Best Nursing Homes in Tennessee

Overview of Life Care Center of East Ridge

Life Care Center of East Ridge is a skilled nursing and rehabilitation center. The upscale nursing home aims to change the meaning of skilled nursing and rehabilitation for seniors through the exceptional care delivered by their patient-friendly staff to offer the best care possible for their residents. Life Care Center can be trusted as a safe and secure community that cares for every patient’s needs.
Convenience and hassle-free living are the center of Life Care Center services: medication management, post-surgical care, and wound care. Their 24-hour skilled nursing care services provide compassionate care as their utmost priority. Other benefits include 24/7 easy admissions, fall prevention, IV therapy, discharge planning, and case management.

Oakwood Community Living Center is a tightly-knit elder care home that provides healthcare services.  The center boasts a modest, warm, and welcoming atmosphere for its residents. The home-like atmosphere creates a comfortable and well-managed resident-focused nursing and rehabilitation services environment.

Oakwood Community Living provides comprehensive inpatient therapy with full support and care delivered by medical professionals. They have licensed practitioner nurses, certified nurses, therapists, pharmacists, and an activity director on-site. Essential amenities include housekeeping, laundry, medication management, nutritional meals served daily, and transportation services available.

Overview of The Parkway Health and Rehabilitation Center

The Parkway Health and Rehabilitation Center is a nursing home in Memphis, TN, offering long-term care and short-term rehabilitation. Prioritizing older adults’ comfort and welfare, the community provides spacious rooms in a setting with scenic views. Restaurant-style dining, laundry areas, housekeeping, and in-room dining options are also provided to improve residents’ quality of life. Through customized care plans, the community strives to meet residents’ needs.

Exercises, faith-based services, and entertainment options promote interactions and encourage residents to live actively. Along with private and semi-private rooms, lounge areas and a beauty salon are also available on-site. Located near downtown Memphis, the community has convenient access to local amenities and services. With upscale amenities and an experienced care team, this nursing home is a good option for senior living in Tennessee.

Overview of Midtown Center for Health and Rehabilitation

Nestled in the historic Midtown district of Memphis, Tennessee, Midtown Center for Health and Rehabilitation is a respected senior care provider, offering a safe and secure environment that fosters an improved quality of life. This community provides its residents with excellent short-term rehabilitation and long-term skilled nursing care designed to help residents recover quickly and return to their usual routines faster and stronger. Residents here are provided with a reliable rehabilitation team that curates individualized care plans based on their unique needs.

Dedicated to elevating its residents’ overall quality of life, the community offers plenty of opportunities for enrichment through its wide range of activities, designed to entertain, invigorate, and accommodate residents’ unique interests. Here, residents can choose from 93 rooms, all furnished to provide comfort and safety, with access to scenic views for a relaxing healing experience. Boasting 30 years of experience, this community warrants nothing but excellence founded on long years of learning.

Covington Care Post Acute is an exceptional nursing home in Covington, TN, that offers skilled nursing, long-term care, and rehabilitation. With its dedication to older adults’ wellness, the community promotes a nurturing environment for their comfort. Wound care, activities, and social services are also offered to meet residents’ variety of needs. The community prioritizes residents’ well-being, providing genuine care and compassionate services.

Activities are curated weekly, ensuring residents have more opportunities to interact with their peers. A salon, spacious courtyards, and communal spaces for gatherings are also provided for residents and visitors’ lounge. Covington Aquatic Center and Tipton County Museum are located nearby, ensuring easy access to leisure and other necessities. As one of the trusted choices for nursing care in Tennessee, this senior living community is an ideal option for those with complex healthcare needs.

Operating for 33 years on East College Street in Pulaski, Tennessee, Nhc HealthCare, Pulaski is a 102-bed skilled nursing facility managed by NHC Healthcare/Pulaski, LLC under administrator Douglas Wong. The facility accepts Medicare, Medicaid, and private pay and maintains 24-hour staffing across all shifts.

CMS rates the facility at 3 stars overall. The Health Inspection sub-rating trails the Tennessee average. The facility has received 7 citations across 2 inspections since 2019 compared with the state’s average of 15.4. Both serious citations from the October 2022 inspection were corrected with no penalties recorded in the past three years. Staffing and Quality Measures are both above the state average, with Quality Measures sub-rating 34% above Tennessee peers.

