Chowchilla Memorial Healthcare District
1104 Ventura Ave., Chowchilla, CA 93610 · Madera County · 29 certified beds · avg 29 residents/day · certified since Oct 23, 1992
What health inspectors found (on-site government inspections — the most independent evidence available)
Health inspection rating: ★★★★☆4/5 · CMS overall rating: 4/5
The health inspection star above is graded on a curve within each state — a set share of each state's facilities gets each star level — so a facility can have few citations and still rate 2–3 stars if others in its state did even better. The overall rating combines that inspection score with staffing and self-reported quality measures.
Most serious findings (actual harm or immediate jeopardy)
▲ Actual harm, one-off · Aug 5, 2025 · F-0689 · triggered by a complaint
The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls.
Why it matters: This is one of the most common citations and directly relates to falls and injuries, which can be devastating for older adults.
Severity (G): One or a few residents were actually harmed — physically or emotionally — though not put in immediate danger of serious injury or death.
Corrected: Sep 2, 2025 (Deficient, Provider has date of correction)
All citations in the current public record (23)
CMS publishes roughly the last three inspection cycles plus recent complaint investigations. Older surveys drop out of the record as new ones are completed.
| Date | Severity | What the facility was cited for |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 19, 2026 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not develop and follow policies and procedures to prevent abuse, neglect, and theft. These written safeguards are the foundation of resident protection. |
| Feb 19, 2026 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not get its food from approved, safe sources, or did not store, prepare, and serve food according to professional food safety standards. |
| Feb 19, 2026 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not honor residents' right to share a room with their spouse or a roommate of their choosing, or moved residents to a different room without written notice beforehand. |
| Feb 19, 2026 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not label drugs according to professional standards or did not store them in locked compartments, with controlled drugs (medications with a high risk of misuse) kept under a separate lock. |
| Feb 19, 2026 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not have or follow an effective program to prevent and control infections — such as proper hand washing, cleaning, and isolation practices. This is the most commonly cited deficiency nationwide. |
| Aug 5, 2025 | ▲ G · Actual harm, one-off | The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls. · from a complaint |
| Feb 24, 2025 | F · Potential for harm, facility-wide | The facility did not get its food from approved, safe sources, or did not store, prepare, and serve food according to professional food safety standards. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not develop or follow a complete care plan for each resident — the written roadmap covering all of a resident's needs, with measurable goals and timelines. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility provided care that did not meet professional standards of quality — the accepted standards that nurses and other clinicians are expected to follow. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not have or follow an effective program to prevent and control infections — such as proper hand washing, cleaning, and isolation practices. This is the most commonly cited deficiency nationwide. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide treatment and care that follows the doctor's orders and matches the resident's own preferences and goals. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide each resident with a nourishing, tasty, well-balanced diet that meets their daily nutritional and special dietary needs. |
| Feb 24, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not arrange hospice services for a resident who needed them, or help the resident move to a facility that could arrange hospice. Hospice provides comfort-focused care for people nearing the end of life. |
| Jul 16, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls. · from a complaint |
| Apr 30, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop or follow a complete care plan for each resident — the written roadmap covering all of a resident's needs, with measurable goals and timelines. · from a complaint |
| Apr 30, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not develop a resident's complete plan of care within 7 days of the full assessment, or the plan wasn't prepared, reviewed, and updated by a team of health professionals as required. · from a complaint |
| Mar 1, 2024 | F · Potential for harm, facility-wide | The facility did not get its food from approved, safe sources, or did not store, prepare, and serve food according to professional food safety standards. |
| Mar 1, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not develop or follow a complete care plan for each resident — the written roadmap covering all of a resident's needs, with measurable goals and timelines. |
| Mar 1, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not keep the environment free of accident hazards, or did not provide enough supervision to prevent accidents like falls. |
| Mar 1, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not protect residents' personal information or did not keep complete, accurate medical records that meet professional standards. |
| Mar 1, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not arrange hospice services for a resident who needed them, or help the resident move to a facility that could arrange hospice. Hospice provides comfort-focused care for people nearing the end of life. |
| Mar 1, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not treat residents with dignity and respect, or did not honor their rights to make their own decisions and communicate freely. This is one of the most fundamental resident rights. |
Inspection trend by year
Citations from standard inspections decreased between the last two inspection cycles (8 → 5).
| Year | Citations | Serious (G–L) | Worst severity that year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 9 | 0 | F |
| 2025 | 9 | 1 | G ▲ |
| 2026 | 5 | 0 | E |
Counts reflect the current CMS public record (~3 inspection cycles plus complaint investigations); years with no surveys show no row. Inspection frequency varies, so compare severity as well as counts.
