OAKS AT CHARLESTON

Our family’s experience at The Oaks at Charleston Assisted Living was deeply disappointing and, at times, heartbreaking. What stood out most was the extreme lack of leadership and accountability. We raised serious concerns multiple times with the Executive Director and formally requested discussions with corporate leadership. Both my brother and I made direct requests to speak with corporate. Those requests went unanswered. After my brother posted a review, corporate responded publicly asking him to call to discuss the situation. When he did, the phone rang repeatedly with no answer with no option to leave a vm. That kind of surface-level responsiveness without actual follow-through reflects exactly what we experienced throughout our time there. One of the most distressing issues involved basic hygiene. On multiple occasions, my mother’s soiled bedsheets were left unchanged for several days in some cases close to a week unless my brother personally prompted staff to address it. Even then, there were times when it still was not handled properly. No family should have to monitor whether clean bedding is being provided. Equally troubling was the isolation. My mother was frequently left in her room with little to no interaction or engagement. Assisted living should provide oversight, dignity, and social connection not leave residents alone behind closed doors. We personally witnessed activities posted on the schedule that never actually happened. Events were advertised but canceled or simply did not take place without explanation. The disconnect between what is promised and what residents actually experience was consistent. After we voiced concerns, the environment shifted. We experienced what felt like retaliation, particularly involving my mother’s dog. Rather than addressing the issues, there was defensiveness and a noticeable change in attitude. Perhaps most concerning was seeing staff members discouraged or reprimanded when they attempted to speak up. When employees feel they cannot advocate for residents without fear of retaliation, that points to a deeper leadership and culture issue. My mother has since moved to another assisted living facility, and within just a few days the experience has been night and day in the best possible way. The difference in leadership, communication, responsiveness, and resident engagement has been immediate and obvious. That contrast only reinforces how serious the issues were at The Oaks. Families entrust facilities with the care and dignity of their loved ones. We expected transparency, compassion, and accountability. Instead, we encountered avoidance, inaction, and a troubling lack of leadership both at the facility and corporate levels. I strongly encourage families to ask detailed questions about oversight, follow-through, and management responsiveness before making a decision.

Do your research. There are other options. (UPDATE BELOW) Placing a loved one in assisted living is one of the most difficult decisions a family can make. We took great care in researching facilities to ensure our mother, who suffers from dementia, would receive the appropriate level of care. After a year at Oaks of Charleston, I can say with certainty that it was the wrong choice. From the beginning, I questioned whether my mother had been properly evaluated for the correct level of care. It ultimately became clear that she was mis-evaluated, which meant she was not receiving the support her condition required. As a result, she frequently missed meals because no one prompted her, despite that being part of her care plan. I often found her in soiled pull-ups that had not been changed for two or even three days, leading to repeated urinary tract infections. On multiple occasions, her medications were left in her room un-dosed rather than being properly administered and observed by staff. Her bedsheets sometimes went two weeks without being changed, remaining heavily soiled with dried stains. I frequently had to change them myself. Simple, fundamental duties often required repeated prompting from me. When I raised these concerns with management, I received polished, corporate-style responses but no meaningful acknowledgment of wrongdoing. While there would occasionally be brief improvements, the same patterns would quickly return. Escalating concerns to corporate leadership yielded little better results. Despite written acknowledgment from the regional director that they had received “several calls about care at Oaks of Charleston” and assurances that the issues would be addressed with the Executive Director, I never received the promised follow-up — even after multiple attempts to reach out. To be clear, many of the frontline care staff are kind and compassionate individuals. The core issue appears to be a lack of professionalism, leadership, and accountability at the management level. Families and even staff members who raise concerns are met with subtle forms of retaliation rather than constructive resolution. Do your research. Don't rely on the shiny happy sales person to tell you the truth .It's their job to make it look fabulous. I strongly encourage families to thoroughly vet all options and ask detailed questions before entrusting a loved one to this facility. I would not make the same choice again. UPDATE: You will see the comment below from the 'home office' asking me to call and talk about my review. So I called and, in typical fashion, not only did no one answer but it also just rang and rang and rang. The call didn't even go to a voicemail for you to leave a message. Pretty much sums up my experience trying to get anything done through upper channels there and all you need to know about the way they handle things at Oaks from top to bottom.

This is our second night. Our toilet sprung a major leak and after 4 hours of waiting we were finally told that it wouldn't be fixed until tomorrow sometime. I am wheelchair bound. I cannot stand or walk and I use the restroom a few times a night. We were given the option of using a restroom in another apartment down a long hall.

I had a tour with Troy, and it was incredible. His knowledge alone, for dementia and Alzheimer’s, was a breath of fresh air. The quality of living each resident gets is 5 stars. I can’t wait to get my mom in this facility because i truly believe the quality of life she’ll have is going to be wonderful. Thank you to the staff members and care givers I saw. Yall are doing an amazing job.

Placing a loved one in a care facility is a difficult decision. Based on my experience, I strongly advise against entrusting your loved one to this facility or its staff. When I raised questions about whether my loved one’s initial assessment was conducted by a qualified professional, management either ignored me or responded dismissively. Corporate management failed to respond via email or follow through on promised callbacks. Over five months, my loved one was forgotten in her room, missing meals. I had to remind staff numerous times to clean her bathroom and do her laundry. She received only a handful of assisted baths, leaving me to visit weekly to ensure her cleanliness. By the time we moved her out, most of her clothes were missing. The facility dismissed this by blaming her dementia for the losses. Despite encountering three compassionate caregivers, two left before we did, leaving only one reliable weekend staff member. One caregiver confided that she had reported serious concerns about staff and management to corporate, only to be ignored. She ultimately left, advising me to do the same. I met with management and communicated with staff . Most of my concerns were met with apologies. While minor improvements,such as staff spending less time on their phones were noticeable. Staffing issues were constant. Many employees lacked compassion or proper training. One caregiver admitted, “I just leave her to herself,” while another, newly hired, confessed she was untrained and unprepared for the role. To anyone facing similar challenges, don’t lose hope—safer, more compassionate options exist. Unfortunately, the Oaks of Charleston is not one of them.