Overall impression: Reviews for Briarfield Manor are highly mixed and show a sharp divide between very positive experiences (especially with certain aides, therapists, and some nurses) and serious, recurring complaints about neglect, safety, and management. Multiple reviewers praise specific frontline caregivers and therapy staff for compassionate, effective hands-on care, while many others report alarming failures that indicate systemic issues in nursing oversight, staffing levels, and accountability.
Care quality and safety: A dominant theme in the negative reviews is unsafe or neglectful clinical care. Several reviewers allege life-threatening lapses (for example, withheld insulin), prolonged exposure to soiled briefs, residents left in feces or urine, missed medications, bed sores, and patients waiting hours after falls or calls for help. There are also reports that only LPNs and STNAs were on duty at times with no RN coverage, which families saw as a serious deficiency. These accounts suggest inconsistent clinical oversight and frequent lapses in basic hygiene, wound care, medication administration, and fall response — all critical quality and safety concerns. At the same time, some families report “excellent” nursing care and effective pain/rehab management, highlighting large variability in outcomes depending on the staff on duty.
Staffing, responsiveness, and culture: Understaffing is repeatedly cited as a root cause. Reviewers describe slow call-button responses (one explicit time given was about 40 minutes), staff sleeping or absent from nursing stations, and delayed delivery of water, blankets, and medications. Several comments frame the problem as overworked staff who deserve support, while other comments describe staff as rude, berating residents, or unprofessional. There are positive mentions of hardworking caregivers and a few named employees (Maria/Marie, Ryan, Gerald) who deliver compassionate, attentive care, but these seem to coexist with frequent reports of staff misconduct, stolen belongings, and disrespectful interactions. Families also describe management that is at times uncommunicative, defensive, or slow to take accountability — with at least one report of family members being banned from visiting and police becoming involved.
Therapy and rehabilitation: Physical and occupational therapy receive consistently strong praise from many reviewers; PT/OT staff are called outstanding in several accounts and the facility is recommended for post-surgical rehab (hip/knee/stroke) by multiple families. However, there are complaints that therapy scheduling can be problematic (including very early sessions around 5 a.m.), and some reviewers describe primitive or inconsistent therapy approaches. Overall, rehab services are a relative strength but are not uniformly experienced.
Facilities, maintenance, and environment: The building is described as dated by several reviewers. Maintenance is sometimes adequate — a few reviewers note it was “not bad” — but many complaints detail environmental and equipment problems: broken or loose toilets, a broken toilet pull string, outlets and charging points not working for days, heaters turned off by staff, and other small safety hazards. Security concerns were mentioned, including doors reportedly not locked after 8 p.m., which raises questions about resident protection and facility procedure adherence.
Dining, supplies, and logistics: Food quality is another polarizing area: older reviews or some reviewers recall good meals, while multiple recent comments say portions are small and food is “disgusting,” with concerns about poor nutrition. Reports also describe missing ordered medical supplies (for example, compression hose not provided despite physician orders), lack of outpatient services, delays or errors in reimbursement for clothing or laundry losses, and alleged financial exploitation (charges for replaced clothing and slow or absent refunds). There are multiple reports of lost laundry, thrown-away razor heads, and clothing replacement fees ($272 mentioned), which contribute to families’ distrust.
Management, accountability, and patterns: A recurring complaint is inconsistent or ineffective management response. Some reviews describe swift corrective action by ownership or a responsive social worker (Kevin) in isolated cases; others cite bans on family visitation, lack of follow-up from nursing leadership, and an apparent absence of accountability when serious incidents occur. The overall pattern suggests pockets of very good care (notably among some aides and therapy staff) but systemic issues with staffing levels, training, supervision, and administrative follow-through that allow serious lapses to recur.
Bottom line and recommendations: Reviews indicate Briarfield Manor can deliver excellent rehab therapy and has several compassionate caregivers who make a real difference, but it also shows recurring, serious risks around neglect, medication management, theft/laundry issues, and inconsistent staffing. Prospective families should conduct an in-person, detailed tour; ask about RN coverage, staffing ratios by shift, and protocols for call-button response, medication administration, wound care, fall response, and infection control. Ask for specifics on incident reporting, family communication, security procedures, laundry/theft policies, and how management addresses complaints. Current families concerned about safety or neglect should document incidents in writing, escalate to facility leadership and corporate owners, and consider contacting the state long-term care ombudsman or licensing authority for investigation if problems are unresolved. The facility may be appropriate for some post-surgical rehab patients under close oversight, but multiple reviews raise red flags that warrant cautious, thorough vetting before placement.
