Wingate at Needham

Pros

• The staff at Wingate are outstanding in their own unique and special ways, consistently going above and beyond in caring for residents.
• The Wingate community and its staff care deeply about each resident and their individual needs.
• Jose, Abbey, Fredy, and Rick are exceptional staff members who have gone above and beyond in caring for residents.
• Wingate is described as a warm and loving environment where residents feel at home.
• Jose Soto, the activities director, is an incredible person leading a team that engages residents with dedication.
• The care at Wingate helps residents thrive and provides families with peace of mind.
• The Neighborhood and Wingate Residences have compassionate, attentive staff who treat everyone with love and compassion.
• The memory care director and the head nurse work well together, and the memory care staff are upbeat, compassionate, and empathetic.
• Wingate is a wonderful, clean, and well-maintained facility with friendly and helpful staff.
• Wingate staff demonstrate dignity, respect, and consistent care for residents, rallying around families.

Cons

• Ketly spoke to a colleague in a disrespectful and aggressive way, raising her voice and humiliating her in front of residents.
• Mice are a big problem here, seen running through the dining room and into residents' apartments.
• The director claimed there have never been mice in the kitchen, despite residents' experiences otherwise.
• In memory care, RNs were described as providing only medication administration and not performing tasks requiring nursing skills, with other care gaps observed.
• The meals staff reportedly fed a resident ice cream daily for months, and leadership ignored repeated requests to stop, citing resident rights and doctors' orders.
• There is high staff turnover and little training, resulting in inconsistent care.
• There is a lack of accountability from leadership, from the director to the head of nursing.
• The sales pitch does not match reality, and the reviewer cannot recommend the facility at this time.

Review

Wingate Residences Needham is a community that inspires strong, mixed feelings among the families and residents who have lived there. On one hand, many caregivers and loved ones sing praise about the warmth, cleanliness, and sense of home that a number of reviewers describe. They emphasize the people who work there - the staff who show up every day, the leadership behind the scenes, and the meaningful connections that form with residents. In particular, the atmosphere and the level of attention from the team are repeatedly highlighted as standout strengths. Numerous reviews speak to a "warm and loving environment" and a community where the residents are treated with care, dignity, and genuine interest in their well?being. The physical setting is described as beautiful, clean, and comfortable, with a home?like feel that makes both residents and families feel at ease.

A substantial portion of the praise centers on specific staff members who have left lasting positive impressions. Jose Soto, identified as the memory care director, is frequently cited as a remarkable leader whose team is described as upbeat, compassionate, and empathetic in their interactions with residents and their families. Reviewers repeatedly mention Jose and his colleagues, noting that they "go above and beyond" to engage residents in meaningful activities and to support families through challenging times. Alongside Jose, other staff members - such as Allie and members of the activities and nursing teams - are lauded for their dedication, attentiveness, and the sense of trust they foster. One reviewer summarizes a broad appreciation: the staff are "absolutely outstanding" in their own unique ways, and families feel blessed to have them involved in their relatives' lives. Across several accounts, the impression is that the Wingate team, led by Jose, makes a real difference in the daily lives of residents.

Another thread across the reviews is a strong sense of trust in the care and the residents' experience when it goes well. Many families speak to their own personal experiences with loved ones who thrived or felt at home, using phrases like "my mother has lived here for over a year" and "they care about each resident and their individual needs." The sentiment is that Wingate can be a place of stability, safety, and engagement, where residents are encouraged to participate in activities, be social, and feel valued. The testimonials frequently stress that, in the best weeks and months, the team communicates openly and effectively with families about the sister or brother living there, and that staff members will work with families to find solutions when bumps in the road arise. In these accounts, the combination of caring staff, clean facilities, and purposeful programming adds up to a supportive environment that families want to embrace.

Not every review presents Wingate as flawless, however. Several paragraphs recount serious concerns that deeply affect trust and confidence in the community. One reviewer recounts a distressing incident in which a staff member named Ketly spoke to a colleague in a disrespectful and aggressive manner, raising her voice and humiliating the other staff member in front of residents. The reviewer describes this behavior as completely unacceptable and unprofessional, stressing that the atmosphere in a setting designed to care for elderly residents should be calm, kind, and supportive. This account conveys the strong negative impact such conduct has on both staff morale and the residents' experience, and it underscores a demand for accountability and better conduct in front of residents and families alike.

Issues outside the dining room and living areas also show up in the feedback. Another review centers on a persistent rodent problem, with mice observed "running thru the dining room on many occasions and in my father's apartment." The director at the time reportedly dismissed a family member's concerns, saying, "we have never seen a mouse in our kitchen," which prompted an escalation that included involvement by the Needham Board of Health. The reviewer suggested that the facility's priorities seemed misaligned, implying that care should take precedence over appearances or profit margins. While the building's appearance may be inviting, the reviewer argues that deeper problems - procedural accountability and a responsive leadership culture - needed attention and reform.

