Hebrew Home and Revitz House of Greater Washington

After having a bad fall and breaking both ankles and a wrist, I was sent to the Hebrew Home for rehabilitation. I spent a week there and the experience was so miserable that I fell a need to share it with the community. Once I arrived in the House, I was placed in a tiny room with a bed. The room was extremely hot-nearly 80 degrees- and there was no way to reduce the temperature from one’s own room. The bed sheets on the bed had large holes in them and the staff refused to replace them. But even worse-the whole facility is dirty and completely infested by mice. I saw at least three times mice in my room, which made me too scared to eat anything provided by the kitchen in the home. In its current state the Home is a shame for the Jewish community. My advice is: don’t let your loved ones go there.

Very friendly and responsive staff.

Revitz House is no frills independent living. Imagine a college dorm but for seniors. For my sister it has been wonderful. She's gone from being a total hermit to someone who is involved in classes and surrounded by nosy, caring neighbors. The cooking may not be gourmet, but at least I know she's getting something to eat. I agree that the elevators are a problem, at mealtimes there is a long wait to use them. Revitz House is within easy walking distance of the wonderful facilities of the JCC, restaurants and shopping at Federal Plaza and Congressional Plaza. A Trader Joe Grocery is a five minute walk away. There is a busline on the edge of the property that connects with the Metro and Revitz offers a shuttlebus for shopping trips a couple times a week. Staff are very tolerant of my sister (she is an extreme obsessive compulsive which makes her a rather annoying person to deal with). This is a good option for an ambulatory person and it made a world of difference in my sister's life.

Unfortunately, my mother has been stuck in this place for almost 10 years. The problems in this place include: Elevators that break down regularly The staff uses the emergency public broadcast/ intercom system daily to tell residents about activities and the unregulated cafe they operate- an intrusion of privacy- you cannot escape these unwanted 'announcements' which are available on their TV access channel and other places. My mother has to suffer thru these loud announcements in her apartment daily. Dirty hall ways and laundry room The "cafe" where food is prepared and served (Mondays and Wednesdays lunch)- by untrained, unsupervised senior volunteers. Food is left on counter, volunteers don't wash their hands and the place has operated without the Health Departments knowledge until recently. So there is no oversight or food safety program in place. The dinning plan is mandatory and the food is sub-standard, boring, repetitive and downright insulting. Although they claim to be kosher and cost of the food plan has gone up, the quality has gone down. Cold-cuts and hot dogs are a regular dinner. Vegetables appear to the the rejects- like giant zucchini which is boiled to mush. Dinners often are served cold. It was reported that the oven wasn't working which delayed their dinners. There are possible fire safety issues with the building exit doors. The elevators get backed up so seniors who are mobile enough might take the stairs- except that the stairway door to the lobby is locked. One floor down- the door is an emergency exit which was found to be bolted shut somehow, at the top. Reports have been made to the fire department and health department. If you can avoid this place- do! It is supposed to be 'independent living' However, more and more disabled folks are accepted for residency, even tho they do not have the staff to oversee them. Mom found a woman in the elevator who had fallen out of her wheelchair. What was she to do? No security cameras in the elevator or in the stairwells. Revitz receives public funds. Where's the oversight?

The people here were very pleasant. I am impressed with the quality of the food, and happy to see utilities are included. The apartment is small but nice. I didn't like having to go downstairs to do laundry. The place didn't look especially cared for and clean as it should be. While I was there, a resident complained that the hall hadn't be cleaned in over two weeks, the building services man just laughed. A general rule of thumb for me is to ask the question, " would I be happy to live here ?"