Memory Support of Heritage Hall

First, I want to acknowledge that many of the staff at Agawam East were kind and respectful to my mom. However, there were significant issues that make me regret moving her to this facility. Agawam East primarily serves memory care patients, and though my mom had no memory issues, we were told they were under Stern’s new management, and were now accepting non-memory care residents. After a bed became available, we decided to move her in early in June 2025. Soon after, my mom developed symptoms of a UTI: delirium, agitation, and fear from being in an unfamiliar place. I repeatedly asked the staff to test for a UTI, but they kept assuring me labs had been ordered, but in fact they never were. It wasn’t until FIVE days later, when I brought hospice care in, that she was given antibiotics. Hospice didn’t need labs; they just treated her. Within two days, she returned to her baseline, and her delirium cleared. I think staff had assumed her behavior was part of memory issues, despite my attempts to explain it was not her usual behavior. I also encountered multiple cleanliness and safety concerns. Every day, I saw dead cockroaches in the halls. On two occasions, I saw live roaches, once in my mom’s room and once in a hallway. When I reported this to the social worker, she claimed she’d never seen any roaches, which I found hard to believe given the frequent sightings. Additionally, my mother was bedbound and often had other residents wandering into her room, standing over her, or even sitting on her bed. Staff knew about the issue but did nothing to address it, causing my mom distress, especially at night when staff were slow to respond to her calls. My mom developed three pressure ulcers during the short five weeks she was at Agawam East. Two were reported to me, but one, a severe wound, was not. The staff would place her on soft pillows to relieve pressure, but they were ineffective, and my mom would roll back onto her back. I repeatedly asked for a foam wedge, but they claimed they couldn’t access it from a storage closet. The pain from the wounds caused my mom to refuse to be placed in a wheelchair and eventually stop eating to avoid bowel movements, which were excruciating for her. The day my mom passed, I discovered the severity of her condition. While staff were changing her, I saw what was described as an approximately 7” stage 3 pressure ulcer with tunneling and necrotic tissue on her right buttock. She was also in severe terminal agitation, which was heart-wrenching to witness. Despite my pleas that morphine wasn’t enough to help her sleep, neither staff nor hospice offered her any relief for her agitation. I later learned about palliative sedation, a treatment that could have eased her suffering, but it wasn’t provided. My mom should have spent her last weeks pain-free, and she should have passed peacefully. Sadly, neither of those happened. While some staff were caring, the overall experience was distressing and left me with painful, lasting memories of my mom’s final weeks. I deeply regret the decision to move her to Agawam East, as it haunts me to think of how she suffered in her final days.

Excellent care for rehab. Nursing and staff are very attentive. I was here for a couple of weeks, unable to walk independently . With help of Rehab I was released in two weeks, able to walk independently. Staff are compassionate and very professional.

Dad was a recent patient there and have to say extremely unhappy with care he got( If any). Staff was rude to him at all times he needed assistance. Thankfully he checked out. Cannot believe all the positive reviews I see about this facility. Of course some are over a year old or so. I hope the patients still there get to see loved ones more and hopefully can get better quality of care than my dad got.