Commonwealth Senior Living at Haddam

AVOID this place if possible. My mother was a resident here for 3 years and at first (when it was Saybrook at Haddam) it was great. The food was freshly cooked, and the staff was nice. Since Commonwealth took over about a year ago, it has gone downhill. The food they serve now is NOT freshly cooked, it's from an institutional food service and is most times inedible. My mom constantly complained that the fish was dried up, the chicken was so tough you couldn't cut it and there was no fresh fruit or veggies. Due to circumstances that my mother needed more assistance, I had to move her out. She fell in July and was in rehab for a month. After finding out that she needed more assistance that Commonwealth couldn't (wouldn't offer), the Executive Director refused to work with me on the charges and insisted that I give a 30-day notice. I ended up paying for 2 months that my mother didn't live there. And then after being OVERCHARGED, I had to fight for the credit that was due to me. The staff is mean spirited and selfish. After many meetings with the management, and begging to have different caregivers assist my mother, all requests were ignored. I urge anyone looking for senior living to look elsewhere. The building is pretty but remember - "You can't judge a book by its cover".

My mother in law lives there and the name used to be Saybrook. It was a name that really was nice for people living there. Named after a beach town nearby. About a year ago a company from the South bought them out. Renamed it to the Commonwealth. This took away that Connecticut River Valley feel. They also had a memory care side and it used to be called “Safe Harbor”. The new corporate geniuses decided to name it “Sweet Memories” this seems like a sad insult to people struggling to remember! The WORST thing they decided to do was to bring it in the Sisco Institutional style menu they serve in the South. I bet prison food is better. For some reason, they think it is healthy to serve a multitude of Fried Foods every day. They serve fried Hush puppies and other southern friend foods. The food is usually not even edible. The fish is like rubber or super dry. Chicken & pork are like cardboard. Hard to cut and even harder to chew for an older person. The hamburgers are even terrible. Vegetables are never farm fresh. They just serve overcooked slop. They serve over salted food. The quality is so terrible and unhealthy. The decision to follow this horrible corporate, health harming menu is a daily disappointment to all residents. The staff are very nice and helpful. It is not the staff’s fault just upper management.

Both of my parents are residents at what is now called Commonwealth Senior Living at Haddam. They have lived there for more than a year now and since formally named Saybrook at Haddam. First, it is interesting to note the last review by a former food service cook/employee. It is just one of many factors you might consider, but an important one. Due to the nature of my parents' condition and sister's conservatorship, I have little say over my parents being located there. Aside from the naturally depressing nature of a parent being put in a facility that is not close to or anything like the home they once lived in, Commonwealth Senior Living at Haddam is far from adequate on a number of levels. Food is (as stated below) not great. There is little to do that my parents enjoyed before being placed there. They are disinterested in any relative that has no authority or conservatorship. And, yeah, it's depressing as hell -- for my parents and me. Given the cost, it is far from the quality found in other long-term care facilities I have worked in and visited -- that also cost far less. Due to the passive-aggressive nature of administrative staff, it appears their mission is purely profit-motivated. Under staffed, controlling and secretive in nature, you will find a great change in their once generous and friendly disposition once your loved one is "under contract". In fact, once you make a complaint of any kind, their prevailing interest seems not to be about the complaint itself but the fact you dare make it. I will say that my encounters with service staff has been generally positive. Administratively, the place is a mess. This corresponds directly to a corporate attitude reflecting well-practiced but phony-to-the-bone empathy and concern. Twice, I have had to seek assistance from the local Probate Court to establish rules (seriously) for calling and seeing my parents. Thankfully, the court orders provided clear guidelines. The moral of this story is simple: If you DON'T like having your chain yanked because you're concerned (about practically anything) in respect to your aging parents, keep looking. This place will break your heart for $1 let alone $10,000/month. There are far better options.

My 103 year old mother has been here since spring 2019 (with a summer off in Nantucket). We have been very impressed with the personalized service from all the staff, including professional care from the nurses. My mother had to recover from a fall and staff worked closely with my family to make sure that my mother got the care she needed to recover as much of her activities as possible in a safe and appropriate manner. The facility seems more like a Marriott than an assisted living facility. The food is surprisingly good, including wine at dinner. There are smaller private dining areas for family events, which we have used for than once. I could not imagine my mother at any other facility. I sleep well at night knowing my mother is safe and just five minutes away. The pool table is great too...