The reviews for Dwellside Care and Rehab managed by Autumn Lake Healthcare at Cherry Hill present a sharply divided picture, with a substantial number of families and former patients reporting excellent clinical and rehabilitative care while an equally notable set of reviewers report serious problems with staffing, safety, and basic daily care. The most consistent positive theme is the quality of individual caregivers and therapy teams. Numerous reviews single out CNAs, aides, therapists, and specific nurses and managers by name for compassionate, attentive, and skillful care. Many families praised the physical and occupational therapy teams for effective rehabilitation that led to regained independence and good outcomes. Reception and admissions experiences were often described as welcoming and organized, and many stays were noted as clean, well-kept, and free of odor. Activities, a warm dining room atmosphere, outings, and a theatre for movies earned positive mentions and contributed to a home-like feel for several residents.
However, these strengths sit alongside pervasive and recurring concerns that significantly impact safety and quality of life for other residents. Understaffing is the dominant negative pattern: many reviewers describe short-staffed second and third shifts, frequent use of agency or inexperienced staff, and large differences in care quality between day and night or between wings. This understaffing links directly to reports of ignored call lights, long delays for toileting and personal hygiene assistance, residents left sitting in urine, infrequent showers, and instances where families reported having to call 911. Several reviewers described missed or delayed medications, medication changes without family notification, and poor communication about clinical changes. These failures are not isolated and have been associated with more severe outcomes in some reports, including falls with refractures, sepsis, hospitalizations, and at least one near-death medical event claimed by a family.
Facility and operational concerns are repeatedly raised. Reviewers cite an aging, 30-plus-year building with outdated equipment, fabric bed pads, lack of bedside TV speakers, loose bedrails, and insufficient medical supplies. Cleanliness reports vary widely: many reviewers praise clean wings and rooms, yet a significant subset describe urine odor throughout the facility, urine-soaked bedding, dirty floors, and soiled wheelchair covers. Missing or stolen personal belongings and poor laundry accountability are frequently mentioned, with multiple accounts of items not returned or misplaced. Dining receives mixed feedback: while some families and residents enjoyed meals and a pleasant dining environment, others reported frozen, cold, or inedible food and a lack of fresh options.
Management and professionalism are another area of divergence. Several reviewers commend specific administrators and managers for responsiveness, hands-on support, and improvements after management changes. Conversely, other families report cold or unavailable administration, unhelpful front-desk staff, refusal to escalate concerns, and finger-pointing among staff. These management inconsistencies appear to correlate with the uneven experiences reported—where leadership is engaged some stays are positive and well-coordinated, and where leadership is absent or unresponsive serious care and safety lapses are more likely. There are also troubling reports of unprofessional staff behaviors, including yelling at residents, arguing in front of families, fraternizing at the nurses station, and dismissive attitudes when serious problems are raised.
Taken together, the reviews indicate that Dwellside Care and Rehab has pockets of very strong clinical and rehabilitative practice and many individual staff who deliver excellent, compassionate care. The facility can provide high-quality short-term rehab and has several effective therapy teams, attentive CNAs, and staff who 'go above and beyond.' However, the frequency and severity of negative reports—understaffing, ignored call lights, hygiene neglect, missing belongings, medication and communication errors, and safety incidents—are significant and recurring. These negative patterns suggest systemic staffing and operational challenges that can lead to dangerous outcomes for vulnerable residents. Prospective residents and families should weigh the facility's strong rehabilitation and praised staff against documented variability in care and the real safety risks reported by other families. If considering this facility, visitors should ask about current staffing levels (nights and weekends), how agency staff are vetted and supervised, fall prevention and alarm policies, protocols for medication changes and family notification, steps taken to secure personal belongings, and whether recent management changes have addressed the operational concerns cited in multiple reviews.
