My 91 year old grandmother was here for approximately 2 and a half weeks starting in February 2025,…read moredue to getting sick from the fires. I was at the facility DAILY, from 2 to 5 times a day. I would stay hours at a time as well. My observations and experience:
~staff is overwhelmed and have too high of nurse to patient ratio
~staff gets rotated to different rooms on different days, which makes it confusing for the clients having new nurses every day. My grandmother doesn't speak English, so I had to keep reteaching the new nurses for the day her needs and how she communicates what she needs.
~when staff morale is low (often), they are less consistent and persistent with quality care
~there was a mixup in the kitchen for two days, so my grandmother began receiving mushy food instead of solid food. She had no food restrictions. And she kept asking for snacks and food since she'd still be hungry until I realized the mushy food wasn't the normal meals.
~for the clients who need to be fed by a nurse (like my grandmother's roommate), the nurses don't feed them until all the food has been passed out and sometimes after doing other errands. By then, the food is cold, the client's have been waiting for such a long time while the food has been sitting open in front of them, unable to feed themselves. It is heartbreaking. I helped my grandmother's roommate multiple times with at least putting a straw in her juice to drink until a nurse comes to feed her, because she didn't have the mobility to even do that. *Nurses, I would like to remind you to please put yourselves in the patients shoes. I know it's hard considering your job and doing this daily. But think about what a personal and vulnerable thing it is to be fed by a stranger because you can't do it yourself (when you used to be able to). Please be patient, smile, and have compassion when feeding them. Sometimes this is the most attention and only visitor they had all day.
~some staff are friendly, nice, and want to help. But they are overwhelmed and spread thin
~it appears they have it scheduled 3 x a day to check and change the diapers of the clients (morning, afternoon, after dinner). If the client does not ask to be changed outside of these scheduled, they will not check and change the clients. Some patients don't realize they have urinated and therefore aren't able to inform the nurse to get changed, like my grandmother. I have walked into the room and there's a strong odor. Which results in UTIs, rashes, redness, etc. I had to advocate for my grandmother to be changed multiple times every day while I was there, and they usually came 20 to 45 minutes after my request to change her, with reminders. *Brighton needs to schedule in more diaper checks. I can hear and sympathize for you nurses: we don't have time and are bombarded with other tasks. I hear you. This is directed to BRIGHTON, not the nurses: BRIGHTON, SUPPORT YOUR NURSES AND PATIENTS WITH QUALITY CARE. HIGHER MORE NURSES AND DECREASE PATIENT TO STAFF RATIO.
*Bring wipes for the nurses to help clean your loved one
~I requested a wheelchair since my grandmother wanted to go to the actual bathroom. IT SHOULD NOT BE DIFFICULT IN A NURSING FACILITY TO FIND A WHEELCHAIR. This was something that absolutely infuriated me. We waited for 30 minutes, as I asked for updates multiple times from nurses. They came back withOUT a wheelchair saying they can't find one/don't have one available. I became stern and assertive. A nurse brought a wheelchair 10 minutes later. ADVOCATE for your family members.
~Upon arrival, the EMT assertively told the staff to change and put clean sheets on my grandmother's bed before transferring her into the bed. Even thereafter, sometimes they brought dirty pillow covers and sheets. I would tell them it was dirty and to bring clean ones.
Families looking for a nursing home for their loved one, reading my review may feel disheartening. Unfortunately, most nursing facilities are like this and even worse. I've seen worse. Which is why we went with Brighton. No matter which nursing facility you take your loved one (and if you're looking at facilities as this, I assume there is a limited budget and therefore you can't afford these lavish expensive nursing homes), please keep this in mind: No matter which nursing facility you pick, your loved one will need a visitor who will advocate for them daily.
There are a number of staff members at Brighton that were warm, patient, and helpful with my grandmother, even when they weren't assigned to my grandmother that day. When these staff members were working that day, especially overnight, I would leave Brighton feeling comfortable that my grandmother is going to be cared for. In my experience, this is a very hard feeling to have regarding a nursing home. So any time I felt it, I was deeply grateful. I am grateful to these nurses who put in the effort, patience, and warmth towards me and my grandmother. Thank you from the bottom of my heart.
