Everyone at Compassus Irondale made our momma's last days warm and peaceful and beautiful. From the…read morenursing staff to the doctors to the support staff, we were made to feel like family. Our loved ones were welcomed and cared for with the same tenderness that was offered to our mom. Beautiful home-like facility; beautiful professional and compassionate people. Thank you for everything.

I am a cancer nurse with experience in treating dying patients' symptoms and providing emotional…read moresupport for family and friends of patient. After a 3 week heart failure, I realized my 92 y/o mother in law needed inpatient hospice care ASAP. I turned to Compassus unit located on the campus of St Martin in the Pines in Bham. The receptionist was attentive, but what she needed was competent medical care from the attending physician and RNs. She received neither. I watched her die for 3 agonizing days, gasping for breath as her lungs filled with more and more fluid. I knew the medicines she needed to ease her anxiety (and our familiy's suffering) but the RNs and MD seemed oblivious to my suggestions . They either ignored her symptoms, or gave medicines way past the time they were needed . The MD visited once a day and smiled but did little to give effective medical help. I got the impression that they did not know the basics of hospice care. About 12 hrs before her death, her son called out for a nurse to ease her breathing and was told that the RNs were all in report and could not be disturbed. The patient was left abandoned for 30 minutes while her son watched her agony. Very disappointing and saddening. I would never go to Compassus expecting help for an actively dying patient at this facility.

My mother was on hospice with this company while in the nursing home across the street. Carolina,…read morethe hospice nurse, was absolutely wonderful. She called often to let me know how mother was doing, and included specific things mother had said, what she'd eaten, when she was in a good mood, along with the not-so-good days. It meant so much to be kept informed and know mother was getting frequent attention. They were great in every way and earned my highest recommendation. Thank you, Carolina, for making a hard time smoother because of your caring and your skill.

I would rate gentiva lower than 1 if I could, the care that was given to my loved one during their…read morelast 3 days of life was deplorable, absolutely no pain relief, very little anxiety meds, not til the last 2 hrs were there anything given for anxiety, this happened in Marshall Co. In Alabama

We used Kindred, first then twice after they changed to Gentiva. Every time they made it so easy…read more They were very caring to all three family members. Extremely passionate with the whole family. Another hospice was called for the last patient we waited several days. We never heard from them. I called Gentiva and they were at my dad's door in a matter of hours. Highly recommend. Not only did they care for the patient they showed how much they cared for our family. If I ever need hospice again I will call Gentiva hospice first.

I have utilized this company for my grandfather (both Home Health and Hospice) as well as for my…read moreGranny. The care was beautiful, considerate, and caring. This is why I do what I do- I love helping educate and assist patients and families in what is one of the most difficult times in their lives and make it better by providing resources, making sure equipment is set up in the home, and coordinating their care. This is the most intimate level of care, and it is such a gift to be able to now work at Kindred Hospice and help others in a time that I can completely relate to.

I want to thank Kindred Hospice for every thing the staff did for my mother. I would especially…read morelike to thank Ms Lori Lundy and Ms Sherry Wilson for taking such excellent care of her. Richard G

Rick Stewart and his hospice team have a rare passion and dedication for hospice work. They went…read moreway, way beyond the call for my mom and me.

Let me start with the good - the nurses were very nice and helped out efficiently with medications…read more They didn't stay long, were in and out, but really only seemed to track vitals - so that was ok. We mentioned many times that we need the most help in general care, bathing and transfers. We were told that aids only come in the mornings, no nights or weekends. We had to hire a private duty aid to help the other hours. The Expectcare aids rarely came when they said they would (i.e. saying they were coming in the morning and not coming until mid afternoon), and sometimes wouldn't even show. Oftentimes we would do the care ourselves because we could never count on them coming out. Each aid visit would often require multiple calls to the office until someone came. We never knew if they were coming or not. Also, there were no support services. The Chaplain and SW (both very nice) came for an initial visit but then never reached back out. A different chaplain contacted us over a week after our loved one had passed ~ no other contacts. When we expressed these concerns we were told that it was difficult to find people to work. I understand that, but as someone who has experienced wonderful hospice companies with other family members it was frustrating to not get the level of care that I know is possible. If staffing is a problem then the company shouldn't accept more cases until they can be adequately staffed.