Fines and enforcement (last 3 years)
20 fines totaling $112,195.
| Date | Type | Amount / length |
|---|---|---|
| Feb 20, 2024 | Fine | $4,938 |
| Feb 12, 2024 | Fine | $4,938 |
| Jan 22, 2024 | Fine | $14,814 |
| Jan 8, 2024 | Fine | $4,938 |
| Jan 2, 2024 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Dec 11, 2023 | Fine | $13,762 |
| Nov 20, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Nov 13, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Nov 6, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Oct 30, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Oct 23, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Oct 17, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Oct 10, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Oct 2, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Sep 25, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Sep 18, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Sep 11, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Sep 5, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Aug 28, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
| Aug 21, 2023 | Fine | $4,587 |
Nurse staffing (from payroll records, adjusted for how much care residents need)
| Measure | This facility | California avg | U.S. avg | Where it stands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total nurse staffing (hours per resident per day) | 4.45 | 4.31 | 3.95 | top 31% in California; top 25% in the U.S. |
| Registered Nurse hours | 0.30 | 0.61 | 0.69 | bottom 13% in California; bottom 10% in the U.S. |
| Weekend total nurse staffing | 4.27 | 3.90 | 3.50 | top 22% in California; top 16% in the U.S. |
| Weekend RN hours (not acuity-adjusted) | 0.29 | 0.51 | 0.48 | bottom 31% in California; bottom 29% in the U.S. |
| Total nursing staff turnover (%) | 27.6 | 36.7 | 45.8 | top 23% in California; top 10% in the U.S. |
| RN turnover (%) | 0.0 | 38.1 | 42.9 | — |
Hours are per resident per day, case-mix adjusted by CMS so facilities caring for sicker residents can be compared fairly (same basis as the CMS staffing star). "Top X%" means better than most facilities: more staffing hours, or lower turnover. Raw (unadjusted) reported hours: total 4.07, RN 0.28, weekend 3.91. Staffing rating: 3/5.
Self-reported quality measures
Note: these ratings are based on data the facility reports about itself to CMS. They are not independently verified by inspectors, and can look better than inspection findings. Give more weight to the inspection results above.
Quality measures rating: 4/5 · long-stay residents: 4/5 · short-stay residents: —/5
Who owns this facility
Non profit - Other
| Owner / manager | Type | Role | Stake | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chowchilla Memorial Healthcare District | Organization | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 01/01/2005 |
| Decker, Leland | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 01/21/2005 |
| Flores, Cathy | Individual | W-2 Managing Employee | NOT APPLICABLE | 07/22/1991 |
| Flores, Cathy | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 01/21/2005 |
Questions to ask on your visit
Generated from this facility's actual citation record — bring them to a tour and ask the administrator directly.
- "What is your falls rate, and what specific steps do you take to prevent falls and supervise residents at risk?"
- "What specific steps do you take to prevent abuse and neglect, and how are staff trained on them?"
- "What did your most recent kitchen inspection find, and can I see how food is stored and prepared?"
- "How do you handle room assignments and roommate requests, and do residents get advance written notice before any move?"
- "Can you show me how medications are stored and secured on the units, including controlled drugs?"
- "Who leads your infection prevention program, and how do you make sure staff follow practices like hand hygiene every day?"
- "Can you show me an example care plan, and how are families included when it's created and updated?"
- "Can you tell me what this citation involved and what steps you took to bring care back up to standard?"
- "What is your current ratio of nursing staff to residents on day, evening, and weekend shifts?"
- "Can I see the results and plan of correction from your most recent state inspection?"
Nearby facilities (within 20 miles)
| Facility | Distance | City | Overall | Inspection | Flags |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Palms Care Center | 0.1 mi | Chowchilla, CA | ★★★★☆ | 4/5 | |
| Madera Care Center | 15.7 mi | Madera, CA | ★★★★☆ | 4/5 | |
| Merced Behavioral Center | 16.1 mi | Merced, CA | ★★★★★ | 5/5 | |
| Madera Rehabilitation & Nursing Center | 16.4 mi | Madera, CA | ★☆☆☆☆ | 1/5 | |
| Anberry Post Acute | 16.9 mi | Merced, CA | ★★★☆☆ | 3/5 | |
| La Sierra Care Center | 17.4 mi | Merced, CA | ★★★☆☆ | 3/5 | |
| Merced Nursing & Rehabilitation Ctr | 17.5 mi | Merced, CA | ★★★★☆ | 3/5 | |
| Golden Merced Care Center | 17.6 mi | Merced, CA | ★★★☆☆ | 3/5 | |
| Franciscan Post-Acute Care Center | 18.0 mi | Merced, CA | ★★★★☆ | 4/5 |
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Facility data as of CMS processing date 2026-08-01. CCN 555530.