Notre Dame du Lac

Your tech Ari Rodriguez is such a fresh breath of Air to see when you walk on the floor. She is exceptionally personable and always has a huge smile on her face ! The care I have seen while there is outstanding! I have personally seen her go above and beyond.

While my mother lived in the Notre Dame du Lac Harmony assisted living memory care, she had a hospitalization and needed to be discharged to rehab. The du Lac team recommended their own rehab, which ND calls the Long-Term Care building, and facilitated her discharge to there in May. Initially it seemed great, being right nextdoor, and was handy for things like picking up clothes. Unfortunately, they were in the middle of a construction project and incredibly overcrowded, apparently due to rooms being unusable while being renovated. Bizarrely, during the months my mother lived there, ND did not seem to slow down accepting new admissions, despite the renovations and the hallways and dining area being so crowded, wheelchairs blocked doorways and the place was like one giant fire code violation. Meals are so crowded and rushed that staff serve on paper plates with plastic utensils. In a skilled nursing rehab with a memory care, where folks have physical challenges and neurodegeneratative diseases like Parkinson's with tremors, plastic forks and spoons are far from ideal. My mother barely ate and lost a considerable amount of weight. In fact, with tremor and Parkinson's, weighted utensils with built-up bulky handles are what OTs recommend. Traditional silverware can be hard, but disposable plastic cutlery is cruel, and not what one expects at $500 a day. During the summer, all the groups seemed to take place outside in the courtyard no matter how hot it was. There never seemed to be an alternative indoor activity. Staffing shortages are the norm, causing things like my mother's shower day to be skipped repeatedly, and regularly incredibly long waits of 30 minutes or more when pressing the call button. We were told by the ND rehab she was ready to be discharged and that she could go back to the du Lac Harmony. We were even given a discharge date, then suddenly just a day or two before, in the middle of making plans and with my mother having been told she could go back to Harmony, the du Lac team told us they couldn't take her back. There is inexcusably poor communication between the ND LTC and du Lac programs. There is supposed to be a benefit to using the rehab on site, better communication and easier discharge planning, but we found the opposite. We thought based on what staff said that with more time in rehab, she would regain more mobility and independence and then be able to return to du Lac Harmony. Instead the ND LTC rehab discontinued all her therapy, PT/OT, without informing the family. It became apparent, despite nobody explicitly communicating it to the family, that they expected her to move to their skilled nursing memory care, even though it was not accepting new admissions due to the construction and we could get no date for when the construction would end. They wanted her to wait indefinitely in rehab, even though she was no longer receiving rehab. We ended up moving her. This 2 star review is really for the rehab because we weren't in the du Lac Harmony that long, but I have to say it was very different from what we were sold on the tour. They tout their dining room, and invite you for a meal and show off their menu, but in the Harmony there was no menu to choose from. At every meal they all got served the same thing, and when my mother tried to order off the menu a staff ripped it out of her hand and told her that the menu was only for traditional, not Harmony. Apparently Harmony residents are second class citizens even though they pay thousands more in rent. The laundry is a mess. For instance all my mother's hangers went missing one week, but other weeks her closet was overstuffed to bursting with other people's random empty hangers. The du Lac Harmony only offers "self-administered medication management," so if your loved one needs pills crushed in applesauce, eye drops, or any extra help taking their meds, they can't accommodate and you have to go to the skilled nursing building or change facilities. The staffing shortages were a big problem at the du Lac Harmony too.

Place is top notch. Staff, facility, and level of care is incredible. It’s like a 5 star hotel. Highly recommend.

Notre Dame is undoubtedly one of the best nursing homes in Worcester County. Their staff is caring, friendly, reliable, professional, and prioritizes the care and comfort of each resident. They truly understand the importance of showing utmost respect and dignity to your loved ones. The nursing staff, especially the C.N.A.'s, are the backbone of Notre Dame's exceptional rating. They take excellent care of each resident and treat them as if they were their own family. The staff engage with the residents and ensure that they feel loved and valued. The meal plan at Notre Dame is impressive, offering a great variety of food options for every meal, including a range of different ice creams. Unlike many nursing homes that offer only a few basic drinks, Notre Dame has a wide assortment of drinks to choose from. Their linen, towels, and face cloths are incredibly soft, unlike those in many other nursing homes. Their equipment is up-to-date, reliable, and not outdated. If you are searching for a nursing home to place your loved one in, look no further than Notre Dame. You won't be disappointed. I highly recommend it with a 5-star rating.

We have had family members going to rehab in 7 different facilities over the past 3 years. Notre Dame Rehab has been the best experience by far. They treat the whole person and the staff kindness and caring ways have made a difficult situation so much more manageable. God bless them all. The Halloran Family.