nursing assistant

housekeeper

medication technician

maintenance person

charge nurse

Columbia Cottage Assisted Living

columbia cottage has unfortunately gone down the tubes. Management is an absolute joke, they disregard any wrongdoings done by those they favor, nitpick about the most insignificant things and completely fail to see the big picture which is that we are here for THE RESIDENTS.  We are completely divided. First shift is the golden shift. They get to do the most with the residents and get away with Everything. Don't let anyone fool you into thinking we are a team. Nothing you say is confidential, coordinators can insult residents, harass staff and literally not do their job at all and get away with it depending on who likes them. They prohibit is from doing our jobs correctly due to the immense amount of stress and complete lack of appreciation we receive and also lack of proper equipment and resources.  We got raises that only benefited new people while lowering the wages of long time workers close to entry level pay. We do double what any other facility does. My best advice is to just get your CNA and go somewhere else and avoid the cottage entirely. It will make you hate this profession. The residents are lovely and deserve a better management team and happier staff.

At first, it seemed like a place you could work at for a long time, but I was wrong. When you first apply you think you're just going to be a PCA, but you do absolutely everything. Housekeeping, serving residents, doing dishes, etc. The pay is not worth all it's hyped up to be. They brag about giving raises, but that's only for second and third shift. First shift is stuck at a base rate. Management is the WORST. They tell you to go to them with any issues, then they turn around and stab you in the back. ESPECIALLY if you're not a coordinator. Instead of being considerate to their employees, they keep a mentality that everyone can be easily replaced. Which is false because they were always understaffed. They pick favorites and nitpick with the ones who question authority until they either quit, or get fired over something very petty. They have no humanity, they choose following policies very strictly than taking in the consideration for not only their employees, but also the residents. Pretty much the only good thing you can get from this job is work experience and getting to bond with the residents.

Most unprofessional facility I've ever worked at. Management openly knew about issues that were reported, but no action was taken. "Supervisors" slept on the job, abused other coworkers, made frequent medication errors, and were unfit for their positions. Residents did not get the basic care they needed because staff (supervisors included) were always taking a smoke break. Absolutely a hostile work environment that will never be fixed. The staffing is so short because nobody wants to stay in the environment. You may wait 30+ minutes for assistance with a resident. And don't let the title of "assisted living" fool you: over half of these residents need extensive care, and Columbia Cottage cannot provide that care with the issues it has. Seeing a resident not getting the care they deserve can be very discouraging for anyone who has a heart.

Very busy preparing 3 meals a day Twelve hour shifts, 6am-6pm supervised kitchen and staff. Placed food orders on a monthly budget.Also receive food deliveries and put them away Planned menu for the week of each month following a budget. Also kept a temp log recorded for each meal served. Kept track of customers feedback as well for each meal What I really learned was to multi-task Also ran the dishwasher and washed all the dishes after each meal, Plus cleaned, sweeped and Mopped Would make special trips to the store to get some things that were cheapper to purchase rather than order I was the assistant mgr to the kitchen mgr The hardest part of the job for me was being on salary not hourly Any O/T worked,I did not get paid forThe fun part of the job was the residents working with the staff and doing my baking from scratch.Had to keep up the working pace.

There is not a lot of good things about Columbia Cottage. The carpets were dirty and were rarely cleaned.A typical day at work was helping the elderly getting them to the diner for dinner and doing activities with them and helping them getting showers and getting ready for bed etc.We always had to have another person with us in each room we went into to make things a little easier.  Even though we had to work with another person. I've learned that it would have been better to work alone at Columbia Cottage because the other co workers there were very disrespectful and not trustworthy. The managers were barely around. The most enjoyable part about the job was that I was able to help the elderly.

Never would I ever recommend this company to anyone. First of all, this is way more than assisted living. Lots of the residents need to be in nursing homes. They are so rude and disrespectful to the residents and completely ignore them. They also don't call the residents by their names. They are just numbers there. The manager who I dealt with a majority of the time was the most unprofessional and unfit person for a managing position. If you make any remarks about her being wrong about something very small, she will get an attitude, become defensive, and threaten to fire/discipline you. Every time. The pay is extremely poor considering the work that you do. I pity the sweet people who live there.

Columbia Cottage of Hanover is not nearly as bad as these reviews make it out to be. It's a quick paced environment where the residents get taken care of very well. The management is willing to work with you and your needs and give you chances to improve if you struggle with something. The coordinators work very well with all staff and helps the staff all while dealing with their own work. The only problem the Cottage has encountered is hiring a second and third shift nurse, The second shift nurse spends more time complaining about the work she has than actually doing it and the third shift nurse just wants to supervise and watch over your shoulder. Other than those issues I would recommend Columbia Cottage of Hanover to anyone.

The job is hard and stressful. Co-workers can make or break the atmosphere. Work with 99% women. Pay is not good for amount of work and stress even though it is above average. Management makes you feel stupid or that you are annoying them when you come to them with a concern. They also have a lot of complaints and not enough praising for jobs well done. Management has no idea the complexities that everyday staff deal with because they are not hands on with residents. 

This is a very physically and mentally demanding job. You lift people all day and deal with people who have mental health and physical issues. Not for the faint of heart. 

The job can be rewarding and you grow attach to residents but you can also burn out quick by working fulltime here.

What is the best part of working at the company?
The residents and some of the benefits. Like life insurance for free. And double time for holiday pay

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The fact that it's more like a nursing home than an assisted living. And the aides do everything such as dishes, activities, and housekeeping 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
Drama and stressful with horrible management that does nothing about any issues you have with coworkers and there lack of work ethic 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Extremely busy , tiring, you can't even sit to chart all computers are on the walls so you have to stand

Columbia Cottage in Collegeville is a great place to work. 
 Management really tries to work with staff on both a professional and personal level to ensure that they are able to perform their jobs to the best of their ability.  We out-staff other resident facilities, which helps us all reach our goal - caring for our residents.  This is a challenging job and everyone is expected to give it their all and step up wherever needed.  With such a great support system of co-workers and management, as well as the daily appreciation from our wonderful residents, it leaves me feeling like I have made a difference in the world that day, even if it's just for our 40 residents.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Nursing assistant 46 salaries reported	$17.07 per hour
Housekeeper 8 salaries reported	$15.00 per hour
Medication technician 24 salaries reported	$18.38 per hour
Maintenance person 2 salaries reported	$21.50 per hour
Charge nurse 1 salary reported	$31.00 per hour

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