Regal Heights Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center

    6525 Lancaster Pike, Hockessin, DE, 19707
    3.2 · 47 reviews
    • Assisted living
    • Memory care
    • Skilled nursing
    AnonymousLoved one of resident
    2.0

    Good therapy, poor care standards

    I came because the grounds, views and activities looked lovely and the therapy team and many nurses/aides were excellent and caring. Unfortunately my experience was mixed: laundry was lost, ruined or stolen, rooms sometimes smelled and cleanliness (ants/mice reported) was inconsistent. Personal care was neglected at times - days without showers, long waits for bathroom help, and disturbing reports of neglect/abuse and privacy breaches. Staff quality is wildly uneven: some compassionate, skilled caregivers; others rude, disrespectful and poorly supervised. Food and housekeeping were hit-or-miss. I would not recommend this facility unless they fix staffing, cleanliness, laundry and supervision problems.

    Pricing

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    Amenities

    Healthcare services

    • Activities of daily living assistance
    • Assistance with bathing
    • Assistance with dressing
    • Assistance with transfers
    • Medication management
    • Mental wellness program

    Healthcare staffing

    • 12-16 hour nursing
    • 24-hour call system
    • 24-hour supervision

    Meals and dining

    • Diabetes diet
    • Meal preparation and service
    • Restaurant-style dining
    • Special dietary restrictions

    Room

    • Air-conditioning
    • Cable
    • Fully furnished
    • Housekeeping and linen services
    • Kitchenettes
    • Private bathrooms
    • Telephone
    • Wifi

    Transportation

    • Community operated transportation
    • Transportation arrangement
    • Transportation arrangement (non-medical)

    Common areas

    • Beauty salon
    • Computer center
    • Dining room
    • Fitness room
    • Gaming room
    • Garden
    • Outdoor space
    • Small library
    • Wellness center

    Community services

    • Concierge services
    • Fitness programs
    • Move-in coordination

    Activities

    • Community-sponsored activities
    • Planned day trips
    • Resident-run activities
    • Scheduled daily activities

    3.19 · 47 reviews

    Overall rating

    1. 5
    2. 4
    3. 3
    4. 2
    5. 1
    • Care

      2.9
    • Staff

      2.7
    • Meals

      2.4
    • Amenities

      4.0
    • Value

      1.0

    Pros

    • Excellent rehabilitation therapies (physical, occupational, speech)
    • Compassionate, caring nurses and aides reported by many reviewers
    • Engaging activities and social programs (bingo, movie nights, church, crafts)
    • Attractive exterior, pleasant grounds, outdoor walk opportunities
    • Renovated, modern equipment and some state-of-the-art therapy tools
    • Rooms with amenities (ceiling TVs) and ability to personalize décor
    • Some staff communicate proactively and provide strong family updates
    • Hotel-like appearance and accommodating front-staff in positive reports
    • Accepts Medicaid / available for short-term rehab in some cases

    Cons

    • Severe staffing shortages and overworked aides
    • Frequent neglect: long wait times for bathroom assistance (40+ minutes)
    • Serious hygiene failures (residents left soiled, infrequent showers)
    • Allegations of abuse, mistreatment, rude or disrespectful bedside manner
    • Pest problems (ants in beds, reports of mice) and foul odors inside
    • Theft, missing or destroyed personal belongings and laundry issues
    • Inconsistent care quality between shifts/units—highly variable reports
    • Poor cleanliness and maintenance inside despite attractive exterior
    • Food issues: mis-served meals, diet not followed, concerns for diabetics
    • Safety incidents: falls, unsafe discharges, patients left unattended
    • Administrative problems: condescending or incompetent management
    • Confidentiality breaches, gossip, and unprofessional behavior by staff
    • Frequent closures or outbreaks due to sickness and infection concerns
    • Reports of medical mismanagement (misreporting, tube leaks, inadequate oversight)

    Summary review

    Overall impression: Reviews of Regal Heights Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center are strongly polarized, with a sizable number of detailed positive accounts describing excellent rehabilitation outcomes and compassionate staff, alongside numerous serious negative allegations about neglect, hygiene, theft, and poor management. The pattern in the reviews suggests the facility can and does deliver strong clinical therapy and moments of excellent hands-on care, yet there are recurring, credible-seeming reports of lapses that range from poor bedside manner to potentially dangerous neglect. Because of this split, prospective residents and families would see dramatically different experiences depending on timing, unit, and staff on duty.

    Care quality and clinical services: One of the most consistent positive themes is the strength of the rehab services. Multiple reviewers highlight outstanding physical, occupational, and speech therapy; daily PT/OT during stays; and notable clinical improvement after short-term rehab here. Several reviewers called therapy teams "fantastic," and credited the facility with helping recover mobility or function. Conversely, many comments describe acute failures in nursing and personal care: residents reportedly waited 40+ minutes for bathroom help, were left in soiled clothing or feces for hours, and sometimes declined after an "unsafe discharge." Some reviews describe serious medical oversights such as breathing difficulties, feeding-tube leaks, infections, and alleged misreporting of clinical status. This indicates that while therapy services can be excellent, routine nursing oversight and continuity of care are inconsistent.

