Good Samaritan Society - Hillside Lodge

Pros

• The community and staff are incredible and treat everyone as family.
• Residents appear to enjoy life at Lake Forest.
• The facility has nice staff, is clean, and offers plenty of activities.
• Good Samaritan is a wonderful place, and Kit is a joy to work with.
• The home is one of the better living facilities for the elderly, with a great staff and nicely lit rooms with parking spaces.
• Kristy M. is praised for kindness and going out of her way to ensure comfort.
• The staff are pleasant, the facility is clean and attentive, and the food is good.
• The community is well maintained, clean and aesthetically pleasing.

Cons

• The reviewer states that Nurse Donna was rude and unprofessional, including how she spoke to coworkers.
• The reviewer describes social worker Lisa as very unprofessional and unable to communicate, noting she slammed the door in the reviewer's face and that staff were hard to access.
• The reviewer alleges a family member admitted on 08/26 was discharged on 09/09 after insurance would not pay, leaving her weaker, and told to sign a document claiming therapy goals were completed; she is now back in hospital with a life-threatening mouth infection.
• The reviewer says the assisted living manager did not return several detailed messages, reflecting a lack of professionalism.
• The reviewer highlights staffing issues: some staff were unhappy, there were apparent shortages and conflicts, and hospice involvement allegedly diminished the quality of care; overall care is described as substandard due to understaffing.
• The reviewer notes a problematic medication incident, including a claim that a nurse intended to give all pain meds at once, raising concerns about overdose and a DNR-related implication.
• The reviewer concludes that the overall experience was disappointing and would not recommend the facility for a loved one.

Review

Across years of visits to the Lake Forest community, formerly known as Good Samaritan, the reviews present a portrait that is both warm and troubled. On one hand, many people describe a well-maintained campus with pleasant, attentive staff, clean facilities, and a sense of community that comes from strong leadership and a family-like atmosphere. On the other hand, other residents' families recount troubling interactions with individual staff, communication gaps, and care concerns that left them worried about safety and respect. Taken together, the collection paints a picture of a place with real strengths in its environment and some staff members, but with serious consistency issues in communication, staffing, and certain care practices that need attention.

Several reviewers highlight the positives in a way that stands out. They note a clean facility with well-lit rooms and convenient parking, and they repeatedly praise the physical environment. Comments such as "Pleasant staff. Clean. Attentive. Food is good. Best in Mountain Home, Arkansas," and "This home is one of the better living facilities for the elderly and had a great staff plus nice rooms well lit with parking spaces for the residents" underline a common impression of a well-kept setting. Others emphasize the social and emotional climate: "The community and staff from the top down is incredible! They treat everyone as if they are family!" and "Great senior living community with attentive staff." Some individuals even name specific staff members who left a positive impression, with gratitude expressed toward Kristy M. for kindness and a visitor noting they were comfortable thanks to her help, while another speaker mentions enjoying interactions with Kit, describing it as a joy to work with that staff member. These threads suggest that, for many residents and families, the facility can deliver warmth, attentiveness, and a sense of belonging when the right people are involved.

Yet the other side of the story is equally forceful and harder to overlook. A number of reviewers recount encounters that feel unprofessional or unkind. One observer describes a nurse as rude and unprofessional - not only in interactions with the family but in conversations with coworkers. Another reviewer singles out a social worker as unprofessional, saying she "slammed the door in my face" and that it was difficult to obtain staff availability, with some describing staff as "delusional." The sense of accessibility and timely communication appears to be inconsistent, with one reviewer reporting repeatedly leaving messages for the assisted living manager without receiving a returned call. The refrain is clear: when communication breaks down or encounters with staff go poorly, the experience deteriorates quickly and leaves a lasting negative impression.

Care and medical management issues feature prominently in several entries. One account describes a discharging experience that feels rushed and potentially inappropriate: a family member's mother-in-law (MIL) was admitted on 08/26 and kicked out on 09/09 after the insurer would no longer pay, with the patient leaving weaker and less able to care for herself. The family claims she was pressured to sign a document stating that all goals of therapy had been completed, only to end up back in the hospital with a life-threatening infection in her mouth less than a week after discharge. Other concerns focus on pain management and medication administration: a reviewer questions why pain meds were not given despite a patient's suffering and describes a moment where a nurse contemplated giving a large dose at once, which could have been dangerous. Another narrative indicates a comment about DNR status affecting the administration of pain relief, implying a problematic conflation of end-of-life directives with routine analgesia. Taken together, these stories raise serious questions about consistency in treatment plans, appropriateness of discharges, and the prioritization of patient comfort and safety.

