Page 10 of Best Nursing Homes in Iowa

With a proud history dating back to 1975, Simpson Memorial Home has established itself as a trusted provider of high-quality senior care. It has been a remarkable non-profit residence situated in Wilton, Iowa, offering a diverse range of exceptional care services, including independent living, assisted living places, nursing home facilities, and a specialized dementia unit. Their unwavering commitment to providing a nurturing environment where seniors feel valued and supported sets them apart.
The home goes above and beyond to ensure that disabled adults can enjoy comfortable living, providing accessible spaces and round-the-clock emergency call capabilities. The shared spaces at Simpson Memorial Home are also tastefully decorated, fostering a warm and inviting atmosphere for socialization and relaxation. For those seeking independent living, the townhomes offer an unparalleled sense of homeliness, featuring spacious porches and convenient car garages. Additionally, the home provides essential services such as housekeeping, transportation, and delectable dining options.

Overview of Kahl Home for Aged & Infirm

Kahl Home for Aged & Infirm is a nonprofit nursing facility in Davenport, Iowa, with 112 beds, operated by the Carmelite Sisters for the Aged and Infirm. The community accepts Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay, and provides long-term care, skilled nursing, short-term rehabilitation, memory care, and respite placements to residents in Scott County.

CMS rates the facility 2 stars overall, mainly due to its Health Inspection record. In the past six years, the facility underwent 32 inspections, more than twice Iowa’s average of 15, pushing total deficiencies to 74% above the state mean. At the individual survey level, though, the facility performs somewhat better: deficiencies per inspection are 17% below the Iowa average.

Substantiated complaints in the record include a medication error that led to hospitalization, a resident elopement, and more recent findings involving pressure ulcer care and unsafe mechanical lift transfers. No fines or license suspensions are available in the reports.

The facility’s Quality Measures are stronger, with a 4-star CMS rating, with long-stay outcomes and short-stay measures above the state’s averages. Hospitalizations and emergency department visits among long-stay residents are well below state norms. Nurse staffing averages 12% below the Iowa average at 3 hours and 52 minutes per resident each day.

The facility’s occupancy rate is 93%, well above Iowa’s average of 75.4%, a consistent signal of strong local demand. Amenities available on-site are a bistro, pub, courtyards, and common living areas. In 2026, the facility received the Locals Love Us award for Best Nursing Home in the Quad Cities for the 13th consecutive year.

Kahl Home for Aged & Infirm serves residents seeking long-term or post-acute care under mission-driven, nonprofit operations in Davenport, particularly those for whom strong quality-measure performance and high occupancy are meaningful indicators alongside an elevated inspection footprint.

Overview of Holy Spirit Retirement Home

Serving the Sioux City community for nearly three decades, Holy Spirit Retirement Home is a small nursing home owned and operated by The Diocese of Sioux City. The home provides skilled nursing care and rehabilitation support. Pastoral attention to spiritual needs is also available. Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay are accepted, so families have different ways to arrange care coverage.

Residents receive an average of 3 hours and 57 minutes of total nursing support each day. Registered nurses, nurse aides, and licensed practical nurses are all part of the care team. Daily hands-on support is a central part of the nursing model, and residents have access to consistent clinical care throughout their stay.

The facility has 52 beds, which maintains a smaller, residential feel while supporting a dedicated rehabilitation program. Residents stay an average of 190 days, including those recovering through post-acute rehabilitation and receiving longer-term care. The neighborhood has a Walk Score of 91. Many nearby services and destinations are within walking distance, which can make visits easier for family members.

Spiritual care is part of daily life through the home’s Spiritual Life program. The program exists because of the facility’s religious identity and the values associated with Diocese ownership. The community also offers independent apartment-style housing, so residents have an option as their care needs change over time.

State inspections focused on documentation practices, staff training in areas such as dementia care, and the completeness of resident agreements and care plans. The facility continues to address and monitor these areas as part of its daily operations. Families touring the home may want to ask how these matters are monitored daily.

Overview of Westhaven Community

Westhaven Community is a 40-bed nonprofit skilled nursing facility in Boone, Iowa, offering independent living, assisted living, and skilled care. The community is operated as a ministry of the Evangelical Free Church and accepts Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay.

