licensed practical nurse

nursing assistant

server

housekeeper

home health aide

Brandywine Living

I have been at Brandywine Living for six years up until recently. I used to work Mondays-Fridays 6am-2pm.  The schedule I always dreamed of. It can't get any better right? Well I decided to give all that up due to the lack of management and poor leadership in Litchfield CT. I started as a part time employee in the Kitchen as a waitstaff. Over the years I was bumped up to a lead and then eventually to Dining Room Supervisor. Things started going downhill when a new FSD was put in place. This person was promoted from Chef to FSD. Although this person was a great chef, he didn't carry over his great work ethic as a chef to his new FSD position. He handles his employees very unprofessionally and many people have left because of him including myself. I gave up my second family at Brandywine just to get away from him and the hostile work environment he creates. On Friday August 14th, he even swore at me in the Dining Room in front of another employee while there were residents a few feet away as well. This is not appropriate behavior for a Department Head who employees are supposed to look up to. I brought this up to HR and to the ED after it happened in hopes of getting something done. This is the type of behavior that this person gets away with and he's been doing it for years. Most employees are afraid to speak up in fear of retaliation or creating an unfriendly working environment. All I ask is that Corporate please follow up with this community and take the time to listen to the employees and what they have to say. Please don’t let one bad apple keep ruining this beautiful community. It breaks my heart to leave my coworkers behind, but this FSD is not going anywhere and is going to continue getting away with this kind of behavior. Brandywine was my very first job and always treated me good. I have developed so many relationships with staff and residents that I will hold close to my heart. Over the years I have learned so many new supervisory and cooking skills from my colleagues that I will forever be grateful for and continue to use to advance my career. Thank you for allowing me the opportunity to spend six years together. 

The work you do in the dining room at Brandywine Assisted Living is very rushed and one can expect many interruptions during the day. On a good day, you will be able to sit down and have a little break but on a bad day, forget about it. This is worsened by the fact that 30 minutes of break are taken out of your paycheck automatically every day, irregardless of whether or not you actually get to take it.The expectations of the management are as if you were working at a 5 star restaurant and compensated as such, and the residents themselves do not actually care for all these trifling details since they just want to be taken care of, interacted with, and fed. If you aren't a manager, they treat you as if you do not exist and they themselves break the rules and codes with no regard that you would yourself face at the very least a write-up for breaking. 

The management is very unprofessional and does not appreciate anything you do in the slightest. The less you do here, in fact, the more they seem to leave you be. The employment is also at will so any job security goes out the window, especially given the chilling prevalence of favoritism among managers that seems to be characteristic of Brandywine in my past experience. There is no care for the employees here. It is clear among managers that they believe for whatever pay rate you get you need to move mountains and stretch yourself immeasurably to bridge the gap between insufficient manpower and far too much work.

In short, I would not recommend Brandywine as a place to live or work, between the work environment and management that promotes poor to nonexistent work ethic, the gross lack of appreciation or respect for those who despite it all still come to work with a good attitude, and the sheer lack of powerlessness the workers have against the management, all compounded by nothing ever changing, as Corporate too seems to buy into the pattern of a circle of favoritism among management.

after the old wellness director left everything fell apart. he was the one that held the place together and ran the show every day. the current wellness director dont know what shes doing and the place is always understaffed. you come to work and work short have call outs and are made to feel like a servant. you hardly see the executive director the director of building repairs dont fix anything and the activities director does her personal shopping when she does decide to come in. so many good staff keep leaving bc things just dont run like they should. even the dining department got people cooking that shouldnt be. when covid hit us hard they offered big bucks for people to work with the dying and sick residents. then once it was over they went back to staffing with just one aide on the night shift again and just two aides on the other shifts. its not safe and residents are not treated right or fed or hydrated right and there is never any managers ever around on the weekends. the executive director doesnt listen and then they call you nonstop when there be a call out. you have to work every weekend and they expect you to still pick up more time. corporate needs to come in and do a complete overhaul of this building. I got friends that work for other buildings and they say the same things and are always looking for a new job. I had enough and got out and you would be smart if you dont even look into here. 

Before I got hired for this company I stated to them I had a parent with cancer that I was a caregiver for and needed to adjust my schedule at times because she was in her final stages of life. The same day my mother died which was a Thursday, they never asked if she was even alive. I got a phone call from management asking was I coming in tomorrow.(meaning the next day)  then asked would I be working the weekend and stated “because we really need you here”  I was disgusted that management was asking me about work while I was trying to adjust to the fact it was the last moment with my mom. The moment I got the phone call from management I was at the hospital alone in the conference room. I had a dying mother and they were not very understanding. With this being said,you would have to be just as much of a basket case as they are if you choose to work there. If they couldn’t  comprehend I needed those last moments with my mom I wonder how understanding they’ll be if I was sick, or if i had another emergency? Finally, I ended up handwriting a writing a letter to management resigning because hours later my mom died, but  I still wrote a letter and they never contacted me back. As long as they still have the same management I would not recommend working there. They’ll always be hiring because they are terrible.  So that was my personal experience and I can only hope they do better in the future.

