Rehabilitation Center at Sandalwood, the

Name: Rehabilitation Center at Sandalwood, the
Address: 3835 HARLAN ST, Wheat Ridge, CO, 80033, US
Telephone: 3034221533

3835 Harlan St, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033 · Jefferson County · 103 certified beds · avg 83 residents/day · certified since Sep 1, 1990

3/5

Health inspection rating (on-site)

Serious findings on record

$46,150

Fines, last 3 years

4.01

Nurse hours/resident/day (adjusted)

What health inspectors found (on-site government inspections — the most independent evidence available)

Health inspection rating: ★★★☆☆3/5 · 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)

▲ Immediate jeopardy, facility-wide · Apr 26, 2024 · F-0756

The facility did not have a licensed pharmacist review each resident's complete medication regimen and medical chart every month, or did not follow its own rules for reporting medication problems.

Why it matters: Skipped pharmacist reviews allow unnecessary drugs, wrong doses, and harmful interactions to go undetected.

Severity (L): A life-threatening or extremely dangerous situation existed throughout the facility. The single most serious citation CMS can issue.

Corrected: May 24, 2024 (Deficient, Provider has date of correction)

▲ Actual harm, one-off · Apr 26, 2024 · F-0692

The facility did not provide enough food and fluids to keep residents healthy, such as preventing unplanned weight loss or dehydration.

Why it matters: Malnutrition and dehydration can quickly weaken a resident and lead to serious complications.

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: May 24, 2024 (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 11, 2026	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 11, 2026	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not honor residents' right to manage their own money and financial affairs.
Feb 11, 2026	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not make sure care was delivered by qualified people following each resident's written care plan — the individualized document that spells out exactly what care that resident is supposed to receive.
Feb 11, 2026	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility allowed residents to lose the ability to do daily activities — like bathing, dressing, and eating — when there was no medical reason for the decline. Good care helps residents keep the abilities they have.
Apr 26, 2024	▲ L · Immediate jeopardy, facility-wide	The facility did not have a licensed pharmacist review each resident's complete medication regimen and medical chart every month, or did not follow its own rules for reporting medication problems.
Apr 26, 2024	▲ G · Actual harm, one-off	The facility did not provide enough food and fluids to keep residents healthy, such as preventing unplanned weight loss or dehydration.
Apr 26, 2024	F · Potential for harm, facility-wide	The facility did not run an ongoing quality assurance committee that reviews care problems and creates plans to fix them.
Apr 26, 2024	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility allowed residents to lose the ability to do daily activities — like bathing, dressing, and eating — when there was no medical reason for the decline. Good care helps residents keep the abilities they have.
Apr 26, 2024	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.
Apr 26, 2024	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not provide the care needed to maintain or improve residents' movement and flexibility — such as range-of-motion exercises — leading to avoidable decline.
Apr 26, 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.
Apr 26, 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.
Apr 26, 2024	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not provide or arrange dental services for its residents. Nursing homes are responsible for making sure residents can get dental care.
Jan 31, 2024	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not provide proper care for pressure ulcers (bedsores) or did not do enough to prevent new ones from forming. Bedsores develop when residents stay in one position too long without help moving. · from a complaint
Jan 11, 2023	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.
Jan 11, 2023	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not honor residents' right to make their own choices about their daily lives, such as when to wake up, what to eat, or how to spend their time.
Jan 11, 2023	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.
Jan 11, 2023	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.
Jan 11, 2023	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.
Jan 11, 2023	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.
Jan 11, 2023	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not provide enough food and fluids to keep residents healthy, such as preventing unplanned weight loss or dehydration.
Jan 11, 2023	D · Potential for harm, one-off	The facility did not provide safe and appropriate pain management for a resident who needed it.
Jan 11, 2023	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.

Inspection trend by year

Citations from standard inspections decreased between the last two inspection cycles (9 → 4).

Year	Citations	Serious (G–L)	Worst severity that year
2023	9	0	E
2024	10	2	L ▲
2026	4	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)

1 fine totaling $46,150.

