Sharen Strong Matthews
Jul 2026
Updated Review: Our father was a resident at Avamere at Keizer, where he received care across three levels of service over eight years - Assisted Living, Skilled Nursing and Long-Term Care. As a result our family had the opportunity to observe the facility and its staff over an extended period, and we came away with tremendous respect for the people who provided his day to day care. Caring for the residents with complex medical and emotional needs is work that few people are willing or able to do well. Time and again, we witnessed caregivers whose compassion, patience and genuine empathy went well beyond what was was required, enriching our father's quality of life and giving our family confidence that he was being treated with dignity and kindness.<br>There are certainly areas that deserve improvement but in our experience they generally reflect broader organizational consideration rather than the dedicated staff providing hands on care. The building is clean and generally free of any unpleasant odors, yet it is an older facility where deferred maintenance is noticeable. The food is adequate but reflects the processed convenience quality common in many institutional settings. Despite these shortcomings, the caregivers themselves consistently demonstrated professionalism, warmth and a level of commitment that deserves recognition and appreciation.<br><br>Comment: My dad is currently residing in avamere assisted living. He receives decent care. The management has always been responsive to any concerns that we have had. I believe that he gets the care that he pays for. This facility is not the most luxurious but it is clean and does not smell. Yes, it would be nice to have the next level up on food. Also, they could keep the hall blinds on an upward tilt to allow in more light. I do periodically see windows open to allow in fresh air and I am very grateful for that attention to detail. My family learned a hard lesson as we had to move our dad here from Bonaventure - yes, it looked nice there but there was no substance of management response or ability to provide care due to significant understaffing. It ended up being a modern facade that cost almost twice the amount and less care than he gets now. Avamere may not be perfect but it has been a solid decision for us.<br><br>My last review of my father's care was 4 yrs ago. Our family visits my dad at least 4x/wk. The care that I have observed has certainly been reasonable. It is important for all to realize that Assisted Living Care is an Industry. Your Loved one will get a baseline level of care - It is best if the family can supplement the care. A deeper analysis of what is required to take care of an Adult that has cognitive and physical limitations can be more difficult than one may ever imagine. Many do not realize that Assisted Living Centers and many medical/dental models are nowadays actually part of an Investment Portfolio and not privately owned by a church or other caring entity. The CNAs that I have interacted with are generally caring and trying to do their best .... Do they get support from upper mgmnt - (those who are not on site) I doubt it as the corporate model of health care, including hospitals operate their systems to profit the shareholders. Sad truth - That is why our family has made it a priority to facilitate and help with the care of our dad.<br>I have seen a review or two below of employee-s who were very poor in the care/caring component of their roles and noticed 1 star reviews.<br>With our own experience in prior assisted living and the experience of my friends who have been through this experience with their parents I would say that The care at Avamere is certainly within the Industry standard.<br>I hold to the 4 star review which is a "B" in the A-F system of grading
