Helia Healthcare of Salem

    1201 Hawthorn Rd, Salem, IL, 62881
    3.0 · 23 reviews
    • Assisted living
    • Memory care
    • Skilled nursing
    AnonymousLoved one of resident
    1.0

    Severe neglect, theft, poor management

    I would never recommend this facility. My loved one suffered severe neglect - infrequent showers, scabies, bedsores, dehydration/malnutrition, left wet for hours - and later ended up in the ICU; communication was poor and coordination from out of state was impossible. Rooms were freezing, food often cold/undercooked, clothes and money went missing, staff breached privacy and we had fraudulent charges. The building is attractive and a few caregivers were kind, but chronic understaffing, rude/dishonest management and unsafe care left me strongly warned against entrusting anyone here.

    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

    3.00 · 23 reviews

    Overall rating

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

      2.5
    • Staff

      2.6
    • Meals

      1.5
    • Amenities

      4.0
    • Value

      1.0

    Pros

    • Kind and compassionate staff reported by some reviewers
    • Knowledgeable and professional caregivers noted in positive reviews
    • Several reviewers described attentive and caring staff
    • Administrator/management improvements reported by some
    • Beautiful facility and attractive curb appeal
    • Amazing building noted by multiple reviewers
    • Some residents described as well taken care of / adequate care
    • Wi‑Fi access available
    • Professional, courteous managers mentioned
    • A few consistently good or dedicated workers

    Cons

    • Poor communication with families about care and medications
    • Prescriptions and care decisions provided without adequate information
    • Short‑staffing and insufficient CNA coverage
    • Nurses frequently on phones and distracted
    • Perceived poor or negligent clinical care (malnutrition, dehydration)
    • Serious medical harms reported (bedsores, infections, ICU stays, death)
    • Residents left wet or unbathed for long periods; infrequent showers
    • Under‑cooked, cold, or low‑quality food (including undercooked chicken)
    • Dirty or filthy facility conditions and poor hygiene
    • Missing resident belongings and reported missing money
    • Staff yelling, rude or dishonest behavior by some employees
    • Privacy breaches and unauthorized disclosure of personal information
    • Fraudulent credit card incident / identity theft risk
    • Unsafe care incidents (decannulation issues, scabies, infection risk)
    • Difficulty coordinating care from out of state
    • Multiple facility name changes causing confusion or distrust
    • Perception of a daycare‑like environment rather than skilled care
    • Cramped rooms and shared amenities (e.g., two residents sharing one TV)
    • Allegations of staff fabricating stories or using others' criminal records
    • Vaccine pressure or manipulative communication reported
    • Unsafe work conditions for staff
    • COVID‑related safety concerns
    • Inconsistent management and mixed reports of improvement
    • A few positive staff contrasted with widespread systemic issues
    • Strong warnings from multiple reviewers not to place loved ones there

    Summary review

    Overall sentiment in the reviews is highly polarized but leans toward serious concern. There are repeated, detailed allegations of neglect, poor clinical management, and safety breaches alongside a smaller but clear set of positive comments praising individual staff members and the physical appearance of the facility. The most frequently raised and severe issues include short‑staffing, poor communication with families, hygiene and infection problems, inadequate nutrition or food safety, and documented instances of medical harm such as bedsores, dehydration, infection, ICU transfers, and even death. Several reviewers explicitly advise others not to place loved ones at the facility, citing prolonged hospitalizations and life‑threatening events they attribute to the facility’s care lapses.

    Care quality and outcomes are central to the negative reports. Multiple summaries cite neglectful practices: residents reportedly left in bed all day, left wet for hours, rarely showered, suffering from scabies, skin breakdown (dry, cracked, bleeding), malnutrition, and dehydration. There are specific allegations of undercooked meals (including undercooked chicken) and general complaints that food is cold or inadequate. Several reviews describe serious downstream medical consequences—ICU stays, decannulation problems, and death—attributed by families to facility negligence. These are among the most alarming and consistent themes and reflect systemic clinical and supervisory failures in some reviewers’ experiences.

    Staff behavior and staffing levels are another major theme. Many reviewers report being short‑staffed with insufficient CNAs, nurses often distracted or on phones, and reports of staff yelling or being rude. Conversely, a subset of reviews strongly praise individual caregivers as kind, compassionate, knowledgeable, and attentive — indicating that quality of direct care may vary widely depending on staff on shift. Several reviewers note only a few good workers amid broader complaints. There are also allegations of dishonest or unprofessional conduct from some employees, including making up stories about residents, using others’ criminal records to smear people, and reports of missing resident clothing and money.

