Hilda Ross Retirement Village

Such a great place. My gran always is so happy here. And great facilities!!
Jan 9th, 2023

Nov 30th, 2022

Nice place nice people
Nov 20th, 2022

Don't look after my dad very well
Sep 4th, 2022

Sadly I need to give this a 1 star. I had only heard great things about Hilda Ross but admittedly feedback was all from older people I know in the townhouses and independent areas. Based on what I had heard about this particular village, the fact it had a hospital wing, a dementia unit and the overall feedback from others about the brand Ryman - it was where we chose to go when our dad needed care. Despite his dementia diagnosis he was deemed as retirement level needs. There were a lot of small things that were very off with the initial process of getting him in. However it was nothing too major and we had hoped it would get better. A number of the staff that do the everyday work were very good with him personally, however the overall communication was far below par. There was a number of instances that things were handled very poorly, then the final 'straw' was soon after moving in he caught (his first) Covid . The infection affected his behaviour so he started to wonder. It became apparent he needed dementia level care. This was handled terribly, in the one meeting they had with me to discuss his future care they mentioned if he needs changed he would go into the hospital until a bed came up in dementia. I was understanding of this, after all we had chosen the facility so he could remain in one place and move through their care levels. Instead the dumped him at the public hospital, they did not provide all the relevant information (regarding recently covid infection) and incorrectly provided other information on the intake forms. This was so upsetting for us a family but more importantly a horrible experience for our Dad. This happened just before new years eve so he was stuck there for over a week while places and teams reopened that could arrange the transfer to another village and facility. The new Bupa facility have been so amazing from the get go. We had no idea how good the experience could be after dealing with Hilda Ross (which is the first time we have had to put someone into a village/facility). We have now seen first hand what the experience should be like, so when I got the automated email asking for our experience I sent my feedback. I asked for it be looked into. After the holiday break I received an email to apologise for the experience and asked to wait to the 16th for the regional manager to come back from leave. Here we are nearly 3 weeks later I have not received anything (other that the generic email from the admin team) to acknowledge this was being looked into or any suggestion of a timeframe I can expect to get a specific response. I do feel it is highly unlikely they will take the time to address the feedback I sent, after all they have been paid and he is now elsewhere. Separately I was very recently at a MetlifeCare event (my elderly neighbour had moved their) I did not bring up the topic but they had started a conversation about aged care facilities & why the were so happy where they were. One of the older ladies mentioned that before Hilda Ross had a hospital/dementia unit her mum had been there. She told me about the terrible experience they had endured, the measly 24h notice they were given to get her mum out when it was noticed she needed further care. This is clearly 'sore point' for them, they obviously have systemic issues relating to people's care level changing. I am fully aware many people have a great experience here which is so good to know. However I would like others to be able to make a call if this is the place for them/their family and I believe objective feedback both positive and negative is important for that. It may save them from the stress and bad experience we had. **UPDATE MID MARCH** Despite the social media team responding to this review promptly & providing a contact person- no one at all has reached out to me. Clearly my initial thoughts about the business solely being interested in the money was spot on.
Mar 15th, 2023