Wanaque Convalescent Ctr in Haskell, NJ

Pros

• The staff are praised as among the best, consistently taking excellent care of residents.
• The facility is wonderful and caring, with care that is hard to beat.
• The staff are friendly and know what they are supposed to do.
• The environment is warm and welcoming, and residents feel well cared for.
• There are many activities and recreational events for residents to enjoy.
• The administration and staff go above and beyond in caring for residents.
• The staff truly care for their patients and treat them with warmth and dedication.
• Medical and skin care are thorough, and crises are handled appropriately.
• Visitors are welcome at any time, and administrative support is available.
• The facility offers pleasant amenities like outdoor patios and home-cooked holiday meals.

Cons

• The friend has been neglected and forced to take unnecessary medications for extra money.
• The place is a hellhole and the staff are awful.
• The high reviews come from former staff, and the new staff are terrible.
• Families who visit here will leave their relatives more damaged.
• The facility was not clean and had a foul odor; the staff were unsavory.
• The staff are rude and nasty, and the environment is dirty.
• The facility is very understaffed and extremely filthy; children are unattended and nurses give attitude.
• The reviewer would not recommend this facility and would never send a loved one here.
• The rating appears inflated due to patient-to-staff ratio.

Review

Wanaque Convalescent Center in Haskell is best suited for families seeking a deeply human, activity-rich environment where staff are frequently praised for warmth, attentiveness, and hands-on care. The facility appears to work best for residents who respond to personal attention, enjoy regular activities, and value a administration that families feel supports and communicates with them. When the care team is aligned and responsive, the reviews paint a picture of a place where residents feel seen, meals and events matter, and visitors are welcomed. That said, the strongest selling points hinge on the consistency and demeanor of the on-site staff, which can swing dramatically from one shift to another.

Alternatives should be seriously considered for families prioritizing uniform safety, spotless surroundings, and reliable, continuous staffing at every hour. A number of reviews flag persistent concerns: understaffing or uneven training, cleanlines issues, unpleasant odors, and scenes of staff behavior that feel dispassionate or inattentive. Some families report repeated falls and delayed assistance, while others note old furnishings, hot rooms, and basic maintenance gaps. If a resident requires rigorous, round-the-clock monitoring or an impeccably clean, consistently well-maintained environment, other options may offer more dependable transparency and calmer day-to-day living.

The core strengths - genuine warmth, visible care from many staff members, and an ability to create a welcoming atmosphere - do not exist in a vacuum. Where caregiving shows up as compassionate, it can offset some rough edges: dedicated nurses, aides who respond with care, and administrators who are approachable and involved. The facility earns praise for respiratory and skin-care vigilance in certain cases, for meaningful activities, and for home-like touches during holidays and meals that involve families. In short, the pros show up as real, tangible person-centered care when the staff is in sync, creating moments of comfort and connection that families value deeply.

Yet these positives are paired with notable risks if the environment deteriorates on any shift. Reviews describe environments that are not consistently clean, with foul odors and untidy rooms, plus concerns about equipment integrity and safe handling (for example, lifts and fall prevention). There are accounts of patients being left unattended for long periods, call bells ignored, and even misunderstandings about medical directions. In some cases, families report that old furniture, tight spaces, and a lacking sense of order undermine comfort and safety. The contrast is stark: when staffing is adequate and engaged, care shines; when it isn't, risk and distress rise quickly.

For families evaluating this community, the tour and direct conversations with current residents and families become the deciding factor. Scrutinize staffing levels by shift, request to meet frontline caregivers on the floor, and observe cleanliness and odors during peak activity times. Ask about fall-prevention protocols, one-on-one monitoring options, and how often residents lose privacy or dignity due to staffing gaps. Request recent incident logs, clarity about how quickly help is provided, and whether there is a consistent plan for addressing cleanliness and maintenance. Inquire about meal quality and the availability of personalized dietary plans, as these are recurring touchpoints in mixed reviews.

Bottom line: Wanaque Convalescent Center can be a fit for families who prize a warm, engaged caregiving culture and are willing to actively participate in oversight to ensure consistency across shifts. It is not the best match for families needing uniform cleanliness, flawless maintenance, and consistently high staffing ratios. If the priority is daily reliability and a pristine, low-stress environment, exploring alternatives is prudent. For those who can couple vigilant oversight with participation in the resident's daily routine, this community may deliver meaningful warmth, social engagement, and tangible moments of good care - provided the day-to-day realities on the floor align with those hopeful, human-centered ideals.

Cafes

• Starbucks (0.5 miles)
• Starbucks (3.2 miles)
• Starbucks (6.9 miles)
• Willow & Whisk (6.9 miles)
• Starbucks (8.5 miles)
• Panera Bread (9 miles)
• Starbucks (9.1 miles)

Pharmacies

• CVS Pharmacy (1 miles)
• Hometown Pharmacy (1.6 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (1.9 miles)
• Walgreens (1.9 miles)
• Walgreens (3.2 miles)
• Pompton Pharmacy (3.3 miles)
• CVS Pharmacy (4.6 miles)

Parks

• Hershfield Park (1.5 miles)
• Paterson Great Falls National Historical Park (9.2 miles)
• Volunteers Park (10.4 miles)
• Saddle River County Park (10.6 miles)
• Saddle River County Park - Dunkerhook Area (11.4 miles)

Restaurants

• Oakland Diner (2 miles)
• Curly's Ice Cream (2.1 miles)
• Pompton Queen Diner & Restaurant (2.8 miles)
• The Wayne Hills Diner & Restaurant (4.2 miles)
• Maggies Town Tavern (4.9 miles)
• Jersey Johnnys Grill (4.9 miles)
• Goldberg Famous Bagels (5.5 miles)

Physicians

• Nihal De Silva (2.4 miles)
• Costello Oral Surgery Associates (4.9 miles)
• Retina Associates of New Jersey PA (6.6 miles)
• Dr Mondana S. Yazdi, MD (6.6 miles)
• Christian Health Care Center () (7 miles)
• Paterson Community Health Center (9.1 miles)
• Changebridge Medical Associates (9.3 miles)

Hospitals

• Chilton Memorial Hospital (3.9 miles)
• Saint Clare's Hospital (9.8 miles)
• St Joseph's Regional Medical Center (10.4 miles)
• The Valley Hospital (10.5 miles)

Places of Worship

• Immaculate Heart Of Mary School (5.1 miles)
• Hawthorne Gospel Church (7.8 miles)
• St Pauls Parish (8.1 miles)
• Community Church Of Glen Rock (9.8 miles)
• All Saints Episcopal Church (9.8 miles)

Transportation

• IHA Arbor Road Bus Stop (5.7 miles)
• NJT - Hawthorne Station (9.1 miles)
• NJT - Waldwick Station (9.2 miles)
• Metro North / NJT - Suffern Station (10.2 miles)

Theaters

• Cinemark (8.9 miles)