Across inspections since 2017, the facility has averaged approximately 2 deficiencies per year — 55% below the Iowa average of 4.4 — a strong long-term compliance picture. That record includes two notable exceptions: a 2023 inspection that found an Immediate Jeopardy citation for failure to re-evaluate a resident’s advance directives and code status.

A separate complaint investigation that year in which a resident sustained a fatal fall and staff were cited for inadequate supervision. The April 2025 standard inspection recorded 8 deficiencies covering medication management, infection control, and respiratory care. The most recent visit, a September 2025 complaint investigation, found no regulatory issues.

CMS rates Westhaven 4 stars overall, with staffing hours 34.8% above the Iowa average — nurse staffing averaging 5 hours and 20 minutes per resident per day places the community 24th out of 241 Iowa skilled nursing facilities. Occupancy is significantly below the state average at 43%, indicating current availability.

The on-site salon is the one amenity listed on the profile; the facility’s broader lifestyle programming is not detailed on the page.

Westhaven Community is best studied for residents seeking independent, assisted, or skilled nursing care in a small, faith-affiliated residential setting in Boone County, with immediate availability across bed types. However, families should review the facility’s prior Immediate Jeopardy finding and fall-related complaint history.

Overview of Hawkeye Care Center Dubuque

Hawkeye Care Center Dubuque manages an 80-bed medical campus on Pennsylvania Avenue under the guidance of administrator Tracey Long. The community runs with a stable occupancy rate near 89 percent, balancing public program coverage via Medicare and Medicaid with traditional private accounts. Admissions track to an average length of stay around 87 days, reflecting a fluid daily mix of transitional, post-hospital physical therapy patients and individuals requiring ongoing nursing supervision.

Clinical floor procedures provide an average of 4 hours and 18 minutes of daily direct care per resident. Registered nurses, licensed practical nurses, and certified nursing aides manage this 24-hour medical schedule to administer on-site speech, occupational, and physical therapies alongside specialized respite and palliative care treatments. For daily programming, the building contains a dedicated therapy gym, a courtyard, and a customized dining system, while the surrounding neighborhood records a walkability score of 52 out of 100, which means visiting guests can manage a handful of regional errands on foot.

Recent health assessments from state oversight entities focused on internal compliance patterns, highlighting quality reviews of standard infection prevention techniques and clinical care chart updates. Administrative coordinators use these regular health survey documents to update floor protocols and align continuing staff training logs with current safety regulations.

Prospective residents can connect with the admissions department to check on immediate room availability, look over the current therapy schedules, or arrange a time to visit the common areas.

Overview of Glen Haven Village

Glen Haven Village organizes its clinical senior services within a 69-bed, cottage-style campus setup on Indian Hills Drive. Managed by Glen Haven Home Inc under administrator Julianne Marriott, the community routinely functions near a 90 percent occupancy level. Account processing integrates private funding streams alongside standard Medicare and state Medicaid cards, supporting a fluid residential census where individuals stay an average of 164 days.

The building’s floor structure stands out for providing an average of 5 hours and 36 minutes of direct nursing attention per resident each day. Certified nurse aides deliver the largest portion of this time at 3 hours and 29 minutes, with registered nurses contributing 38 minutes and licensed practical nurses adding 47 minutes to handle routine treatment logs. This nursing team operates across specialized long-term care, memory support, adult day programs, and short-term rehabilitation cottages, while the surrounding neighborhood features an exceptionally walkable layout that lets visiting family members reach standard retail points easily on foot.

Past complaint evaluations by state regulators identified specific procedural gaps concerning equipment maintenance records and care protocol compliance, which the administrative team corrected to return the building to substantial compliance. Floor supervisors utilize these recurring state audit reviews to manage continuing training sessions and ensure stable operational practices across all nursing shifts.

Prospective residents can connect with the admissions department to check on active cottage openings, ask about the schedule of adult day programs, or plan an morning to view the therapy layout.