    Facility condition and management issues show a clear split: the building and curb appeal are repeatedly complimented—reviewers call it a beautiful or amazing facility—yet these positive impressions are contradicted by multiple accounts of filth, poor hygiene, and cramped rooms (including reports of two residents sharing one TV). Management and communication are inconsistent: some reviewers praise an improving administrator and responsive managers, while others describe poor communication, difficulty coordinating care from out of state, frequent name changes of the facility, and managers who are hesitant to meet requests. The combination of attractive physical premises with troubling operational and care deficits suggests surface improvements that may not reflect consistent underlying clinical and managerial quality.

    Safety, privacy, and trust concerns appear frequently and are serious. Several reviewers describe privacy breaches and unauthorized disclosure of personal information, with at least one report of fraudulent credit card activity tied to the facility—raising identity‑theft risk. Others report vaccine pressure tactics and unsafe workplace conditions for staff. COVID‑related safety concerns are also mentioned. These issues compound the clinical and interpersonal complaints and contribute to a lack of trust among many reviewers.

    In summary, the reviews present a mixed but troubling portrait. Positive comments focus mainly on the building’s appearance and certain compassionate, professional staff members; these are real strengths but appear uneven. The negative reports are numerous and substantial, describing systemic staffing shortages, lapses in basic hygiene and nutrition, communication failures with families, safety and privacy breaches, and documented medical harms. The pattern suggests significant variability in resident experience: some families are satisfied and note improvements, while many others report severe neglect and harm. Anyone considering this facility should weigh the potential for attentive individual caregivers and a pleasant environment against repeated reports of neglect, clinical failures, safety risks, and management inconsistency, and should seek detailed, up‑to‑date evidence of staffing, incident histories, and regulatory records before making placement decisions.

    Location

    Map showing location of Helia Healthcare of Salem

    About Helia Healthcare of Salem

    Helia Healthcare of Salem sits at 1201 Hawthorn Road in Salem, Illinois, and is a 120-bed Medicare and Medicaid certified skilled nursing facility, and it's been serving the community for years, with its private ownership and strong focus on helping people who need long-term care, rehabilitation, memory care, or specialized support after surgery or for chronic illness, and you'll see that there's 24-hour nursing care, personalized care plans, and a full mental wellness program. The nurses here are licensed and work as a team, handling medication, bathing, dressing, transfers, and other daily living needs, with a call system in every room and around-the-clock supervision, so you get help when you need it, whether it's night or day, and if someone's managing health conditions or needs emotional support, there are plans and staff for that too. The place keeps up with the times, with recent renovations and state-of-the-art equipment, and every room comes fully furnished, has its own private bathroom, air conditioning, and climate controls, plus cable, telephone, WiFi, and kitchenettes, so it feels comfortable and modern, and families can visit and eat together with private dining for special events.

    The dining room does buffet-style and restaurant-style meals, (with special diets if needed), and staff handle the food so no one has to fuss, and there's always help with meal prep. Residents take part in activities in the fitness room, gaming room, a small library, community rooms, and a beauty salon, or enjoy the garden, patios, aviary, and landscaped outdoor spaces, where there's room to walk or visit. The facility runs outings, intergenerational programs, church services, guest meals, and recreational events, giving people things to do and reasons to get together, and there are councils for both residents and families if anyone wants to share their thoughts or ideas. The community provides transportation for things that aren't medical appointments, and there's a computer center and online platform run by findhelp, making it simple to find and claim social care programs, get support, and find information about other services. Skilled therapy services help folks recovering from injury or illness, and there's a focus on active rehabilitation, using up-to-date techniques and modern tools. Memory care services and Wanderguard safety systems help residents who need more support. Staff meet emotional, social, and spiritual needs, with pastoral care and mental health programs, along with beauty and barber services, housekeeping, linen service, maintenance, and all the basics taken care of like cleaning and laundry.

    The center takes Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, and private payment, with admissions open 24/7, and the centrally located nurses' station, door alarm safety systems, and safety monitoring make it a supervised environment. Helia Healthcare of Salem belongs to the Illinois Healthcare Association, so it keeps up with state requirements, and there's always licensed nursing staff to support personal, physical, and emotional needs, whether someone is staying for rehab or lives there long-term.

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