Overall sentiment: The reviews present a predominantly positive view of Notre Dame Health and Rehabilitation Center from many residents and families, with repeated praise for compassionate caregiving, strong clinical staff, and an accommodating environment. Multiple reviewers highlight that staff — from nursing and therapy to housekeeping and recreation — go above and beyond, that leadership maintains an open-door approach, and that the facility provides meaningful supports such as an in-house chapel, religious involvement, and pet-friendly policies. Several people explicitly state they would return for future recovery and describe the facility as a safe, comfortable place for rehabilitation.
Care quality and staff: The strongest and most consistent theme across the summaries is the quality of direct care. Numerous reviewers call staff caring, compassionate, attentive, and professional. Specific clinical praise includes a dedicated Director of Nursing, tireless nurses, empathetic doctors who engage residents, and proactive NP/MD coverage. Therapy teams (PT/OT) and recreation staff are described as engaged and helpful for recovery, with bi-weekly progress updates and clear feedback appreciated by families. Several reviews single out staff members who made families feel supported during difficult transitions, and staff morale is described positively in comments like "beautiful place to work."
Facilities, cleanliness, and amenities: Many reviewers report a clean, tidy facility with responsive housekeeping and laundry, and they compliment the food and the availability of a dietitian. The center is described as basic or no-frills rather than upscale—functional and comfortable rather than new or luxurious. Notable amenities often cited include an in-house chapel, regular activities, pet-friendly policies, and thoughtful roommate matching. However, this area also shows clear disagreement among reviewers: while multiple comments praise sparkling cleanliness, at least one review alleges severely unsanitary conditions (smells of feces and urine, filthy windows). This conflict suggests experiences are variable and cleanliness may depend on unit, timing, or specific circumstances.
Management, communication, and administrative processes: Many reviewers praise transparent, open-door leadership and good communication (including routine progress reports). At the same time, there are several serious administrative criticisms. Some families reported admission hiccups and process problems. A small but significant set of reviews describe poor handling of complaints, legal threats from management, and a named director (Marjorie Simpson) described as rude or unprofessional. Communication impressions are mixed: while several families lauded bi-weekly updates and responsiveness, others reported poor or unhelpful communication from staff or leadership.
Safety and serious concerns: While the majority of comments emphasize compassionate care, a few reviews raise serious safety and ethical concerns. One report alleges an orderly physically assaulted a resident (slapped him in the face) and states management responded with legal threats when the family complained. Another review alleges staff refused to call an ambulance during an emergency, claimed the situation was not an emergency, and prioritized financial/transfer decisions over timely care; that reviewer reported the resident was transferred elsewhere. These allegations are severe and represent red flags that prospective families should investigate further with the facility.
Patterns and recommendations for prospective families: The dominant pattern is that Notre Dame Health and Rehabilitation Center provides strong hands-on care, supportive therapy, meaningful activities, and spiritual supports for many residents, often delivered by a compassionate and dedicated staff. However, there are clear, recurring areas of concern: variability in cleanliness reports, occasional administrative friction or poor complaint handling, and a small number of alarming safety/medical response allegations. Given the mix of high praise and some serious negative reports, prospective residents and families would be prudent to verify current conditions in person, ask for references from recent families, inquire directly about emergency response protocols, staffing ratios, complaint resolution procedures, and unit-specific cleanliness practices. When possible, tour the specific unit and speak with nursing leadership to reconcile the generally positive clinical reputation with the isolated but serious negative incidents reported.