I have learned the value of service each tenant deserves and its importance to each.
A typical day is busy answering telephone calls, transferring calls, formally welcoming guests, and seeing a line of tenants waiting to talk to me personally. I have learned not to interfere with a tenant's personal choices; however, I see how important it is to know each tenant's name. I usually mention their name three times in a sentence when I meet them for the first time, making it easy for me to remember their name later. As tenant's apartment numbers appear on the computer for assistance, I make it a point to write the number. I do this as I announce on the walky-talky for a care manager to go and assist with that apartment number. As soon as the number disappears from the computer, I announce a nice clear thank you for caring for that tenant. The head nurse complimented me on this because the care managers are motivated by the thank you. I have made dinner reservations at outside restaurants for the tenants, and they come back delighted with my choice of restaurant.  I am a shirt-and-tie gentleman and enjoy what I do.

I have worked for senior suites for some time now and really enjoy my job and my bosses. The don is a great guy and makes sure you have all the training that you need before starting on your own. The other managers are all nice people but they need a new dining director and new dining staff. Problems are brought to the ed about the dining department and how they are constantly rude to others and do not provide items to the memory care floor as needed but nothing gets done. I just got my evaluation from the don and he gave me a raise and thanked me for all that I do for my residents. The don and adon and memory care coordinators are great people who are willing to help you out and lend hands when needed. Overall I love my job but just wish that they could do more to help with the dining issues that keep happening. I would recommend senior suites nursing to anyone but dont even think about applying for dining if they offer it to you.

As a  "private" Hospitality Concierage I meet each morning with residents to review their daily schedules, requests, and matters of interests; coordinate with other departments; liaise with residents' family and friends.
I am increasing my knowledge surrounding seniors and elders,  some who may require extra special assistance and those with limited abilities.
Managers, at all levels, are highly skilled. The culure is highly professional. The hardest part of the job is managing my emotions as I interact with residents who require special medical attention. I enjoy interacting with all residents because they are wise, engaging, and want to feel relevant.

I have been at Brandywine more than 10 years, along with alot of the other staff members. We are comfortable, happy, work in a loving and family like environment, have a GREAT management TEAM. Have compassion and actually care about our residents. Our families Rave about how well their parents are taken care of and how the staff treats them like their own families. We hardly ever work short staffed, and if we do have a call out we have incentives to encourage staff to come in. We were given a new schedule to work five days and I love having two days off in a row Every week . We are treated fairly and offered nice raises every year, our bosses are understanding,  supportive, and always available to us. The work load is easy, fun and trust me when I say its a breath of fresh air coming to work knowing you're not going to be miserable counting down the 8 hours, its really my home away from home!

As an Escapades Expert/Life Enrichment Assistant, I had a fantastic time at Brandywine. The staff was super nice, always having staff appreciation days/gifts/parties. I loved getting to know the residents and having so much fun with them. I learned so many life/people skills there. I started with a severe stutter (went through years of speech therapy before with little improvement) and was never judged by any residents, staff, or family. They are all great people there!
Great benefits too. Only downside is that Escapades/LE has only two positions, assistants and one manager. There are pay raises but I wouldn't be able to move up unless the manager position became vacant. I could have chosen to get my CNA license and become an aide, or eventually get my LPN and become a nurse.

I can not say enough good about my job here. I was employed in June of 2023, and have been a waiter, and work at the desk when needed. The director, management, and staff here is so friendly, kind, and make this place such a fun place to be!!! I have never dreaded coming to work at all when I am here, and I enjoy my time with the residents, staff and family members every day. Being a college student, my boss was very flexible with my schedule as well as understanding with what days I wanted to work. The vibes in this place are very good, and will make you want to be the best employee possible. I feel appreciated, respected, and satisfied everyday when I am working and feel as if I am making a difference. I love working here, if you are thinking about joining this location, do not think twice!! You will not regret it. There is nothing bad I can say about working here, I enjoy everyday with the staff and residents!!!!! 

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Licensed practical nurse 167 salaries reported	$34.80 per hour
Nursing assistant 145 salaries reported	$20.73 per hour
Server 96 salaries reported	$16.28 per hour
Housekeeper 33 salaries reported	$16.27 per hour
Home health aide 29 salaries reported	$20.87 per hour

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