Nurse staffing averages 3 hours and 22 minutes per resident per day, about 8% below the Tennessee average. Physical therapist coverage stands out at 8 minutes per resident per day, which iis 60% above the state average, a meaningful figure for a facility where nearly half of new admissions arrive on Medicare for short-term rehabilitation.

Short-stay outcomes reflect that orientation. The rehospitalization rate of 7.3% is 67% better than the Tennessee average of 22.2%, and 58.6% of short-stay residents return successfully to home or community, compared to 50.6% statewide. Occupancy is 89.2%, well above the Tennessee average of 73%, ranking 63rd out of 302 facilities in the state.

Services include short-term rehabilitation, an on-site beauty and barber shop, an outdoor relaxation area, and daily activities programming. NHC Homecare and a Caris Hospice partnership extend care options beyond the facility.

Nhc HealthCare, Pulaski is structured for short-term post-acute rehabilitation and Medicare-covered skilled nursing stays in Giles County, with a care model and discharge record oriented toward residents planning to return home.

Serving residents across Jackson County, The Waters of Gainesboro provides skilled nursing care, memory care, short-term rehabilitation, and respite care in a rural Tennessee setting. The facility is an 83-bed nursing home in Gainesboro, operated by The Waters of Gainesboro, LLC, under the administration of Rita Crabtree. Medicare and Medicaid are both accepted.

The CMS 3-star overall rating reflects a marked split across sub-ratings. Health Inspection performance is 37% above the Tennessee average, a meaningful positive signal for families weighing recent compliance history. However, staffing is the counterweight. Total nurse staffing averages 2 hours and 57 minutes per resident per day, compared with a state average of 3 hours and 40 minutes, placing the facility 150th out of 172 Tennessee SNFs on that measure.

Over five inspections since 2017, the facility has received 16 citations. A 2019 annual survey produced an Immediate Jeopardy finding related to elopement prevention. A February 2023 complaint investigation substantiated a failure to report an allegation of abuse within the required two-hour window. No fines or enforcement actions appear in the available reports.

Occupancy sits at 54%, well below the Tennessee average of 73%, which typically indicates current availability. Clinical programs include Comprehensive Wound Care and Respiratory Services, as well as the Living Well and In Motion activity and wellness tracks.

The facility serves residents requiring post-acute rehabilitation, long-term skilled nursing, or memory care support in rural Jackson County, Tennessee.

Overview of Wellpark Health and Rehabilitation

Wellpark Health and Rehabilitation is a nursing home in Knoxville, Tennessee, offering nursing, memory care, and physician-guided therapies, backed by 24-hour staffing and an on-site medical doctor. Operating since October 2015, this 32-bed community is owned by River Bluff Healthcare, Inc., and runs under the nonprofit, church-operated umbrella of Presbyterian Homes of Tennessee, Inc. The community also accommodates individuals utilizing Medicare or private funds and holds an overall 3-star quality rating from CMS.

Regulatory history from the Tennessee Department of Health cited 3 inspections over a seven-year tracking window. The community accumulated 15 total health citations, closely mirroring the state baseline of 15.4. Crucially, every citation was categorized exclusively at a moderate severity level, with zero serious or critical deficiencies on record. The most recent review on January 24, 2025, also cited deficiencies concerning infection control, pharmacy practices, and abuse or neglect prevention, all of which are now documented as fully corrected. No monetary fines have been issued within the past three years.

The community’s nursing staff provides 3 hours and 56 minutes of direct daily care to each resident, outperforming the Tennessee state average by 7%. Weekend coverage remains exceptionally steady at 4 hours and 11 minutes per resident daily, ensuring care levels do not drop outside standard business hours. Second-quarter 2025 records show a total workforce of 92 individuals, consisting of 49 regular employees and 43 contractors. This establishes an excellent staff-to-resident ratio of 3.07 to 1, marking a 71% improvement over the statewide benchmark.

Clinical data show specialized strengths, particularly in short-term preventative medicine. Short-stay individuals receive influenza and pneumococcal immunizations at rates of 95.6% and 93.1%, beating state benchmarks by 20% and 17%, respectively. Furthermore, new antipsychotic drug prescriptions affect just 1.0% of temporary residents, showing a 42% reduction compared to state averages. These metrics support a strong short-term recovery focus, where the average overall stay is 15 days, while Medicare-supported individuals average 18 days.

Wellpark Health and Rehabilitation is a highly suitable option for older adults and families seeking a faith-affiliated environment with excellent staffing ratios and a clean penalty record, especially when transitioning out of a hospital stay for post-acute physical rehabilitation.