Complete Care at Wall

Mary T

I was a rehab patient there on 2 West for almost 4 months. First the pros: the nursing care was mostly very good, especially the nurses I saw every day: Cheryl(a rock star among nurses), Adelfa, Theresa, Sherry, Gene and the wonderful Veronica are the ones I most remember. The place was clean and I never smelled anything remotely nasty there (and I have a pretty good sniffer). The food was hot and fresh, and the meals were balanced. The aides were a mixed bag. There were amazing, kind aides like the incredible Bella, Jesse, Alicia, and Maggie. There were others who were just hopeless cases. They came to your room, turned off the call light right away, so it looks as if they responded quickly, you asked them for something, and then you never saw them again. I think some of them just hid for their entire shifts. They were supposed to cover each other for breaks or dinner, but they never did, except for the aides named above. Gwen at the nurses' station was always pleasant and sweet. I really liked her. Jessica at the front desk was always a pleasure to talk to. The PT staff needs more people. When I went to PT there, I would spend half the time doing busywork while my therapist worked with another patient, waiting for my turn. They have too many patients for the number of patients they see. The therapists themselves were competent and friendly, but they just have the time to work intensively with people who really need it. My foot healed with the big toe in a dorsiflexed position. Someone worked with once or twice after my doctor insisted. But I went home with the toe in the same position. Now I'm playing catch up with a splint. The pharmacy was absolutely incompetent. They decided not to give me my normal dose of a benzo I have taken for 25 years. They cut the dose in half: Benzos are ferociously addictive and I tried to gut it out on half my usual dose. I remember going through withdrawal while at my "care conference". Needless to say, I did not retain a single thing even though I told them what was happening. Eventually my order was changed thanks to a kind person who listened to me, but it took way too long for this to be rectified. I could have had a seizure. Another time the doctor upped my pain meds (opiates have absolutely no effect on me, so they gave me more opiates, which didn't help much either) and it took the pharmacy a WEEK to get my new meds to the rehab. Someone had input the order incorrectly and apparently nobody at the pharmacy ever checks these things. I was describing my pain to a nurse, who told me it sounded like nerve pain. She was right on the money. Unfortunately, it was Saturday and nothing gets done over the weekend (which seems to begin on Friday morning) so on Monday I was finally given the right meds. Despite the hiccups, I got out alive and able to walk with a walker, which I still use a month later. My experience is that you need to advocate for yourself there, and if your loved one is timid or easily cowed please visit them every chance you get you get. They also need more social workers. It is not possible to reach the one they have. Finally, they need to keep patients in the loop regarding their own care. We are supposed to get 30 days written notice of our discharge date. I got 12 days verbal notice. This was just around the time my doctor finally let me bear weight on my foot, so I got a crash course in walking. To this day I don't know what I would do if presented with a flight of stairs. I got a five minute course in getting in and out of a car two days before I left. I have yet to take a shower by myself (though I do keep myself clean). I left before I was ready to. I suppose there are worse places. I've heard that there are much worse places . So I guess that though I remain annoyed about some things, I did get to heal and I was taken pretty good care of while at Complete Care thanks to the staff there, though I plan to go for more outpatient physical therapy, as soon as I can get into an Uber with my walker. Just one final complaint. It was rare that the medical staff returned calls. Apparently that was beneath them. We aren't mindless bags of meat rotting away in our beds. We want to know what is going on with our own healthcare. We want to be included in planning. I wasn't in healthcare when I worked, but I was a professional, and I would never have dreamed of leaving a call unanswered. Maybe it's different in Manhattan.

Denise

Staff is very kind, attentive. Jane, Chris, Jessie, very professional and caring Wish I could remember each and every name.

Brother

Good sized and clean rooms, Good food and excellent staff…Would highly recommend

Nancy51

I have actually been a patient in Meridian at Wall Subacute Rehabilitation Center 22 times over the years so I believe I can make a pretty fair assessment. Obviously I was happy there or I wouldn't have gone back so many times however, I think the quality has suffered since covid became a part of our lives. At that point all double occupancy rooms became single occupancy and an entire wing was dedicated to patients who had the disease. I spent 2 months in total isolation for that reason in Spring-Summer of 2020. While it was an experience I don't ever wish to repeat, I believe I got the best care available at the time. In my visits there I've met some wonderful staff members, Nursing and Physical Therapy, the Staff Physicians and Aids to Dietary and Housekeeping. I have watched the young people get married, have Babies and they shared their joy. I do have a few special employees and I hope they know who they are. The food went from excellent to good over the years but eating was not the reason I was there. It was early covid and I honestly feel they did the best job they could under the circumstances. I did have one of the most incredible experiences of my life when I was finally discharged. Employees lined the halls, music played over the loud speaker and they did a "clap out" every one of them was clapping and yelling, "you did it, you beat covid, good luck to you, congratulations". At first I was confused but the Nurse who walked me out said "that's for you, honey". I was so touched all I could do was throw kisses and touch my heart to them. I will never forget it! It's not home but if you are looking for kind, generous staff, this is the place to go.

Joseph

My mother stayed at Hackensack Meridian Health Subacute Rehabilitation. They're very good at what they do. The staff was very friendly and very competent. The food was excellent, and the activities were very good. They had her doing stepping, walking, and weight resistance training. It's excellent care, but it was very expensive.

Do not stay here

I was a patient here in June 2019 after knee surgery. I developed severe intestinal distress soon after arriving. The nurse attending to me was downright mean and showed no compassion. The walk-in shower appeared very dirty with obvious mold around the perimeter. Uneaten food from my dinner was still in my room the next morning. I was so traumatized by my experience here I left after the first night. This facility is a disgrace.