Desert Cove Nursing Center
1750 West Frye Road, Chandler, AZ 85224 · Maricopa County · 120 certified beds · avg 69 residents/day · certified since Dec 3, 1984
Abuse citation flag (CMS)
Part of chain: LIFE CARE CENTERS OF AMERICA (194 facilities, chain avg rating 3.4★)
The abuse flag means inspectors cited this facility for abuse that caused harm to a resident within the past year, or potential for harm in each of the last two years. Source: CMS.
1/5
Health inspection rating (on-site)
0
Serious findings on record
$0
Fines, last 3 years
4.09
Nurse hours/resident/day (adjusted)
What health inspectors found (on-site government inspections — the most independent evidence available)
Health inspection rating: ★☆☆☆☆1/5 · CMS overall rating: 2/5
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.
All citations in the current public record (35)
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Jun 29, 2026 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not protect residents from abuse or neglect. This covers physical, mental, and sexual abuse, physical punishment, and neglect, by anyone — staff, other residents, or visitors. · from a complaint |
| Apr 15, 2026 | 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. · from a complaint |
| Dec 18, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility provided care that did not meet professional standards of quality — the accepted standards that nurses and other clinicians are expected to follow. · from a complaint |
| Dec 18, 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. · from a complaint |
| Dec 18, 2025 | 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. · from a complaint |
| Nov 19, 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. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not honor residents' rights to request, refuse, or stop treatment, to decline participation in medical research, or to make an advance directive — a written statement of their wishes for future medical care. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not protect residents from abuse or neglect. This covers physical, mental, and sexual abuse, physical punishment, and neglect, by anyone — staff, other residents, or visitors. · from a complaint |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not make sure its nurses and nurse aides had the skills and training needed to properly care for every resident. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not post its nurse staffing information every day. Nursing homes must publicly display how many nurses and aides are on duty each day. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide pharmacy services that meet each resident's needs, or did not employ or contract with a licensed pharmacist. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not keep residents free from significant medication errors — such as giving the wrong drug, the wrong dose, or missing a critical medication. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | 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. |
| Nov 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not protect residents' personal information or did not keep complete, accurate medical records that meet professional standards. |
| Sep 19, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide the help residents need with basic daily activities — like bathing, dressing, eating, and using the bathroom — for residents who cannot do these things on their own. · from a complaint |
| Sep 19, 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. · from a complaint |
| Jul 22, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not report suspected abuse, neglect, or theft to the proper authorities quickly enough, or did not report the results of its investigation. · from a complaint |
| Apr 24, 2025 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not provide treatment and care that follows the doctor's orders and matches the resident's own preferences and goals. · from a complaint |
| Jan 3, 2025 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not protect residents from abuse or neglect. This covers physical, mental, and sexual abuse, physical punishment, and neglect, by anyone — staff, other residents, or visitors. · from a complaint |
| Nov 19, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not protect residents from abuse or neglect. This covers physical, mental, and sexual abuse, physical punishment, and neglect, by anyone — staff, other residents, or visitors. · from a complaint |
| Feb 9, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not provide the help residents need with basic daily activities — like bathing, dressing, eating, and using the bathroom — for residents who cannot do these things on their own. |
| Feb 9, 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. |
| Feb 9, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not have a registered nurse on duty at least 8 hours a day, or did not have a registered nurse serving full-time as director of nursing. |
| Feb 9, 2024 | E · Potential for harm, repeated | The facility did not keep residents' medications free from unnecessary drugs. Residents should only take medicines they truly need, at the right dose, for a clear reason. |
| Feb 9, 2024 | 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 9, 2024 | 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 9, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not allow residents to take their own medications when a clinical review showed they could do so safely. Residents have this right if their care team determines it's appropriate. |
| Feb 9, 2024 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide safe, appropriate care for residents who need dialysis — the treatment that filters the blood when kidneys fail. |
| Feb 9, 2024 | 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. |
| Nov 3, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not make sure residents were fully informed about their own health, care, and treatments in a way they could understand. |
| Nov 3, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not allow residents to take their own medications when a clinical review showed they could do so safely. Residents have this right if their care team determines it's appropriate. |
| Nov 3, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility provided care that did not meet professional standards of quality — the accepted standards that nurses and other clinicians are expected to follow. |
| Nov 3, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not provide the help residents need with basic daily activities — like bathing, dressing, eating, and using the bathroom — for residents who cannot do these things on their own. |
| Nov 3, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not keep residents' medications free from unnecessary drugs. Residents should only take medicines they truly need, at the right dose, for a clear reason. |
| Nov 3, 2022 | D · Potential for harm, one-off | The facility did not try to gradually reduce doses of mood- and mind-altering medications or use non-drug approaches first, as required, or used 'as needed' psychiatric drugs without proper limits. |
Inspection trend by year
Citations from standard inspections stayed about the same across the last two inspection cycles (9 → 9).
| Year | Citations | Serious (G–L) | Worst severity that year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 6 | 0 | D |
| 2024 | 10 | 0 | E |
| 2025 | 17 | 0 | E |
| 2026 | 2 | 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)
No fines or payment denials in the published 3-year window.
