Crystal Pines Rehabilitation & Health Care Center

    335 Illinois St, Crystal Lake, IL, 60014
    4.0 · 65 reviews
    • Independent living
    • Assisted living
    • Skilled nursing
    AnonymousLoved one of resident
    2.0

    Caring staff, serious safety issues

    I have mixed feelings. I found genuinely caring, professional nurses, CNAs and therapists, a clean cozy facility with good rehab, activities and a warm, family atmosphere. But I also experienced rude/unresponsive staff, uncaring management, missing/stolen belongings, strong odors and hygiene lapses, safety concerns (bedsores, falls, poor handling), and spotty communication/records. Tour in person and ask hard questions - it can be excellent, but you must monitor closely.

    Pricing

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    Amenities

    Healthcare services

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

    Healthcare staffing

    • 24-hour call system
    • 24-hour supervision

    Meals and dining

    • Diabetes diet
    • Meal preparation and service
    • Special dietary restrictions

    Room

    • Cable
    • Fully furnished
    • Housekeeping and linen services
    • Kitchenettes
    • Telephone
    • Wifi

    Transportation

    • Transportation arrangement (medical)
    • Transportation to doctors appointments

    Common areas

    • Beauty salon
    • Dining room
    • Garden
    • Outdoor space

    Community services

    • Move-in coordination

    Activities

    • Community-sponsored activities
    • Scheduled daily activities

    3.98 · 65 reviews

    Overall rating

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

      4.0
    • Staff

      4.0
    • Meals

      3.1
    • Amenities

      3.9
    • Value

      4.0

    Pros

    • Extremely clean facility (many reports of spotless conditions)
    • Caring, attentive CNAs and nursing staff
    • Friendly and responsive staff overall
    • Outstanding therapy services (physical, occupational, speech)
    • Supportive social director and strong activities program
    • Varied meals and snack options; some report restaurant-style dining
    • In-house dialysis service (convenient for residents)
    • Patient advocate and patient-centered leadership praised
    • Short-term and long-term skilled care capabilities
    • Welcoming, family-like atmosphere with engaged residents
    • Respectful treatment, dignity, and compassionate care
    • Convenient visiting hours and pleasant outdoor spaces (courtyards, patios)
    • Efficient front desk and admissions team
    • Named staff frequently singled out as exceptional (e.g., Maria, Lisa, David, Jamie, Jim, Lori, Jennifer)
    • Clean and cozy rooms for many residents
    • Accessible amenities (cafe, bird feeders, therapy animals, music events)
    • Documented successful rehabilitation outcomes for many patients
    • Accepts Medicaid and provides competitive access for payers
    • Strong teamwork and positive workplace culture reported by some employees
    • Flexible dining options and memorable holiday meals

    Cons

    • Inconsistent food quality (cold meals, hit-or-miss taste)
    • Occasional strong urine or body odors reported in halls
    • Reports of neglectful care including bed sores, deep wounds, edema leakage
    • Allegations of theft or missing resident belongings
    • Instances of rude, inattentive, or uncaring staff
    • Poor communication and difficulty accessing medical records
    • Unsafe patient handling and fall incidents described
    • Serious accusations (forced discharge, readmission, alleged misconduct and death)
    • Conflicting reports about overall cleanliness (some describe disgusting conditions)
    • Small or outdated rooms and limited communal/gathering space
    • Maintenance issues (broken blinds/screens, holes in sheets, occasional bugs)
    • Occasional misrepresentation of therapy progress or premature discharges
    • Unorganized staff or staffing inconsistencies at times
    • Upper management criticized as uncaring or ineffective by some families
    • Allegations of abuse or drugging raised in a few reviews (serious concerns)

    Summary review

    Overall sentiment in the reviews for Crystal Pines Rehabilitation & Health Care Center is mixed but leans positive in several core domains: staffing compassion, therapy quality, cleanliness, and resident-focused activities. A large number of reviewers consistently praise the CNAs, nursing staff, and therapy teams (physical, occupational, and speech therapy), and many families report successful rehabilitation outcomes and improved patient independence. Multiple reviewers singled out specific employees (by name) for exceptional responsiveness, organization, and advocacy, and noted that the admissions and front-desk teams are efficient. The facility is frequently described as clean, cozy, and home-like, with pleasant outdoor areas (courtyards, back patio), a cafe, therapy animals, music events, and a social director who organizes a variety of activities that foster resident engagement and a family-like atmosphere. Practical advantages noted include in-house dialysis and the facility's willingness to accept Medicaid patients, which make care and therapy more convenient for many families.

    Care quality receives strong praise in many reviews: attentive CNAs, professional nursing, and a results-driven therapy team are recurring themes. Many families recommend Crystal Pines for both short-term rehab and longer-term skilled care. Several reviewers emphasize dignity, compassion, and attentiveness as hallmarks of the staff experience. There are numerous accounts of staff going above and beyond, helping families during the pandemic, and creating a warm holiday atmosphere. The presence of a patient advocate and vocal, supportive administrators are cited as strengths that contribute to patient-centered leadership.