There is also a pointed critique of the memory care experience. One family describes a "terrible experience" in Wingate's memory care in Needham, alleging misrepresentations about nursing capabilities. They claim the RN staff primarily administer medications and are not empowered to perform what they consider basic nursing tasks, such as taking blood pressure or tending wounds. The reviewer accuses leadership of a lack of accountability across the continuum - from the director to the head nurse - and notes high turnover and inconsistent training. The emotional tone is urgent: despite the presence of some wonderful staff, the majority allegedly lacked the skills needed to care for residents with memory issues, and concerns expressed to leadership were not acted upon. This account ends with the family choosing to move their father to a different facility where they felt the care would be more aligned with doctors' orders and residents' needs.

Yet even amid these criticisms, other reviewers speak highly of the same memory care environment when leadership and teamwork are strong. Several accounts emphasize that the memory care director and nursing leadership work well together, providing a more cohesive and supportive experience for families and residents. They describe a culture where dignity, respect, and meaningful daily activities remain central, and where the staff's knowledge about dementia is "outstanding." In these narratives, when things don't go perfectly, the staff are described as willing to collaborate with families to find solutions and to ease residents' minds, reinforcing the sense that Wingate can be a place of comfort and stability with the right leadership and consistent practices.

Taken together, the collection of reviews paints a nuanced portrait of Wingate Residences Needham. The community is frequently praised for its warmth, its clean and inviting environment, and its dedicated staff who invest in residents' daily lives, especially within the memory care program. Positive testimonies highlight strong leadership under Jose Soto, exceptional engagement by activities teams, and a genuine commitment to individualized care. At the same time, there are clear and serious concerns raised about professional conduct by a staff member, about management's responsiveness to complaints, and about the reliability of memory care services in certain instances. These mixed experiences suggest that while Wingate can be a wonderful home for many residents and their families, there are important areas for improvement - especially in staff conduct, accountability, and proactive problem resolution - that prospective residents and their families should carefully evaluate by visiting, asking detailed questions, and observing interactions firsthand.

Located in Needham, Massachusetts, this area offers a variety of amenities for seniors looking to reside in a vibrant community. With a range of dining options including Echo Bridge Restaurant, Truly Yogurt, and Margaritas Mexican Restaurant, there are plenty of choices for delicious meals. In terms of healthcare, Newton-Wellesley Hospital and several pharmacies like Walgreens and CVS are conveniently located nearby. Parks such as Cutler Park and Larz Anderson Park provide opportunities for outdoor recreation and relaxation. Additionally, access to transportation via MBTA stations like Riverside Station and Reservoir Station make it easy for seniors to get around the area. Places of worship such as Parish of the Messiah and Temple Shir Tikva cater to spiritual needs, while theaters like Showcase SuperLux offer entertainment options. Overall, this part of Needham provides a well-rounded environment for seniors looking for a mix of convenience, leisure, and community engagement.

Restaurants

• Echo Bridge Restaurant (0.9 miles)
• McDonald's (1.3 miles)
• Truly Yogurt (3.2 miles)
• Corrib Pub & Restaurant (3.9 miles)
• Chick-Fil-A (4.2 miles)
• Eggs & Thai Cafe (4.6 miles)
• Margaritas Mexican Restaurant (5 miles)

Cafes

• French Press Bakery & Cafe (1.4 miles)
• Starbucks (3.4 miles)
• Blue Bottle Coffee (3.5 miles)
• Starbucks (4.4 miles)
• Starbucks (5.6 miles)
• Mike's Donuts (6.2 miles)
• Tatte Bakery & Cafe (7.3 miles)

Pharmacies

• Walgreens (1.4 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (1.5 miles)
• Wegmans (3.1 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (3.2 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (3.7 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (3.8 miles)
• Walgreens (3.9 miles)

Parks

• Newton Highlands Playground (1.5 miles)
• Cutler Park (1.9 miles)
• Larz Anderson Park (4.9 miles)
• Pagel Playground (5.7 miles)
• Jamaica Pond (5.8 miles)
• Olmsted Park (6 miles)
• Natick Common (6.1 miles)

Hospitals

• Newton-Wellesley Hospital (2.2 miles)
• West Roxbury VA Hospital (3.5 miles)
• New England Baptist Outpatient Care Center (6 miles)
• Lemuel Shattuck Hospital (6.5 miles)
• New England Baptist Hospital (6.6 miles)
• McLean Hospital (6.7 miles)
• Brigham and Women's Hospital (6.7 miles)

Physicians

• Dedham Medical (2.7 miles)
• Mersi (5.7 miles)
• Bidmc Lowry Building (6.6 miles)
• Mass. Eye and Ear (6.6 miles)
• Harvard Medical School (6.8 miles)
• Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates – Spinal Unit/Pain Management (7.3 miles)
• Harvard Vanguard Medical Associates (7.3 miles)

Transportation

• MBTA Riverside Station (2.8 miles)
• MBTA Reservoir Station (4.8 miles)
• Readville (6.5 miles)
• MBTA Fenway Station (7.1 miles)
• Route 128 station (7.5 miles)
• MBTA Ruggles Station (7.6 miles)

Places of Worship

• Parish of the Messiah (3.1 miles)
• Temple Shir Tikva (7.2 miles)
• Our Lady's Church (7.4 miles)
• Saint Catherine of Siena Parish (7.4 miles)

Theaters

• Showcase SuperLux (3.4 miles)
• Cinema World Majestic 7 (5.6 miles)