Nurse staffing (from payroll records, adjusted for how much care residents need)
| Measure | This facility | Arizona avg | U.S. avg | Where it stands |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total nurse staffing (hours per resident per day) | 4.09 | 3.97 | 3.95 | top 29% in Arizona; top 36% in the U.S. |
| Registered Nurse hours | 0.75 | 0.69 | 0.69 | top 32% in Arizona; top 32% in the U.S. |
| Weekend total nurse staffing | 3.39 | 3.50 | 3.50 | top 39% in Arizona; top 48% in the U.S. |
| Weekend RN hours (not acuity-adjusted) | 0.36 | 0.49 | 0.48 | bottom 38% in Arizona; bottom 44% in the U.S. |
| Total nursing staff turnover (%) | 50.0 | 45.2 | 45.8 | bottom 36% in Arizona; bottom 38% in the U.S. |
| RN turnover (%) | 75.0 | 43.6 | 42.9 | bottom 7% in Arizona; bottom 9% in the U.S. |
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 3.81, RN 0.69, weekend 3.16. 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: 5/5 · long-stay residents: 5/5 · short-stay residents: 5/5
Who owns this facility
For profit - Partnership
| Owner / manager | Type | Role | Stake | Since |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Developers Investment Company INC | Organization | Indirect Ownership Interest | NOT APPLICABLE | 06/01/1993 |
| Butner, Nancy | Individual | Managing Control - Governing Body | NOT APPLICABLE | 09/16/2018 |
| Butner, Nancy | Individual | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 09/16/2018 |
| Chandler United Medical Investors Limited Partnership | Organization | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 10/01/1988 |
| Chandler United Medical Investors Limited Partnership | Organization | ADP of the SNF | NOT APPLICABLE | 08/31/2000 |
| Cross, Cindy | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 04/21/1994 |
| Developers Investment Company INC | Organization | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 12/31/1992 |
| Fletcher, Todd | Individual | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 12/13/2024 |
| Franco, Mark | Individual | Corporate Director | NOT APPLICABLE | 09/12/2025 |
| Henry, Terry | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 08/16/1999 |
| Johnson, Brandon | Individual | Managing Control - Governing Body | NOT APPLICABLE | 12/15/2025 |
| Johnson, Brandon | Individual | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 12/15/2025 |
| Johnson, Brandon | Individual | ADP of the SNF | NOT APPLICABLE | 05/04/2026 |
| Kane, Ronald | Individual | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 07/14/2019 |
| Kane, Ronald | Individual | ADP of the SNF | NOT APPLICABLE | 05/04/2026 |
| Lay, Lisa | Individual | Corporate Officer | NOT APPLICABLE | 02/09/2018 |
| Life Care Affiliates II | Organization | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 06/01/1993 |
| Life Care Affiliates II | Organization | General Partnership Interest | NOT APPLICABLE | 06/01/1993 |
| Life Care Affiliates II | Organization | ADP of the SNF | NOT APPLICABLE | 08/31/2000 |
| Life Care Centers of America, INC. | Organization | Operational/Managerial Control | NOT APPLICABLE | 10/01/1988 |
Questions to ask on your visit
Generated from this facility's actual citation record — bring them to a tour and ask the administrator directly.
- "Tell me about this abuse or neglect citation — what happened, and what specific changes did you make afterward?"
- "How do you keep residents' medical records accurate, complete, and secure?"
- "Can you tell me what this citation involved and what steps you took to bring care back up to standard?"
- "What is your falls rate, and what specific steps do you take to prevent falls and supervise residents at risk?"
- "Who leads your infection prevention program, and how do you make sure staff follow practices like hand hygiene every day?"
- "How do you record and honor each resident's treatment wishes and advance directives, and how do staff know about them?"
- "How do you verify that your nurses and aides have the skills to care for residents with needs like my family member's?"
- "Where do you post your daily staffing numbers, and can I see today's?"
- "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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chandler Post Acute and Rehabilitation | 0.6 mi | Chandler, AZ | ★★★★☆ | 3/5 | |
| Sante of Chandler | 0.7 mi | Chandler, AZ | ★★★★★ | 4/5 | |
| Archstone Care Center | 0.8 mi | Chandler, AZ | ★★★★★ | 4/5 | |
| River Park Post Acute | 3.3 mi | Chandler, AZ | ★★★★★ | 4/5 | |
| Tempe Post Acute | 5.9 mi | Tempe, AZ | ★★★★★ | 5/5 | |
| Friendship Village of Tempe | 6.5 mi | Tempe, AZ | ★★★☆☆ | 4/5 | |
| Ahwatukee Post Acute | 6.9 mi | Phoenix, AZ | ★★★☆☆ | 3/5 | |
| Wellsprings of Gilbert | 6.9 mi | Gilbert, AZ | ★★★★★ | 5/5 | |
| The Center at Val Vista, LLC | 7.0 mi | Gilbert, AZ | ★★★★★ | 5/5 | |
| Mirabella at Asu | 9.4 mi | Tempe, AZ | ★★★☆☆ | 3/5 |
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Facility data as of CMS processing date 2026-08-01. CCN 035095.