Overview of Brio of Johnston Assisted Living

Brio of Johnston Assisted Living is a 68-bed nursing home and assisted living community at 6901 Peckham Street in Johnston, Iowa. It opened seven years ago and now operates at 54 percent occupancy. Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay give families multiple routes for coverage. The starting monthly price is $2,000.

Short-term rehabilitation is the facility’s core clinical program, anchored by 24-hour staffing totaling 5 hours 18 minutes of nursing care per resident day. Staffing breakdowns include registered nurses providing 58 minutes daily, nurse aides delivering 2 hours 50 minutes, and LPNs or LVNs contributing 48 minutes per day. The average stay length runs 64 days, which reflects the community’s shorter-stay rehabilitation model. Brio of Johnston Assisted Living sits in a car-dependent part of Johnston, so visiting family and residents typically need a vehicle for most errands and outings. It offers a cutting-edge wellness center along with a library, walking trails, and a pet recreation area for those wanting activity and connection. A chapel, salon, general store, and guest room round out the amenities. Occupants can access respite care services, valuable for families needing momentary placement or relief during a care transition.

State inspections have found Brio of Johnston Assisted Living operating with no major compliance issues, with recent inspection activity clearing complaint investigations.

The community’s focus on rehabilitation and respite care naturally fits people healing from an acute hospital stay or injury, or those needing temporary care relief.

Overview of Madrid Home for the Aging

Madrid Home for the Aging is a 64-bed non-profit skilled nursing community in Madrid, Boone County, Iowa. Occupancy at 81 percent exceeds Iowa’s 75.4 percent average. Operated by Western Home Services Inc, the facility offers skilled nursing, memory care, and rehabilitation along with independent living and assisted living services. Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay accepted.

Over six years on file, the facility averaged 4.2 deficiencies annually, essentially at the Iowa average of 4.4, with no immediate jeopardy findings, fines, or enforcement actions. Medication management is the clearest recurring theme in the record: errors were cited in the 2021 and 2023 annual surveys, an August 2025 complaint was substantiated for missing fentanyl patches and inaccurate narcotic counts affecting both residents reviewed, and narcotic destruction procedures were also cited in 2021. The March 2023 annual survey cited medication errors in all four residents reviewed for that area. Care planning gaps and food safety deficiencies have each appeared in multiple surveys as well. The CMS staffing sub-rating reflects case-mix adjusted hours 19.1 percent below Iowa’s average, meaning the resident acuity outpaces what the staffing hours deliver relative to peers, the one metric consistently below average in an otherwise mid-range profile. Quality Measures run 15.6 percent above Iowa average which is a positive clinical outcome signal.

Madrid Home for the Aging fits Boone County residents wanting skilled nursing, memory support, or post-acute rehabilitation within a non-profit continuum that extends from independent and assisted living through skilled care.

Traditions Memory Care of Newton is a secured, 46-bed facility that specializes entirely in residential care for adults managing Alzheimer’s, dementia, and chronic confusion. The building runs with maximum local utilization, hitting a 100% occupancy rate that places it first in statewide capacity demand rankings. Admissions average a 125-day length of stay, drawing primarily from a combination of Medicaid-backed funding (64%) and private-pay accounts (33%). Financial records point to a sharp operational rebound, with the business turning around its prior-year losses to clear a 2.4% profit margin and a $109.2 thousand net profit in 2023 while dedicating 49.8% of incoming funds to employee payroll.

State regulatory databases record lean clinical oversight hours and high behavioral medication rates alongside recent, corrected care plan interventions. Daily direct care lines deliver 4 hours and 20 minutes of total nursing time per resident, but actual registered nurse hours drop down to 20 minutes a day, and off-peak weekend shifts drop to 2 hours and 46 minutes. This tight nurse coverage coordinates with permanent resident files that show an exceptionally high 44.9% rate for antipsychotic prescriptions, though the charts simultaneously document strong physical prevention marks with zero reported major injury falls.

Interested individuals seeking a specialized, high-demand memory care space can utilize these public health reports to balance the building’s operational details. The state registries outline a completely full, specialized dementia community that has successfully resolved its past regulatory citations, though it handles lean everyday nurse oversight hours and high behavioral medication usage.