Eliza Jennings Group

Pros

• The staff has shown incredible kindness and patience.
• The client feels welcomed and enjoys the company of others.
• Audrey enjoys the companionship and the activities provided at Acacia Place Day Center.
• Minni and the staff are always smiling and happy to see Audrey.
• Audrey looks forward to attending each week.
• Acacia Place treats families like family.
• The memory care staff at Eliza Jennings on Detroit Ave provide outstanding care.
• They connected with grandma and helped her enjoy her last months.

Cons

• The facility is understaffed and the leadership appears indifferent to resident care.
• Medications are occasionally missed or given inappropriately, risking harm to residents.
• Call buttons often go unanswered for long periods, sometimes over an hour.
• The overnight charge nurse is described as dismissive and rude, with gaps in care such as no physical therapy on weekends.
• Residents experience bedsores and there is a perception of favoritism in staff assignments.
• Transportation is unreliable and communication about pickups is poor.

Review

Across the Eliza Jennings campus in Cleveland, Acacia Place Day Center at the Eliza Jennings location presents a wide range of experiences that left different families with very different takeaways. What's undeniable is that the place can feel like a lifeline for some and a source of deep concern for others, depending on who you ask and when you visit. For many families, Acacia Place is described as a safe, welcoming, and engaging environment where a loved one can spend the day with support, companionship, and purposeful activity. Judy O., for example, spoke of leaving her mother there with dementia "knowing she is in a safe, supportive environment and receiving excellent care." She emphasized that her mother feels welcomed, enjoys the company of others, and that the staff have shown incredible kindness and patience. Another caregiver, Audrey, shared that after a difficult stretch during the pandemic, her partner Audrey's Alzheimer's progression seemed tempered by the social engagement and structured activities provided by Minni and the staff, who "are always smiling and happy to see Audrey." The sense of relief that comes from seeing a loved one welcomed, engaged, and cared for was a recurring thread in the positive comments, with some families also noting the quality of the daytime programming and the perception that staff are attentive, personable, and invested.

There are equally strong voices reporting serious concerns about staffing, safety, and communications. A number of reviews describe conditions that feel strained by understaffing - an issue that, for some families, translates into delayed responses, missed medications, and difficulty getting help when needed. One family recounted a rehab stay that turned into a troubling experience, detailing missed medications and a call button that rang for over an hour, ultimately culminating in a fall requiring multiple surgeries. Other accounts describe persistent staffing gaps, with calls to nurses or aides going unanswered for long stretches and reports that the facility is "low on staff." In another anecdote, a sister waiting for assistance described a call button situation that lingered for more than 15 minutes, underscoring a perceived gap between care ideals and day-to-day reality. There are also mentions of transportation problems - late pickups and a lack of proactive communication when plans change - which add to the sense that timely, reliable logistics are not consistently there.

The most emotionally resonant stories often revolve around the personal touches and moments of extraordinary care that families vividly remember. In some cases, staff were credited with transforming a difficult prognosis into deeply meaningful last months. For example, a hospice scenario described the dedicated work of Kay Kay, Sherlondra, Dominque, and the unit manager, along with the rest of the nursing team, who "treated my grandmother like she was their grandma." The account details how dementia-related episodes - confusion, paranoia, and agitation - were managed with patience and teamwork, allowing the grandmother to feel safe and connected. A guitar player named Alan and other staff who sang or danced with the patient were remembered as small, joyful acts that had meaningful impact. A similar sentiment was echoed by people who felt that the staff's warmth - and the sense that family members could lean on them - made a real difference in the patient's last months. In other words, when the care team connected in personal ways and offered consistent, compassionate attention, families perceived a level of care that went well beyond routine tasks.

There are also voices that reflect a broader nostalgia for what once felt like a more robust, patient-centered environment. A former volunteer who spent years at Eliza Jennings spoke fondly of the campus's beauty, the skilled workers who treated volunteers well, and the lively, engaged patients. This recollection suggests that the potential for a high-quality experience has been part of Acacia Place's identity, even if recent reports indicate that the day-to-day reality can swing toward under-staffing and inconsistencies. Other pieces express a deep sense of trust and appreciation for the memory care unit on Detroit Avenue, praising the staff, the level of care, and the strong rapport with residents, while still acknowledging the same campus's broader challenges.