Being the primary caretaker for my mother over the last ten years, Hospice of West Alabama has been…read morea godsend! After home health options had run out because my mother's insurance wouldn't provide any more services because my mother health could not improve, we didn't know where to turn. The home health agency we were using informed us about hospice care. I had no idea hospice care could be utilized by an individual that wasn't on their "death bed". Yes, you have to have a terminal health issue to qualify for services, but the services can last for as long as you need them. My mother can't do much on her own, but she is not in need of total 24 hour care...yet. Hospice of West Alabama services: 1.) Two registered nurse visits/week. 2.) Two bed baths by an aide/week-BERNICE is awesome! 3.) One light house cleaning/week-change sheets, clean kitchen, bathroom, living area, take out trash 4.) Pay for all meds related to their diagnosis-also, Tylenol, Tylenol PM, nose spray 5.) Provide supplies-diapers, pads for diapers, pads that go on bed and chair, Boost, egg-crate foam mattress, cream for bedsore prevention 6.) Social worker visit every few weeks. 7.) They have a volunteer who will come out and cut hair. 8.) A nurse is on call 24 hours. 9.) No more doctor's visits!! 10.) They provide oxygen machine and tubing and supplies. 11.) They also have short term in patient care and also "respite care" for when the caregiver can't be there. 12.) Chaplain visits All of the caregivers at Hospice of West Alabama are very supportive and strive to give the best possible individualized care. My mother loves all of the care she receives from them!

Have been seeing XXXX for past year and I didn't really think it was needed but Dr. recommended so…read morewe did. What a blessing that proved to be. No need to see physicians-they handled everything. A medical resource 24 hours a day. As he became more disabled, they bathed-cut nails- shaved everything I could need done, Led me through the death and dying process so I really understood and accepted. Made the end of life as painless as possible without needing institutional care so easy on family and friends. Such support at time of death (this morning). Felt really loved and cared for and process so easy-one call, no need for all the personnel that might come at this time-one very caring RN and then it was complete

When you Google Hospice Affinity Hospice comes up not because they' hey Google big bucks to have…read moretheir name come up first . Aaffinity Hospice is owned by an equity company. Affinity Hospice sees vulnerable hospice patients as money makers. Affinity is not a traditional hospice, providing the hospice care by the original hospice philosophy.. Affinity is the first Hospice I've ever worked for that did not celebrate our honor the death of the patients. the equity company sees the vulnerable Hospice population as a big moneymaker and push admissions like assembly and the patients that are on service are not the priority. they equity company spends big bucks on liaisons lunches for skilled nursing facilities and aggressive recruitment of hospice patients especially when they're in the 11th hour. the equity company has big money for marketing and advertisement that the traditional Hospice who's putting patient centered care first like Connecticut hospice in Branford are not getting the attention that they should because they're not profiting the way and equity company is and they're not able to put themselves out there and advertise the equity company that owns Affinity Hospice It's a very sad day when an equity company sees dying hospice patients as a quick buck. They're actually making millions off of Hospice patients.. but sadly, the patients are not going to get the traditional hospice care that they should. And Affinity cannot keep staff because they do not value staff or just means to their end and it's a revolving door of nurses home health aids, etc.. If you need hospice, see a traditional hospice they may be a bit harder to find, but ask around it will be much better experience.

I cared for a client for 4 yrs and dealt with affinity for 2 of them. and the only reason they got…read more2 stars bc we, as the family and me as a caregiver, had 1 amazing nurse, few others were nice and cared, and some of the pca were amazing!!! but too many of the nurses didnt give a shit about anything but getting in and out and on to the next client. after our fav nurse had gotten promoted, shit went down hill!! and it went fast!!! and at the end the daughter was so disrespected and not cared for by the nurse, or the company untill she went to management, she had her care team that helped her but hospice is for family and patient, not the case here!!! after we lost our loved one, the hospice nurse that came did a great job. but the bad definitely out did the good sadly!!!

