The Best Nursing Home Communities in Hampden County, MA

"I was at Bear Mountain at West Springfield. It's a nursing home, but they do have rehab. I was there for maybe nine-and-a-half weeks at two different back-to-back admissions. The staff was excellent and the food was excellent. They provided three meals and snacks. I was mostly in my room, but I knew that they had activities every day. From what I could see, they were very good. Everything was excellent."

"Going to see a family member in a facility is extremely difficult as it is so knowing they're being taken care of is extremely important. When I first walked into the facility I felt a warm happy feeling. There was a receptionist greeting people as they entered and was there to help people if need be. There was hot coffee made and a cat roaming in the lobby. The lobby has couches which makes it feel like a living room at home. I think this was a great touch so if family members are up to it they can visit in an environment that is comfortable rather than seeing them in a bed looking ill. I asked about the cat and was told they keep the cat for the guests as a feeling of home and not a hospital like setting. When I met with the staff that was caring for my family member they were very sweet and gentle with him. They were patient and caring. Ive been to others that were very business like with no personalities, they were completely different. They seem to all know eachother which is nice. He ended up passing away and the people were extremely sympathetic and expressed how it was an honor to know and care for him. Very touching. "

"Single rooms, very nice, comfortable, functional. Staff is outstanding. Food is very good."

"My mother is settled in at Jewish Nursing Home of Western Mass. It takes a while to get somebody to come and help her if my dad pushes the button to call for help with getting her to the bathroom or into bed. It can take a long time before anybody comes. Other than that, the staff is very pleasant, and very helpful. The place is really bright and clean, and I like that about it. It doesn't look like a hospital like most nursing homes do. The care is good when she gets it, it's just that sometimes it takes a long time to get some help, but that's all. I think they need more staff members, but the staff members themselves are very nice. The food isn't much. My mother has participated in a couple of their activities, which is good."

"My father was at Mont Marie for rehab. Their nurses were fabulous and overworked. I think there weren't enough of them, although it was COVID. I was only inside once, but the nurses were wonderful. Every time I spoke to them on the phone, they were just overworked. The administration and the social worker were noncommunicative. My father arrived there and I didn't even get a phone call; I had to call them. Just the communication was terrible. I think the food was fine; my father never complained. There were activities, and he painted a trivet. The care he got was very good; it's the communication that was very bad. I loved the care, but I didn't like the communication. The building itself was mediocre. It's a shared bathroom for two rooms with two people in each room, but everything was clean."

"St. Vincent’s Nursing Home was very old. The staff seemed to be very caring, and everybody was clean. The dining area looked OK. "

"Facility was really beautiful, my mother was there for rehab. Staff was kind and always took care of her needs whenever she needed anything. We would absolutely have her return if she ever needed rehab again. "

"The rehab staff at Care One is outstanding. I was greatly helped and supported by the PT and OT assigned to me. Cannot thank them enough for the way they helped me through a hard place. The floor nurse I had was a blessing, very helpful. Some of the agency help sent in proved a challenge but if you want respect, treat them with respect. My experience with the aides assigned to me was very good. Very thankful. My room was large and kept very clean"

"The rooms are spacious CNAs are wonderful plenty of activities and the administration of this place is thorough and efficient haven't been in a multitude of these types of facilities the food is unbelievable"

"My mother stayed at RegalCare at Holyoke for one day. It was good. The place wasn't as clean, but the staff was great. They are very caring. The room wasn't the greatest, but it was nice. The building is older, but it was a nice place. They did physical therapy with my mother."

"My grandmother was at this facility initially for short term rehab. The nursing staff was pleasant most of the time and the physical therapist was phenomenal but overall we had a very bad experience. For the 3 months she was there we made multiple phone calls on a weekly basis trying to talk the overseeing physician- not once was our call returned even when we begged to speak to her. We never met her or even talked to her once during my grandmother's stay despite all our efforts. Additionally we also had much difficulty discussing her care with the advanced providers who didn't seem to make time to talk with us. She was transitioned to long-term care and a week later her health rapidly declined. During the transition to long-term care which was the last week of her life she did not have a phone as there was a problem with the connection in the room when she moved despite us paying for the service- no one helped her; my father had to figure it out. We went to visit her and she was crying she was so lonely. The worst experience we had was the day before she died. We went to visit her and it was evident she was rapidly declining. We asked to speak to the PA and we waited for ~3 hours before she came to see us. Instead of having a family meeting given the obvious change in circumstances, she spoke with us for less than 10 minutes. We asked about hospice care as my grandmother was clearly uncomfortable. She said she could start arranging it on Monday (it was a Friday) but that they wouldn't do much differently. My grandmother was struggling to breathe and was in obvious pain. We asked for her to be transitioned to a liquid diet as she couldn't swallow her food. As the PA walked out the door, my father asked how much longer she thought my grandmother would live as my mother was planning to travel that weekend and was wondering if she should cancel these plans. The PA told my father her hydration status was good and at least 2 weeks - as a healthcare provider myself I knew this simply was not correct, aside from the fact that you can never truly predict the day or hour and it is irresponsible to tell families otherwise. My grandfather went to visit her Friday evening and was distraught as they still brought her solid food; when he asked for a liquid diet he was told by the nursing staff they would get to it; it had not arrived by the time he left. The next day Saturday afternoon my grandfather went to visit my grandma. He found her unresponsive, notified the nurse and discovered she had passed. He was by himself, there was no hospice, my mother was traveling. It was a horrific experience and the epitome of poor patient and family care. This facility may be good for very short rehab that doesn't require medical decision making as the physical therapist was excellent. But not for any complex medical conditions, long term care, elder care or hospice. Overall we were extremely disappointed."

"My wife is in Loomis House. The rooms are OK. Care is OK too. It is more for Alzheimer's and dementia patients. It is only six miles from my house and four miles from my daughter. The value is good too."

"The facilities were well landscaped, the front office employees were always pleasant. The nurses and care assistants weren't so friendly, and often (despite labeling my neighbor's clothes with her name) socks, undergarments, and clothing would go to the laundry and were never returned. I will say this-we visited during lunch once and soon afterwards one of the activities employees had a "tea party" complete with hats for the ladies and nice attire for the men. This woman seemed very attentive and brought out smiles in even the most unresponsive residents. The facility was very secure, complete with locked doors and a proper check-in system. The parking lot was at an angle, so I imagine this would be quite difficult for residents or visitors in wheelchairs to handle. The food appeared sufficient, many patients deemed "flight-risks" were equipped with monitors that would beep if they were outside appropriate boundaries. Ultimately, I feel this was a decent facility but the care staff should be brought up to a higher standard. "

"Staff here is wonderful - very friendly on every occasion, even just when you encounter someone walking down the hall. Great nursing care and physical therapy. As a family member I was made to feel perfectly welcome and my input was encouraged. My husband was a short-term resident who said everyone was very nice and the food was good. The room was perfectly fine - comfortable and with everything needed. But he says the best part of it was the people. I agree!"