    However, the reviews also include substantive and occasionally severe criticisms that create a mixed overall picture. Food quality is inconsistent across reviews—while some describe restaurant-style dining and memorable holiday meals, others report poor or cold meals. Odors are another recurring negative: several families reported strong urine or body odors in hallways or an occasional smell near changing areas, even while many other reviewers said the facility is immaculate. Physical environment critiques include small or outdated rooms, limited communal space for residents, and isolated maintenance problems such as broken blinds, torn sheets, or bugs mentioned by a minority of reviewers.

    More serious safety and quality concerns appear in a subset of reviews and merit attention. A few reviewers allege neglectful care (bed sores, deep wounds, edema leakage), unsafe patient handling or falls, and misrepresented therapy progress leading to premature discharge and readmission. There are also highly serious allegations from individual reviewers concerning forced discharge, alleged nurse misconduct, silenced monitors, and even a reported patient death; other reports assert possible abuse or drugging and severe unexplained weight loss. These accounts are not the majority but are significant because of their potential severity. Families also reported instances of theft of personal belongings and episodes of rude or inattentive behavior from some staff members. These negative experiences are often paired with comments that a few "bad seeds" can ruin an otherwise positive environment.

    Communication and management are additional mixed areas. Some reviewers praise the administration, patient advocate, and named leaders for being personable and effective. Others describe poor responsiveness, inaccessible medical records, unreturned calls, and leadership that seems uncaring or disorganized. Several comments note that processing admission paperwork or other administrative tasks can be slow or confusing. Staffing consistency was questioned in some reviews: while many families laud the teamwork and engaged staff, others experienced unorganized shifts, lack of oversight, or insufficient attention to safety protocols.

    Activities and social programming are consistently strong points: reviewers frequently mention a rich daily activity schedule, therapy animals, live music, parties, and outside entertainment, all of which contribute to resident happiness and social connection. Those positive social aspects are often cited as a primary reason families recommend touring the facility.

    In summary, Crystal Pines shows many strengths—particularly in hands-on caregiving, rehabilitative therapy, cleanliness (according to many reviewers), and social programming. These attributes make it attractive for families seeking skilled rehabilitation or a compassionate long-term environment. At the same time, there is a nontrivial minority of reviews that report serious safety, neglect, theft, or management failures. Because of the variability in reported experiences, prospective residents and families should tour the facility, meet specific staff people, ask about staffing levels, wound care protocols, incident reporting and resolution, and check state inspection and complaint histories. Documenting expectations in writing, confirming therapy goals and discharge criteria, and keeping communication lines open with named advocates or administrators can help mitigate the risk of the negative scenarios described by some reviewers.

    Location

    Map showing location of Crystal Pines Rehabilitation & Health Care Center

    About Crystal Pines Rehabilitation & Health Care Center

    Crystal Pines Rehabilitation & Health Care Center stands on Illinois Street in Crystal Lake as a skilled nursing facility where staff try to keep things clean and orderly, and you'll notice smiles and friendly greetings from the team when you walk in. The facility pays attention to small comforts, like giving residents access to Wi-Fi, cable TV, and laundry service right there so folks don't have to go far for what they need, and there's a social dining room where meals come from a menu like in a restaurant-residents can pick their meals, sides, and desserts, and if someone gets hungry between times, CNA staff check in and bring snacks around. The community has a beauty and barber shop, a coffee shop for visitors or residents to sit and talk, and a courtyard where people can spend time outdoors, and there's a regular fitness program if someone wants to keep active. There's a calendar in every room showing daily social activities, so folks always know what's going on-social directors even arrange special things like therapy animals and live music, and everyone gets encouraged to take part if they want to.

    Crystal Pines provides several levels of care, so some people come for rehabilitation after a hospital stay, while others need long-term help or hospice care, and there's on-site dialysis for those who need it. The therapy offered covers everything from cardiac rehab and joint replacement recovery to stroke rehab, speech and physical therapy, as well as occupational therapy, post-surgery rehab, and even respiratory care. Residents can get help with day-to-day things like bathing, dressing, grooming, and taking medicine, and the staff includes people who speak English and some who know other languages too. They pay attention to medical needs, no matter how simple or complex, and always respond quickly to questions or calls for help. Spiritual needs get attention through worship services, and laundry, transportation, outings, and a steady schedule of activities keep life interesting outside of therapy sessions.

    The environment inside feels neat, folks often see staff checking on residents, and there's plenty of entertainment to pass the time, either through planned events or just sitting in the courtyard or sipping coffee and chatting. Management from Tutera helps run things, and services can be paid for online, which is handy for families. Crystal Pines isn't taking new residents right now, but when space opens up, they'll share that information if someone calls, and they remain part of a larger senior living network that also offers independent living, assisted living, and memory care options close by so families looking for something specific might have something else to consider in the future.

    About Tutera Senior Living

    Crystal Pines Rehabilitation & Health Care Center is managed by Tutera Senior Living.

    Founded in 1985 and headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, Tutera Senior Living operates 39+ communities across multiple states. The company provides skilled nursing, assisted living, memory care, and home health/hospice services. Guided by their "INSPIRED BY YOU" philosophy and YOUNITE approach, Tutera emphasizes personalized care rooted in integrity and respect.

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