Sentara Nursing Center

salada23

I was expecting Sentara to be a depressing place given that it is a nursing home, but I was pleasantly surprised. The staff were all very professional and very kind -- they greeted you and were very willing to help visitors and residents out with anything that they needed. The residents were also more social with each other than I expected. That might be because there were structured activities that occurred every so often, such as game nights (and a buffet once a week -- there's nothing more social than food). There rooms were also decorated with personal items, so the atmosphere was more warm and inviting. I was also impressed with the level of care that my great aunt received. She was assisted by social workers, therapists, and nurses while she was a resident there, and there was someone on call 24 hours a day. My only complaint was that the place was a it crowded -- it was difficult to get privacy (which might also explain why the residents seemed to have gotten to know each other so well!). But overall, I felt good about keeping my great aunt there when she needed more intensive health care.

dakota2

I visited this facility multiple times while both my grandmother and great aunt were residents here. They have both passed away now but up until they died they both had been here for some time. Every time I visited there I was impressed with what I saw. I was in their rooms, the hallways, the TV rooms, the dining room and the lobby and never once was I unhappy with what I saw. I liked the idea that they had rooms set up like living rooms that the patients could watch TV in, play cards or just sit on couches and chairs and visit with each other or their guests. We even had several birthday celebrations there, where we a lot of the family came and we had cake and presents. I also liked the fact that they had groups come in to entertain the residents. Sometimes they had line dancing clubs come in and do demonstrations, chorus's came in and sang and of course they had worship services for them on Sunday. I was impressed with the cleanliness of the facility also. There were never any unpleasant odors lingering anywhere but there was never an overwhelming smell of cleaners either. Anyone who has ever spent much time visiting a nursing home knows that there are going to be "urinary accidents" and that it is hard to keep a facility with this many people looking and smelling clean. The nurses always seemed professional yet pleasant. So many of the staff seemed to take time with the residents and treat them in a respectful manner. Because of my job I have been in many nursing homes and I feel that this one was one of the best I have seen.