Cambridge House of O'Fallon

Cambridge House of O'Fallon looks like a nice place. I had a tour with a guy who showed me the apartment my wife will be staying in. It was all nice, clean, and very well kept. They have a lot of stuff to do there. They have a library and a nice dining room. It seems like my wife got everything that she needs. When we were there, they had people on lockdown because somebody had the virus. So they keep people in their rooms. It seemed like a safe place.

My stepmom was at Cambridge House of O'Fallon. She was there during the lockdown. They were good. She fell in there. She was in her chair and she was trying to reach something without standing up and her whole chair fell over and she was on blood thinners, so she looked awful. She wasn't hurt bad, she just looked bad because she was on blood thinners. But anyway, they were thinking about kicking her out because she didn't ring the bell or call for help when she fell. They were going to kick her out just for that, for falling over in her chair, and then for not calling them. I'm like well, she's just like that, and she doesn't want to bother people. Then they said something about her not knowing exactly where she was. She knew she was at Cambridge House, but she would forget the name of the town sometimes. I had told them before we moved in that she had Alzheimer's, so I didn't understand why that was a problem. I didn't disguise that she had Alzheimer's. Before I moved here and I said, I don't want to have to keep her moving around because I know that's hard for me. I was open about everything. Then during the shutdown, she got kind of a lot worse like she couldn't understand why I couldn't come to her or anything. And then the nurse there called me and said that once in a while she would find Shirley on the floor in her room. She wasn't hurt or anything, she was just on the floor. She said, 'I think she passes out because she keeps her room so hot.' So they told me that she had to move, and I only had like two weeks or something to find another place for her. I thought the reason for moving her like she wasn't even hurt or anything, I thought that was a little extreme. The room was nice at first, but when I went to move my stepmom, it was filthy. I couldn't believe how dirty her room was. Her feet had like these big sores on them and bleeding. When I asked the nurse about it, if she had been doing anything for it, she's like, 'No, she wouldn't let us.' I'm like, well, they could have called me, and I would have taken her to the doctor's since they didn't want to do anything. Like there was a rug under where she was in the rocking chair that had blood all over it. Also, the housekeeper that came into Shirley's room, I liked her a lot because she used to tell Shirley when activities were going on. She was nice to her because if you don't go down to activities, they don't try to encourage you to come. They just really shouldn't have accepted Shirley there, I don't think. They knew what she was like before she moved in. I moved there from a nursing home. Because she was doing so well in the nursing home, they said she didn't need to be there. They had all our records, and they knew everything. I didn't ever eat there, but the one thing that was pretty neat that they did there, like if my stepmom didn't like the choice for that day, they had certain foods you could always order instead. They had a couple of different choices. The building was very pretty and nice. Value for money was good, too. The reason I picked them as they do a spend-down when you run out of money. They're one of the few places that take Medicaid. They seemed to have a lot of activities.

The administrator, Scott helped my mother fix her phone during the Covid period when I couldn't get in the building. Bridget works with all the financial paperwork needed and is extremely helpful and friendly. Anytime I have needed someone to help mom do something they have been willing and very helpful. I feel during the pandemic they are extremely efficient and work extra hard to keep the residents safe. Others in the administrative offices also work together to meet the residents current needs.

I visited Cambridge House. I would recommend it. Everything is nice. They've been really helpful. I really enjoyed Cambridge. I know they had a library, beauty salon, kinda like a markup store, and games, that kind of stuff. I know they do board games, and they have outings and the seniors participate in event there locally when there was no Covid.

I LOVE the staff at Cambridge House of O'Fallon. A building is just a building, it is the Residents and the Staff that make Cambridge House of O'Fallon into a HOME. The Staff really does care about the health and happiness of the residents. God Bless all of them. Both the residents and staff are extended family to us. Thanks for their Love and Care they provided to our mom and family...

Everybody here has been wonderful at Cambridge House of O'Fallon. They're so nice and so good. The food is like a buffet. It is not Mom's homecooking, but it is good. They provide a good balance of meals. The staff members are great. They have a wonderful schedule listed for activities. They have all kinds of activities for my mom to do. She can do almost anything she wants. They have exercises and Wii bowling.

Tonight was so much fun at Cambridge House of O'Fallon. There were hundreds of Trick R Treaters of all ages that visited tonight. It was so much fun. After the children were gone, there were several residents that hung out by the elevator. One resident played his guitar and sang. I did not want to leave but it was way past my bedtime. I am only 54 years old and there were still residents visiting when I left. I could not hang anymore. What a GREAT group of people! They all have become part of our family. Great times......

The food has a lot to be desired. I certainly would have thought twice about moving in because the food is bland and often undercooked or too handled. The apartments are the best features. There are only two stories and three wings in the building. The lack of privacy is also felt, especially in the morning when you have staff coming in to administer meds and the housekeeping staff coming to clean. But the staff is very attentive and they go out of the way to make sure residents are comfortable.