Sandhills Care Center

    143 S Fullerton St, Ainsworth, NE, 69210
    4.0 · 6 reviews
    • Assisted living
    • Memory care
    • Skilled nursing
    AnonymousCurrent/former resident
    4.0

    Positive overall, staff misconduct concern

    I'm very happy overall - the facility is professional, welcoming, respectful of religious beliefs, well organized with lots of activities, books, magazines and puzzles, and nursing care was good; the move-in process was easy and the staff were friendly and helpful. My only serious concern: I witnessed despicable remarks by an employee about a deceased child and the child's mother and experienced some poor nursing behavior, which management needs to address.

    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

    • 24-hour call system
    • 24-hour supervision

    Meals and dining

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

    Room

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

    Common areas

    • Beauty salon
    • Dining room
    • Garden
    • Outdoor space
    • Small library

    Community services

    • Move-in coordination

    Activities

    • Community-sponsored activities
    • Resident-run activities
    • Scheduled daily activities

    4.00 · 6 reviews

    Overall rating

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

      5.0
    • Staff

      3.7
    • Meals

      4.0
    • Amenities

      4.0
    • Value

      4.0

    Pros

    • friendly, upbeat and helpful staff
    • professional staff respectful of residents' religious beliefs
    • nursing care provided and described as great by some reviewers
    • welcoming care center atmosphere
    • easy, smooth move-in process
    • organized, structured environment
    • lots of activities available
    • access to books, magazines, and puzzles
    • family members express gratitude and happiness
    • suitable environment for an elderly relative (e.g., grandmother)

    Cons

    • reports of negative staff behavior
    • allegations of immoral or unprofessional employee conduct
    • extremely offensive remarks about a deceased child and family
    • accounts of poor nursing staff or substandard clinical care
    • inconsistent staff professionalism across reviews
    • serious isolated incidents raising concerns about management oversight

    Summary review

    The reviews for Sandhills Care Center reveal a mixed but clear pattern of mostly positive operational and resident-life features combined with serious, isolated allegations of unacceptable staff conduct. Multiple reviewers emphasize that the facility offers a warm, welcoming environment with staff members who are upbeat, friendly, and helpful. Several comments specifically praise the ease of the move-in process and express general satisfaction with care, describing it as great and stating family members are very happy and grateful. The center is also noted for being organized and structured, which some families found well-suited for their elderly relatives.

    Activities and daily-life amenities are a notable strength. Reviews mention a variety of activities, plus access to books, magazines, and puzzles, indicating an engaging environment that supports residents’ cognitive and recreational needs. The combination of a structured schedule and available activities suggests the facility provides regular programming that families appreciate. Additionally, multiple reviewers indicate the staff are professional and respectful of religious beliefs, which points to a capacity for person-centered care in some interactions.

    However, these positive themes are counterbalanced by alarming negative reports about staff behavior. One or more reviewers allege immoral or despicable remarks made by an employee concerning a deceased child and that child’s mother. Such statements, if accurate, are deeply troubling and go beyond typical criticism of service quality — they represent potential ethical and conduct violations that would be expected to trigger immediate managerial investigation. Alongside that, there are mentions of poor nursing staff or substandard nursing care in some reviews, suggesting inconsistencies in clinical quality or staff training. The juxtaposition of reviewers praising nursing and others calling it poor indicates variability in care experience that prospective residents and families should be aware of.

    Taken together, the review corpus paints a picture of a facility with many operational strengths—smooth admissions, welcoming atmosphere, engaging activities, and staff who can be professional and respectful—but also with significant concerns about staff conduct and inconsistent nursing quality. The negative incidents appear to be less frequent than the positive comments but are severe in nature and notable for their emotional impact on families. That pattern suggests the facility may generally function well but has lapses in staff behavior and oversight that require attention.

    For families evaluating Sandhills Care Center, the key takeaway is that many residents and relatives report satisfaction with daily life and aspects of care, yet there are serious red flags regarding employee behavior and occasional nursing shortcomings. Prospective residents should tour the facility, ask specifically about staff training, supervision, and complaint-resolution procedures, and inquire whether management has addressed any reported incidents. Management should be encouraged to investigate any allegations of unethical remarks or poor clinical care, to strengthen staff training and supervision, and to communicate transparently with families about corrective actions to ensure consistent, respectful, and safe care for all residents.

    Location

    Map showing location of Sandhills Care Center

    About Sandhills Care Center

    Sandhills Care Center sits on North Fullerton Street in Ainsworth, Nebraska, and you'll find the place focuses on personal care for older adults, offering both short-term and long-term skilled nursing care for about 31 residents daily, although they've got 46 certified beds, so there's room if needed. The place has basic things like physical therapy, occupational therapy, and speech therapy, and the staff can help folks with dementia or Alzheimer's, which is a big relief for families who worry about wandering or confusion that can come with those illnesses. There's help for daily needs, medication management, and end-of-life support, plus rehabilitation services and hospice care, so families who are looking for complete care for their loved ones can find most needs met in one location, and the around-the-clock nursing care means there's someone here to check in no matter the time of day. Sandhills has been community-owned through the Ainsworth Brown County Care Center and operates as a nonprofit, so you don't see the big-company flash or pressure to fill beds, and they talk a lot about keeping a home-like feel and sticking close to their mission of compassion, even as they aim to help folks through the tough parts of life's transitions.

    The March 2024 inspection report found several issues, with 24 deficiencies showing up, including five in infection control and others in pharmacy services, infection prevention, and food handling-the inspectors didn't find any severe harm, but they pointed out things that could have led to problems if they weren't addressed. The nurse turnover rate is pretty high at 50 percent, which sometimes makes it harder to keep familiar faces at bedsides, though the number of hands-on nursing hours, about 3.7 per resident each day, is above average for this type of facility. There's both a resident council and a family council, so folks living at Sandhills and their loved ones can bring up concerns or suggest changes directly, helping the staff stay in tune with what residents want day to day. Medicare and Medicaid are accepted, and they don't offer continuing care or retirement community setups, but they do try to fit care to each elderly person's needs, from wellness support to transportation and nutritional advice. Activities fill the calendar, aiming to keep folks connected with hobbies or each other, and volunteers are welcome to help spend time so isolation doesn't set in. While Sandhills received some recognition in 2021 as a top nursing home in Nebraska, its overall current CMS star rating stands at two out of four, and its A-minus inspection grade means there's room for improvement, but regular health score checks aim to keep care on track. The building has open spaces for walking or relaxing and tries to stay bright and comfortable without being too fancy, because their focus is really on steady care, safety, and community for seniors and their families.

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