpful and caring overall and they dealt with the issues and concerns I had quickly and efficiently. Laguna was our only experience in Assisted Living, so we can't compare it to any other facility. However, compared to skilled nursing and long term care, it's above and beyond!

It's been a very good fit for my parents. Friendly staff. Issues get resolved fairly quickly. Good value for price. Meals could have more variety. We would recommend this community to other families based on the experience we have had so far.

All my interaction have been positive.

I would recommend talking with them to see if they met their requirements. They also had the biggest available rooms when I was looking and my brother had a lot of stuff he wouldn't give up - they accommodated him.

I love this place! Being surrounded by nature is so lovely! The people are so kind and friendly and welcoming. They are very good for me. I downsized and planned my room before I came,; I have room for everything I need and momentos I love as well.

The staff is excellent. The community as a whole is friendly. A place I will consider when my time comes in a few years.

Building needs work, gutters are plugged up, siding is coming loose on outside of building. Doesn't get baths on time.

My loved one had money stolen from her room and the Director states they didn't see anything on the security camera which was right over mom's door. There were 2 other residents that had things as well. No compensation.

Lived here 9.5 years. Love it here.

Friendly and helpful staff. Special outings included with residents are activities. Other friendly and easy to get along with.

The facility and staff are willing to work with you and you just need not assume how things are, but ask specific questions for the correct answers. And they do a great job once the know your expectations and the reality of their capabilities. Room sizes and amenities are very good.

The staff at The Pines on Carmel Senior Living have been very friendly and helpful. The draw back is too much turnover. I'm not sure why. If it's treatment, pay or just not the right fit. The housekeeping is okay. It took awhile to get a schedule for cleaning and laundry set. You have to be proactive to get results. Overall, communication with the family is good. The move in process went very smooth, thank God. When my dad passed in November of 2023, I had to move mom into a single room. The staff was super accommodating. We are very happy with her new apartment. Unfortunately, the maintenance person left shortly after the move. No reason was given when asked. He was great. Still waiting for a permanent replacement. The meals are good. It is a nice variety. My mom has GIRT and they are working with us for meals. Again, you have to be proactive. Suggestion for improvement: They need to sit with corporate and figure out why the turnover of staff. If they had more consistency, there would be more structure and better care all around. They had a bus and driver to take residents to local doc appointments and stores, which was one of the things that originally helped make our decision. This only lasted a couple of months. No more driver or trips. I spoke with the Director and she said she was going to look into getting it back and running, but nothing in months. I guess I have to follow up. Thank God my wife takes my mom to her appointments. I don't think my mom could handle it if she didn't, but trips to the stores would be great. I would recommend the facility, but be prepared to be an active advocate for your loved one. It takes a few months to get things in place with the staff and payments. And then ... guess what... you still have to constantly keep on top of things. This is our second community (first in NY) before the move to NC. Same advice for both. Pray and communicate.

Most of the staff is friendly, but some really aren't. Perhaps a rating of a 4 is more appropriate. The physical therapy team is fantastic. Quality of care - I gave a rating of a 3 as they are sometimes late bringing meds, which is simply unacceptable. Some caregivers were rough with assisting with dressing and showering. The management team seems sincerely interested in improving which is a plus. Meals - food seems mediocre at best as I've heard comments from several residents. Appears to be served cold on a pretty regular basis. Simple things like ice, ketchup, and jelly not always available.

Great people with friendly staff, felt very welcomed. Xxxxxxxxxxxxxccccccccccccccccccccc. Cccvcvvvvvvvbbbbbbbnnnvbbnnnmmmmnnnnj is that [fee removed]? No! Bbnnnnnnnnnnnnnmmkmmmmmmmmmm hi bbnnnmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Forwood Manor turned out to be a good transition for my friend. There are minimal safety features, fall alert and some pull-chains and a dining room for meals. It doesn't have the level of intrusiveness that assisted living has. The apartment is generously sized and we were thrilled with the patio door leading to the outside for the dog, they are pet friendly. Everyone has been very nice, we've had a few maintenance issues that could have been addressed more quickly, but other than that a good fit so far.

I have a niece who comes in every other Saturday. She likes being able to visit with an overnight stay on an ongoing basis. She also likes the availability of meals and their modest cost.

Coventry Village is a nice place, beautifully appointed. The staff seemed to be over-worked. Sometimes it would take an hour for someone to come after the call button was pushed. My mother was not a demanding person at all. I was able to meet other residents and staff and everyone was very nice to me.