Hickory Pointe Care & Rehab Center sits at 700 Cherokee Street in Oskaloosa, Kansas, and has 60 beds approved for Medicare and Medicaid. The center is a for-profit, corporation-owned skilled nursing home that focuses on both long-term and short-term care, and takes in folks who need help after a hospital stay, illness, or surgery. Residents get 12-16 hours of nursing care every day, with a 24-hour call system and constant supervision, and the place lists 4.35 nurse hours per resident per day, which shows they really do keep staff around. There's basic help for daily tasks, so staff assist with bathing, dressing, eating, medicine, and moving around, and there's also mental wellness programs and memory care for folks with Alzheimer's or dementia, but those specialized services might cost more for people over 65.
Inside the building, folks get their own private bathrooms and fully furnished rooms with kitchenettes, cable TV, phones, air conditioning, and Wi-Fi. Meals come from a restaurant-style dining room, served by skilled chefs who can prepare diets for allergies or diabetes, and residents generally get 1 or 2 prepared meals a day. Social features stand out, too, with communal spaces like a dining room, fitness room, arts and game rooms, small library, computer center, and beauty salon, as well as outdoor spaces and garden areas. Residents can take part in scheduled daily activities, community-sponsored events, day trips, music and arts programs, and even run some activities themselves, so folks get chances to stay busy or build a friendly network. There's transportation and non-medical ride arrangements, parking for those who need it, and laundry, housekeeping, dry cleaning, and move-in help comes included or for an extra charge.
Medical care stays on hand for emergencies and everyday needs, and the center accepts both Medicare and Medicaid, with a focus on both general and specialized care. Hickory Pointe has handled 7 facility incidents and paid total fines of $29,803, and inspection grades have ranged from B-plus and B-minus to lower scores, depending on the year. Staff rating is a 4 out of 5, but the quality rating is 2 out of 5, and health rating is 1 out of 5 based on audits, for a 2 out of 5 overall score from Medicaid and Medicare reviews, which puts the facility at rank 268 out of 334 in Kansas and middle to lower in other local rankings. Residents and families have councils where they can voice concerns to help improve the center. Sprinkler systems add a layer of safety in case of emergencies. The center sits in a zip code with about 4,000 people, so the area isn't crowded, but it's close enough to everything local. Hickory Pointe's got a supportive, social setting, skilled rehab services, and enough meals and amenities to keep daily life comfortable, even if the clinical scores and inspection reports haven't always been the strongest.
