Whispering Heights is the sole option we identified in Rock Valley, Iowa. With an overall rating of A-, this facility is among the higher-graded nursing homes we assessed. In addition, this is a hospital-based nursing home, which may add peace of mind for prospective residents with significant health conditions. The best aspect of this nursing home's strong profile is its inspection grade. Inspection grades are discussed in the next paragraph
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Whispering Heights
- Nursing Home
Updated Apr 1, 2023 by Nick Lata
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- No Medicare 1
- Accepts Medicaid 1
- No CCRC
- No Resident Council
- No Family Council
- Non profit - Other
- Offers Post-Acute Care
- Offers Respite Care
- Offers Inpatient Rehab
- Offers Outpatient Rehab
Specialized Services
- Transportation
- Speech Therapy
- Dentistry
- Wound Care
- Occupational Therapy
- Cardiac Therapy
- Mental Health
- Physical Therapy
- Nutritional Counseling
- Laboratory
- X-Ray
- Recreational Therapy
- Pain Management
- Colostomy Care
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Awards
Registered Staff Hours
Facility Inspections
On top of earning a strong overall grade, this facility also performed well in our inspections category, which is based on the facility's recent inspection reports. We awarded it an A in that area. We weigh several aspects of a nursing home's inspection report in determining these inspection ratings. One critical factor is health deficiencies. It should be noted that the severity of the deficiencies is arguably more meaningful than the quantity of deficiencies, as some deficiencies can be relatively insignificant. This place received 4 deficiencies on its inspection report, but none of the deficiencies were considered to be severe. This tells you that CMS didn't deem any of these deficiencies to create an immediate threat to resident safety or health. We should note that deficiency-free inspections are uncommon in this industry.
Short-term Care Quality
On the list of its many dominant grades, this nursing home was given a top-shelf short-term care grade. In fact, it received a score of A- in this category. Our short-term care ratings are meaningful for patients looking for rehabilitation. Rehabilitation usually requires higher levels of highly-skilled nursing. Skilled nursing means a wide range of nursing services, spanning from registered nurses to physical and respiratory therapists, as well as other variations of therapy. Fortunately, it looks like this facility employs registered nurses. Not all nursing homes employs these types of nurses. On the other hand, according to the information they provided, they do not appear to employ physical therapists. Finally, we looked at the percentage of residents who were able to return to the community from this facility. We found that 0 percent of this nursing home's patients returned home.
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Nurse Quality
This facility also excelled in the area of nursing, where it received a grade of A-. Few nursing homes performed better in this area. There are quite a few factors included in this category. Most of the datapoints are tied to staffing levels. This particular nursing home provided 0.5 hours of nursing care per resident per day. Finally, our nursing grades also factor in quality-based assessments, such as avoiding major falls. This facility performed well in this area. Avoiding major falls is typically a good indicator that a nursing home has reliable quality controls in place. Major falls can frequently be prevented if more nurses aids and better safety protocols are in place.
Long-term Care Quality
In our final category, this facility also was awarded a very strong long-term care rating, with a grade of B+. This completed an elite profile. Facilities that receive this kind of grade in long-term care typically provide consistent 24/7 care to make sure patients are well cared for. On top of considering the volume of care provided by nurses aids and other staff, we also looked at the percentage of residents vaccinated for pneumonia. This nursing home provided the vaccine to 95.14563 percent of its residents. Vaccines are vital to keeping residents out of the hospital. Lastly, this nursing home was able to limit hospitalizations. In fact, it had only 0.01 hospitalizations per 1,000 long-term resident days, which is an impressively low number.
Rating Over Time
Compared to national and state averages across all facilities.
Whispering Heights Quality Metrics
Minimizes Pressure Ulcers
In Whispering Heights, 6.16% of Patients had Pressure Ulcers
This indicates the percentage of residents that suffered from a pressure ulcer. Pressure ulcers, also known as bed sores, are routinely the result of residents not being moved frequently enough. Better nursing care limits the number of pressure ulcers sustained by residents in a nursing home.
Minimizes Serious Falls
In Whispering Heights, 3.87% of Patients had Serious Falls
This indicates the percentage of patients that suffered from a major fall. Falls leading to major injury are often associated with poor nursing care. Better nursing protocols can minimize the number of major falls sustained by residents in a nursing home.
Minimizes Urinary Tract Infections
In Whispering Heights, 3.28% of Patients had UTIs
This metric is a measure of the percentage of long-term patients that suffered from a urinary tract infection. Although a higher rate infections may reflect poorly on a facility's nursing care, it is problematic to compare between facilities due to nursing homes having inconsistent reporting standards.
Appropriately Uses Anti-Psychotic Medication
In Whispering Heights, 17.54% of Patients use Anti-Psychotic Medication
This indicates the percentage of patients who were given antipsychotic drugs. Antipsychotic drugs are administered to residents for many conditions, such as cognitive disorders. Unfortunately, in limited situations, high levels of antipsychotic drug use may mean that a facility is using these drugs to control patient behavior.
Appropriately Uses Anti-Anxiety Medication
In Whispering Heights, 19.26% of Patients use Anti-Anxiety Medication
This figure is a measure of the percentage of long-term patients that are administered antianxiety drugs. These drugs are used to treat residents experiencing anxiety and depression.
Managing Depression Among Residents
In Whispering Heights, 4.67% of Patients
This is the percent of residents who are demonstrating depressive symptoms.
Appropriate Vaccine Usage
In Whispering Heights, 93.67% of Patients
This is a measure of the percentage of long-term patients who received the pneumonia and flu vaccines. Respiratory viruses can be very dangerous for nursing home patients, making these types of vaccines indispensable.
Residents Maintain Autonomy
In Whispering Heights, 17.07% Percentage of Patients
This is a measure of the percent of long-term stay patients who needed more assistance with activities of daily living over time. ADL's include activities such as moving around and bathing.
Ability to Keep Residents Mobile
In Whispering Heights, 16.9% Percentage of Residents
This tells you the percentage of patients that maintained mobility over time. Optimizing mobility is often a good sign for residents' health.
Hospitalizations
In Whispering Heights, 1.48 Hospitalizations per 1,000 resident days
Measures the number of times residents are hospitalized per 1,000 days of patient care. Minimizing hospitalizations is important to maintaining the physical well-being of nursing home patients.
Short-term Care: Rehospitalizations
In Whispering Heights, 16.9 Percentage of Residents Rehospitalized
This metric measures the number of rehospitalizations per 1,000 days of short-term patient care.
Nearby Hospitals
- Hegg Memorial Health CenterCritical Access Hospitals 0.2 miles away1202 21st Avenue Rock Valley Iowa 51247Voluntary non-profit - Private(712) 476-8000
- Sioux Center HealthCritical Access Hospitals 11.2 miles away1101 9th Street Se Sioux Center Iowa 51250Voluntary non-profit - Private(712) 722-1271
- Sanford Canton-Inwood Medical Center - CahCritical Access Hospitals 15.44 miles away440 North Hiawatha Drive Canton South Dakota 57013Voluntary non-profit - Private(605) 764-1400
- Hawarden Regional HealthcareCritical Access Hospitals 17.36 miles away1111 11th Street Hawarden Iowa 51023Government - Local(712) 551-3100
- Orange City Area Health SystemCritical Access Hospitals 18.77 miles away1000 Lincoln Circle Se Orange City Iowa 51041Voluntary non-profit - Other(712) 737-4984