If you hate your parents this is the place to send them, unfortunately I love my dad and this place…read moreleft me with PTSD and I am currently undergoing therapy as a result of the way the staff treated me and my father. The emotional abuse and negligence the staff inflicted upon us was unconscionable and this was the most unprofessional medical environment I've ever encountered. This is a paraphrased version of the complaint I have sent to the relevant state department in charge of overseeing nursing homes. My dad spent three short days at South Haven in hospice care and the negligence and unprofessional conduct by the staff worsened the already traumatic experience of losing a father. I will try to document as much as possible. The bed they gave him was broken and he couldn't sit up. He kept on asking me to help him set up. I asked five times for a working bed because all he wanted to do was sit up. This went on for two days. He finally a working bed two hours before he died and by then he was so far gone that he couldn't appreciate it. He was transferred without any medication and spent the first day in pain and suffering without any relief the first day.  My Dad held a phD in Pharmacy and has worked at both major pharmaceutical companies and top research universities in the US. He kept on requesting the staff for specific meds to deal with his ailments, and I explained to them his medical background and what he was trying to communicate (he had difficulty communicating due to his stroke) and they ignored him and didn't document anything or report it back to the physician.  I could tell this upset him deeply as they weren't respecting his medical wishes or even giving him the time of day. My father stripped off his hospital robes because they were nasty and uncomfortable.  The nurses advised me that I get him more comfortable clothing, so I did.  They then ignored my requests to change him and left him in bed for three hours in a diaper convulsing in pain and misery unmedicated, and with no air conditioning to provide any relief. He was left like this for over three hours as I begged staff to dress him so he could have some dignity in his final moments.  They just kept telling me someone will be there in ten minutes for three hours. Other staff said that his wing was not their responsibility, as they were too busy gossiping and slacking off to help. The staff said they'd clip his toenails and then didn't. I should have documented those, they were disgusting.  They kept saying they would for days, but he died with filthy, overgrown toenails. At one point my Dad was obviously distressed and suffering and began shouting and calling for help.  I asked a nurse in the hallway to check on him and the nurse replied, and I quote verbatim, "I will f***ing check on him when it's f***ing time to check on him" and walked past me.  At this point I'm distraught and in tears and they could have cared less. The lack of empathy among the staff continued throughout the entire stay. My Dad's roommate was watching Fox News and True Crime documentaries that were causing him distress.  I played George Gershwin music to calm him down and his roommate called to complain and the staff had the gall to tell me to stop playing music.  So, my Dad is crying and hallucinating, I'm doing my best to soothe him in his last moments and in the background the television is saying sick depraved stuff like "and then they found her bloody underwear in the trunk" It was cold and inhumane of the staff to make that demand of me and I'm pretty sure it goes against the policies of the home to allow one roommate to watch TV while the other roommate dies in silence.​ Screw them, I put the music back on. It's just one of many examples of how they treated us. Another point my Dad started choking and when I asked the staff for assistance he said I was, once again quoting: "wasting his f**** time" while he was removing fluids from my dad's throat.  It then took over two hours for him to give my dad his hourly medication, which I feel was done in retaliation for "inconveniencing" him because I didn't want my dad to choke. They called us at 4am to come get my Dad's belongings when he died. They wouldn't let us wait until the morning otherwise they were going to throw out my $2000 laptop along with the rest of his belongings. What a miserable place. Only send your loved ones here if you hate them. if I wasn't there, my dad would have spent the last days of his life rotting in a diaper. Even if you go there, the staff will retaliate against your dying, suffering father for simply asking them to do their job. This nursing home made me fail as a son, because I flew across the world to make sure that I could say goodbye to my dad and make sure he could die in comfort. This place denied me of that and I will never forgive them for it.

My father was there for approximately 5 months before his passing. I have to say that this is the…read morebest facility in the area. I tried a fancy one nearby and pulled him because the staff were cold and seemed to be bothered by the smallest of questions which made me worry constantly. Here at South Have the staff were caring and attentive to his needs. My father was happy there. The staff called him Pop pop and he loved it. The staff have a very low turnover. They really care for their patients. It might not be a fancy place, but you know your loved one is being cared for in the best manner possible. It really makes a difference when you have to leave him after a visit to know that your loved one is in good hands!! I will always be grateful for the care given to my Dad!! Thank you all!! special shout out to Octavia and Daniel! You went out of your way to make my dad feel at home.

Very disappointed in the care my father received. My father's main issue was his pain due severe…read morearthritis in his back, shoulders and knees. There was constant confusion, especially when and how to administer his pain within the hospice nurses and within staff at his long term care facility. There was a lot of Nurse gave us her phone number at Dad's end of life and told us to call her if we needed her. We called and could not reach her. She turned her phone off. Hospice did not add any benefit to Dad's care and I regret I used them. I am a RN who worked in clinical nursing for 20 years and health insurance management for 17 years. Very disappointed in the care by SouthernCare/ had used southernCare at a different location with my mother-in-law several years prior and was very happy. Will never use or recommend them ever again.