Staffing and morale are central threads in several reviews. There is a persistent sense that the facility is sometimes "short staffed," with reviewers observing conflicts between staff and even witnessing people in tears or engaged in hallway discussions about staffing levels. One account notes that, during the two months their father was there, it often appeared as if staff were stretched thin, a factor they link to suboptimal care. The relationship between staffing and quality of care is further complicated by a broader observation that CNAs are underpaid, which some attendees imply contributes to the broader staffing challenges. Hospice involvement adds another layer: one reviewer notes that once Hospice of the Ozarks became involved, the service diminished substantially, even though the same rate was being charged. These insights suggest that while the facility's mission is to provide comprehensive care, real-world staffing realities are impacting day-to-day service and patient experience.

Amid the mixed feedback, there is a sense of contradiction that runs through many of the comments. Some families describe the staff as "incredible" at all levels and emphasize compassionate care and a welcoming atmosphere. Others recount episodes that feel substandard or callous, with concerns about communication gaps, allegations of unprofessional behavior, and worries about the safety and adequacy of medical management. This juxtaposition - strong praise from some families and sharp critique from others - illustrates a facility that can deliver high-quality experiences when the right people are involved, but that struggles with consistency, accountability, and coordination across departments and shifts.

In sum, the reviews portray a Lake Forest environment with meaningful strengths and meaningful weaknesses. The campus, amenities, and some staff members clearly contribute to positive experiences, comfort, and a sense of community. Yet a number of accounts raise red flags about staff professionalism in certain interactions, the consistency and timeliness of communications, and the safety and appropriateness of medical and discharge decisions. The prevailing hope expressed by those who care about the community is that the organization will address these concerns and foster a more uniformly respectful, responsive, and patient-centered environment for both residents and their families.

Transportation

• Mountain Home Taxi Service (1.1 miles)
• Baxter County Regional Hospital Heliport (2.6 miles)
• U-Haul (5.2 miles)
• U-Haul Neighborhood Dealer (14.5 miles)
• U-Haul Neighborhood Dealer (15.7 miles)

Places of Worship

• First Free Will Baptist Church (1.3 miles)
• Community or Christ (1.9 miles)
• Brand New Church Mountain Home (2.2 miles)
• Christian Science Reading Room (2.3 miles)
• Word Of Life Church (2.4 miles)
• First Assembly Of God Church (2.4 miles)
• Basilica-The Assumption Trust (2.5 miles)

Hospitals

• Baxter County Regional Hospital Inc. (1.7 miles)
• Freeman Medical Center (2.8 miles)
• Baxter Regional Medical Center (3 miles)
• Brmc (3 miles)
• Baxter Regional Wound Care Clinic (3.3 miles)

Cafes

• Daylight Donuts (1.9 miles)
• Cove Coffee (2.2 miles)
• Brewed Awakening #3 (2.3 miles)
• Shipley Donuts (2.5 miles)
• Warrior Cafe (11 miles)

Restaurants

• 9th Street Grill (1.9 miles)
• QT Cup Cakes And More (2.1 miles)
• Raimondo Winery (2.2 miles)
• Clayton's Downtown Grill (2.2 miles)
• Rio Burrito (2.2 miles)
• The Cracked Egg (2.4 miles)
• Hardee's (2.4 miles)

Physicians

• Baxter Regional Medical Cln (2.1 miles)
• Mountain Home Medical Group Pa (2.1 miles)
• Newman, MD Plastic Surgery (2.1 miles)
• Lambert Shirley (2.1 miles)
• Cardiovascular Associates (2.7 miles)
• Baxter Regional Heart Clinic (2.7 miles)
• Interventional Pain Management - Mountain Home (2.8 miles)

Pharmacies

• Ponder Health (2.1 miles)
• Magee-Thomas Pharmacy (2.2 miles)
• Genuine Care Pharmacy (2.3 miles)
• Mountain Home Christian Clinic (2.4 miles)
• Fred's Pharmacy (2.4 miles)
• Walgreens (2.4 miles)
• Harp's (2.5 miles)

Parks

• Mountain Home Parks & Recreation (2.1 miles)
• Big Spring Park (11 miles)
• Bull Shoals–White River State Park (13.6 miles)
• Hickey Park (14.1 miles)

Theaters

• Baxter Cinema (2.7 miles)