Date	Type	Amount / length
Apr 26, 2024	Fine	$46,150

Nurse staffing (from payroll records, adjusted for how much care residents need)

Measure	This facility	Colorado avg	U.S. avg	Where it stands
Total nurse staffing (hours per resident per day)	4.01	3.89	3.95	top 35% in Colorado; top 39% in the U.S.
Registered Nurse hours	0.84	0.86	0.69	top 45% in Colorado; top 24% in the U.S.
Weekend total nurse staffing	3.63	3.44	3.50	top 33% in Colorado; top 36% in the U.S.
Weekend RN hours (not acuity-adjusted)	0.42	0.61	0.48	bottom 27% in Colorado; top 45% in the U.S.
Total nursing staff turnover (%)	0.0	47.1	45.8	—
RN turnover (%)	0.0	44.6	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 3.57, RN 0.75, weekend 3.23. Staffing rating: 4/5.

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 - Limited Liability company

Owner / manager	Type	Role	Stake	Since
		Ownership Data Not Available

Questions to ask on your visit

Generated from this facility's actual citation record — bring them to a tour and ask the administrator directly.

"Does a pharmacist review every resident's medications and chart monthly, and how are their concerns acted on?"
"How do you monitor residents' weight and eating, and what happens when someone starts losing weight?"
"Who leads your infection prevention program, and how do you make sure staff follow practices like hand hygiene every day?"
"How are residents' personal funds handled here, and what records can families review?"
"How do you make sure every shift actually follows each resident's care plan?"
"How do you help residents maintain their daily living skills, and how do you measure whether it's working?"
"How does your quality committee work, and can you give an example of a problem it recently identified and fixed?"
"How do you make sure each resident's care follows the doctor's orders, and what changed after this citation?"
"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
Lakeside Post Acute	0.5 mi	Wheat Ridge, CO	★★★☆☆	2/5	abuse
Wheatridge Care Center	0.8 mi	Wheat Ridge, CO	★★★☆☆	2/5
Cambridge Care Center	1.8 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★★☆☆	2/5	abuse
Edgewater Health and Rehabilitation	1.9 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★★★★	4/5
Cedars Healthcare Center	1.9 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★★☆☆	2/5
Sierra Post Acute	2.1 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★☆☆☆	1/5	abuse
Harmony Pointe Care Center	2.2 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★★☆☆	2/5
Allison Care Center	2.5 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★☆☆☆	2/5	abuse
Sloan's Lake Rehabilitation Center	2.5 mi	Denver, CO	★★★★★	5/5
Arvada Care and Rehabilitation Center	2.5 mi	Arvada, CO	★★★★★	4/5
Western Hills Health Care Center	2.5 mi	Lakewood, CO	★★★☆☆	3/5
Juniper Village - the Spearly Center	2.8 mi	Denver, CO	★★☆☆☆	2/5

Compare this facility with the 3 closest →

All facilities in Wheat Ridge →

Facility data as of CMS processing date 2026-08-01. CCN 065292.

The Care File

Visit checklist — Rehabilitation Center at Sandalwood, the

3835 Harlan St, Wheat Ridge, CO 80033 · 3034221533

Health inspection rating 3/5 · CMS overall 4/5· Fines (3y): $46,150

Most serious findings on record:

▲ Apr 26, 2024 (F-0756, Immediate jeopardy, facility-wide): The facility did not have a licensed pharmacist review each resident's complete medication regimen and medical chart every month, or did not follow its own rules for reporting medication problems.
▲ Apr 26, 2024 (F-0692, Actual harm, one-off): The facility did not provide enough food and fluids to keep residents healthy, such as preventing unplanned weight loss or dehydration.

Questions for the administrator:

☐ "Does a pharmacist review every resident's medications and chart monthly, and how are their concerns acted on?"
☐ "How do you monitor residents' weight and eating, and what happens when someone starts losing weight?"
☐ "Who leads your infection prevention program, and how do you make sure staff follow practices like hand hygiene every day?"
☐ "How are residents' personal funds handled here, and what records can families review?"
☐ "How do you make sure every shift actually follows each resident's care plan?"
☐ "How do you help residents maintain their daily living skills, and how do you measure whether it's working?"
☐ "How does your quality committee work, and can you give an example of a problem it recently identified and fixed?"
☐ "How do you make sure each resident's care follows the doctor's orders, and what changed after this citation?"
☐ "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?"

While you're there, notice:

☐ Smell and cleanliness in hallways, not just the lobby
☐ How staff speak to residents; call lights answered promptly
☐ Residents up, dressed, and engaged (visit mealtimes and a weekend if you can)

Data: CMS Provider Data Catalog, version 2026-08-01 · CCN 065292 · Verify at medicare.gov/care-compare · Printed from The Care File (thecarefile.com)