All 9 Medicare-certified nursing homes in Scranton,
side by side on the things that separate them: how many nursing hours each resident gets, how much of the
staff leaves each year, and what inspectors found on their last visit.
Nurse staffing at Gino J Merli Veterans Center runs 5.40 hours per resident day, roughly 40% above the national average, and the state-run home in Scranton holds a 30.1% turnover rate against a national 45.8%. Those numbers matter because consistent hands on deck tend to show up in outcomes. The trade-offs sit elsewhere: weekend staffing drops about 18% below its own weekday level, and the current inspection record carries six deficiencies, including one at the harm or jeopardy level and one abuse-related, with the last inspection dated April 2026. So the picture is a well-staffed, low-turnover home with real quality marks and a handful of serious findings the family should ask about directly.
Allied Services runs its transitional rehab unit with 5.33 nurse hours per resident per day, roughly a third more staffing than the typical American nursing home, and weekends dip only about 6% below weekday levels. That consistency matters, since weekend coverage is where a lot of homes quietly fall apart. Staff turnover sits at 33.3%, well under the national 45.8%, so the people caring for residents tend to stick around. Six deficiencies on the current record, none involving harm or abuse, and a December 2025 inspection that's still recent. It's a nonprofit with 51 beds, which keeps the operation small and lets the staffing numbers actually mean something. Nothing in the record reads as a warning sign.
Allied Services Skilled Nursing Center runs 327 certified beds in Scranton under nonprofit ownership, and its nurse staffing sits at 4.07 hours per resident day, roughly 5% above the national average of 3.86. That's a real edge, though weekends drop about 20% below the home's own weekday level, so coverage isn't evenly spread across the week. Staff turnover is 33%, better than the national 45.8%, which matters for continuity of care. The current record shows 23 deficiencies, none at harm or jeopardy level and none abuse-related, with the last inspection dated May 1, 2026. CMS gives it 4 stars for staffing and quality measures, 3 for health inspections.
Green Ridge Care Center in Scranton runs 95 beds under corporate ownership, and its recent inspections look decent, four stars for health inspections and quality measures, with the last survey in November 2025. The staffing picture is less reassuring. At 3.66 nurse hours per resident day, it sits about 5% under the national average, and weekends run roughly 7% lighter than weekdays, which matters when families visit less and problems go unnoticed. Turnover is 50.5% against a national 45.8%, so aides and nurses cycle through steadily. Eleven deficiencies are on record, including one at the harm level and one tied to abuse, plus an $8,018 fine. Good surveys, thin coverage, heavy churn, that's the tradeoff here.
Scranton Health Care Center runs 44 beds under corporate ownership, and its nurse staffing sits at 3.63 hours per resident day, about 6% under the national average of 3.86. Weekends dip roughly 10% below what the home staffs on weekdays, so coverage gets thinnest exactly when families tend to visit. Turnover is the brighter spot: 37.2% against a national 45.8%, meaning fewer caregivers are walking out the door than elsewhere.
What pulls the record down is the inspection history. There are 26 deficiencies on file, including one at the harm or jeopardy level and two tied to abuse, plus a $12,570 fine. The most recent inspection was August 2025, so the picture is current.
Marywood Heights sits in Scranton with 72 certified beds, run by a for-profit limited liability company. The staffing numbers are the strongest part of the picture: 4.03 nurse hours per resident day, roughly 4% above the national average, though weekends run about 6% thinner than weekdays. Turnover lands at 45.7%, essentially identical to the national rate. Where it slips is inspections, a 2-out-of-5 health inspection rating, 33 deficiencies on record including 3 at the harm or jeopardy level and 4 tied to abuse, plus one fine of $32,646. The most recent inspection was March 2026. Quality measures rate 3 out of 5. Decent hands on deck, but a troubling inspection history.
The numbers that stand out at Linwood aren't the inspection score, it's the staffing. A one-out-of-five staffing rating at a 102-bed nonprofit in Scranton means the people providing daily care are spread thin by federal standards, and that's the thing families feel first. The inspection record backs it up: 59 deficiencies, including five tied to abuse and three serious enough to put residents in harm's way, plus a recent inspection in March 2026 with a $113,348 fine on the books. Quality measures land at a middling three, but good clinical numbers can't carry a building when there aren't enough hands on the floor. Ask about direct-care hours per resident per day, and ask what changed after that last survey.
Elan Skilled Nursing and Rehab runs 145 certified beds in Scranton under nonprofit ownership, and its staffing is genuinely a strength, 4.47 nurse hours per resident day, about 16% above the national average. The catch is that weekends run roughly 11% thinner than weekdays, so coverage isn't evenly spread across the week. Turnover sits at 46.8%, essentially the national rate. The bigger concern is the inspection record: 31 deficiencies, including one at the harm or jeopardy level and two tied to abuse, plus a $19,105 fine. That's a lot of findings against a 2-out-of-5 health inspection rating, even with a recent November 2025 inspection. Ask about weekend staffing and how the abuse-related citations were resolved.
Embassy Of Scranton carries 84 deficiencies on its current record, including two at the harm or jeopardy level and seven tied to abuse. That's the kind of inspection history that lands a home in CMS's Special Focus Facility program, which it is. It's owned by a for-profit limited liability company and holds 139 certified beds. Nurse staffing sits at 3.45 hours per resident day, roughly 11% under the national average, with weekends about 4% thinner than weekdays. Turnover is 47.5%, just above the national figure of 45.8%. Two fines totaling $33,670 are also on record. The quality measure rating sits at three stars, but the inspection record is where the real story is.