    Staffing, behavior, and administration: Staffing adequacy and staff behavior are among the most frequently cited issues. Reviews describe aides as overworked and the facility as understaffed, particularly during certain shifts, which reviewers link to long response times and neglect. There is a split in perception of staff: many reviews praise "caring," "supportive," and "goes the extra mile" nurses and aides; other reviews accuse staff of being rude, condescending, or even abusive. Administrative and management critiques are common: reports of condescending or incompetent administrative staff, alleged encouragement to "ignore" distressed residents, and claims of poor HR handling and confidentiality breaches. These management-level complaints suggest systemic problems in oversight and culture rather than isolated personnel issues.

    Hygiene, cleanliness, and pests: A frequent negative cluster centers on cleanliness and infection control. Multiple reviewers reported foul interior smells despite a nice exterior, ants in beds, mice, urine on a dinner tray, and repeated statements that the facility is "unclean." There are multiple specific anecdotes such as hair not washed for weeks, residents going days without showers, and infections attributed to poor hygiene. At the same time, other reviewers described clean rooms and well-maintained spaces after renovations. This contrast reinforces a pattern of inconsistency—some units or periods are maintained well, others fall short dramatically.

    Safety, belongings, and incidents: Several reviews raise serious safety and trust concerns. Examples include residents left in hallways moaning for help, falls, alleged staff hitting patients, and reports of being told to ignore a distressed resident. Theft and mishandling of belongings is repeatedly mentioned: missing items (DVD player), clothes lost or ruined in laundry, and family property not returned. Laundry and linen problems (clothes washed together turning whites gray, denied laundry service) are common. These issues contribute to a perception of neglect and poor oversight that affects both resident dignity and family trust.

    Dining and medical diet management: Dining receives mixed reviews. Some families praise staff for adjusting meals to improve intake and note routine meal schedules and options. Other reviewers describe mis-served meals, a strict diet policy not being followed, and concerning handling of dietary needs for diabetics or kidney patients. There are isolated reports of urine on trays and poorly managed food service, indicating quality control problems in nutrition and meal delivery.

    Activities and environment: On the positive side, many reviewers appreciate the activities and social opportunities: bingo, movie nights, sing-alongs, craft programs, church services, and encouragement of outdoor walks. The facility's exterior, grounds, and renovated public areas are frequently described positively, and some residents felt the place had a country-house or hotel-like feel. Yet some residents described an institutional or prison-like atmosphere during periods of neglect or lockdown, especially when interaction and activities were limited.

    Patterns and variability: A central theme is inconsistency. Multiple reviewers explicitly contrast an excellent initial rehabilitation stay or particular staff members with later neglect or different treatment after being admitted long-term. Positive and negative experiences often coexist in the same review set: the therapy team and some nurses receive high praise while other staff or administrative practices draw severe criticism. This suggests that experiences vary widely by shift, unit, or staff composition, and that systemic management issues may allow intermittent but serious failings to persist.

    Notable allegations and risk areas: The most alarming recurring claims include prolonged waits for toileting assistance, residents left in soiled conditions, pest infestations, theft of personal items, confidentiality breaches and gossip, and allegations of staff misconduct or abuse. There are also reports of infection outbreaks and temporary closures due to illness, implying lapses in infection prevention. Several reviewers flagged unsafe discharges and possible medical misreporting, which are significant red flags for clinical governance.

    Conclusion: The review corpus paints a complex picture. Regal Heights has clear strengths in rehabilitation therapy, engaged activities, a pleasant exterior/grounds, and numerous individual staff members who provide compassionate, effective care. However, these strengths exist alongside numerous and serious complaints about understaffing, inconsistent nursing care, hygiene and pest problems, loss/theft of belongings, poor management practices, and safety incidents. The variability in reports suggests that outcomes are highly dependent on specific teams, shifts, or time periods. Families considering this facility should weigh the strong rehabilitation reputation and positive staff accounts against the recurring safety, dignity, and management concerns; prospective residents may benefit from targeted questions about staffing ratios, infection control practices, laundry procedures, and how the facility addresses reported incidents before making a placement decision.

    Location

    Map showing location of Regal Heights Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center

    About Regal Heights Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center

    Regal Heights Healthcare & Rehabilitation Center sits on a single story in Hockessin, Delaware, where people find both short-term and long-term nursing care with a focus on helping seniors recover and feel at ease, and there's this steady feeling of comfort with a team that pays attention all day and night, so you'll find nurses around 24 hours caring for residents in private or semi-private rooms that have flat-screen TVs and WiFi. The place welcomes pets, offers housekeeping and laundry, and includes beautician and barber services right on site, which many folks find helps them feel at home. Regal Heights has a big range of services-there's orthopedic care, wound care, memory care with special programs for those who need it, and speech, occupational, and physical therapy for recovery after hospital stays or injury, plus they provide hospice care and short-term respite stays for families who need a break or help after surgery. They make sure residents get daily snacks and nice dining, and there's a focus on real safety in the building, following CDC, CMS, and local health rules, using staff screenings, masks, and lots of cleaning so people can feel more secure. The staff tries hard to make everyone feel comfortable, keeping the setting friendly and nurturing, and they organize social, religious, and recreational activities, with beautiful outdoor spaces like a patio, rotunda, and big gardens where people can walk, sit, or visit with their loved ones. With 172 beds, Regal Heights is a skilled nursing facility and member of Nationwide Healthcare Services, and they work to maintain high standards, so folks needing specialized rehab, complex wound care, orthopedic rehab, or memory support can find dedicated staff and many resources to help them recover and connect with others.

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