A number of comments touch on concerns about care quality that feel far more systemic. Several reviewers mention bed sores among residents, a sign of potential long-standing issues around care standards and monitoring. There are also expressions of concern about favoritism among workers and challenges around welcoming new staff, suggesting cultural or management dynamics that some families feel undermine consistency and fairness. Taken together, these anecdotes portray a facility grappling with the tension between delivering compassionate, individualized care and managing staffing, workload, and operational pressures. The transportation shortcomings and questions about weekend physical therapy availability add to the sense that some essential services aren't as reliable as families would hope.

Despite the difficulties described, the overall narrative is not uniformly negative. Many families explicitly state how much they value the Acacia Place experience for their loved ones. They highlight that the staff - nurses, aides, and activity coordinators - can be warm, engaged, and responsive, and that when the care team is at its best, it makes a tangible difference in mood, safety, and daily enjoyment. For some, the facility's people are its strongest asset: the dedicated nurses, the compassionate aides, and the everyday kindness that helps residents feel seen and cared for. In several accounts, care teams performed with a level of dedication that brought comfort to families during trying times, and some families report that this level of care left a lasting, positive impression on them and their loved ones.

What emerges from these voices is a nuanced portrait of Acacia Place at Eliza Jennings: a place capable of extraordinary warmth, meaningful connection, and moment-by-moment support, yet simultaneously challenged by staffing pressures, safety concerns, and operational gaps in communication and logistics. For families weighing options, the takeaway emphasizes both the strength of the human relationships that can form there and the critical importance of closely observing care practices, staying engaged with the staff, and asking pointed questions about medications, response times, transportation, and the management of complex conditions. In the end, Acacia Place seems to be a setting where the potential for compassionate, person-centered care exists side by side with real, tangible challenges that require ongoing attention from leadership, caregivers, and families alike.

Restaurants

• Forage Public House (0 miles)
• Winking Lizard Tavern (0.4 miles)
• Barrio (0.7 miles)
• McDonald's (0.7 miles)
• Mahall's Twenty Lanes (1.1 miles)
• Ferris Deli & Restaurant (1.3 miles)
• The Avenue Tap House (1.4 miles)

Cafes

• Starbucks (0.2 miles)
• Rising Star Coffee Roasters (0.9 miles)
• Panera Bread (2.7 miles)
• Starbucks (3.1 miles)
• Ready Set Roasters (3.3 miles)
• Rising Star Coffee Roasters (4.6 miles)
• Lekko Coffee (4.7 miles)

Pharmacies

• Discount Drug Mart (0.3 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (0.4 miles)
• Walgreens (0.6 miles)
• Rite Aid (0.7 miles)
• Discount Drug Mart (1 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (1.5 miles)
• Walgreens (1.5 miles)

Parks

• Lakewood Park (0.5 miles)
• Niagara Park (1.5 miles)
• Metroparks Rocky River Reservation North (1.9 miles)
• Bohlken Park (3.4 miles)
• Edgewater Park (3.7 miles)
• Wendy Moore Memorial Park (4.3 miles)
• Tri-City Park (4.5 miles)

Places of Worship

• St Ignatius of Antioch Church (2.6 miles)
• St. Rocco's Church (4.9 miles)

Hospitals

• Cleveland Clinic - Fairview Hospital (2.8 miles)
• CCF Fairview Hospital (2.8 miles)
• Cleveland Clinic - Lutheran Hospital (4.7 miles)
• Trauma ICU (5.5 miles)

Transportation

• Cleveland Rental Car Center (4.8 miles)
• National Car Rental (4.8 miles)
• Hertz Rent A Car (4.8 miles)
• Cleveland-Hopkins International Airport (CLE) (5.5 miles)
• American Airlines Ticket Counter (5.5 miles)
• United Airlines Ticket Counter (5.6 miles)
• Concourse B (5.6 miles)

Physicians

• Orthopedic Associates Westlake (5.1 miles)
• Cuyahoga County Board of Health (5.2 miles)
• North; Shore Gastroenterology & Endoscopy Center (5.5 miles)
• Premier Physicians (5.6 miles)