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B

82/100

Above average

The Cottages

1742 Main Street, Pella, IA 50219

CMS 1/5 stars #1 of 4 in Marion County (641) 628-1244
Certified beds
100
Occupancy
87%
Ownership
Non-profit
Accepts
Medicare + Medicaid

What to ask about before you visit

These are findings in the public CMS record for this home. They are not our opinion, each one comes straight from a federal inspection or enforcement file.

  • $52,060 in federal fines

    CMS has fined this facility across 3 penalty action(s).

Our read on The Cottages

The Cottages in Pella runs a nonprofit shop with 100 certified beds, and its nurse staffing sits at 4.18 hours per resident day, roughly 8% above the national average, though weekend coverage dips about 7% below its own weekday levels, and half the staff turns over each year against a 45.8% national figure. That mix helps explain a staffing rating of 4 out of 5 and quality measures at 4 out of 5, but the health inspection side tells a harder story: 21 deficiencies on record, including 2 at the harm or jeopardy level and 3 tied to abuse, with $40,054 in fines across two penalties. The most recent inspection was August 25, 2025, so the record is current rather than stale. Good day-to-day care numbers, serious inspection findings.

Written from the CMS figures for this home shown further down this page. Nothing here is paid for or supplied by the home.

How this grade was calculated

Every point is shown. Nothing is weighted behind the scenes, the full formula is on How we grade.

Inspection30/30Staffing26/30Stability9/15Outcomes12/15Enforcement5/10

A full pentagon is full marks. The shape shows what kind of good or bad a home is, two homes can share a score and look nothing alike.

Inspection safety

30/30

Citations from state health inspections over the last three surveys, weighted by how much harm CMS says they caused.

  • →No citations recorded in the last 3 years

Staffing

26/30

Nursing hours per resident per day, adjusted for how sick the residents are, plus RN cover and weekend consistency.

  • →4.77 total nurse hours per resident per day (national median 3.77)
  • →0.92 RN hours per resident per day
  • →Weekend staffing drops 7% against weekdays

Staff stability

9/15

How much of the nursing team leaves in a year. High turnover means a resident rarely sees the same face twice.

  • →50% of nursing staff left in the last year

Resident outcomes

12/15

The CMS quality-measure rating, built from resident outcomes like falls, pressure ulcers, infections and antipsychotic use.

  • →4 of 5 stars on the CMS quality-measure rating

Enforcement history

5/10

Fines and payment denials CMS has imposed. A denial of payment means CMS stopped paying for new admissions.

  • →$52,060 in federal fines across 3 action(s)

Staffing, against the national average

Full detail

Hours of nursing care each resident receives per day. The marker on each bar is the national average.

Total nurse hours per resident per day4.18 hrs
National average 3.86 hrsBetter than average
Registered nurse (RN) hours0.92 hrs
National average 0.69 hrsBetter than average

RNs are the licence level most likely to catch a resident deteriorating.

Weekend nurse hours3.89 hrs
National average 3.42 hrsBetter than average

The shift most families visit, and the one thinned first.

Nursing staff turnover50.00%
National average 45.80%Below average

The share of nursing staff who left over the last year.

Recent inspection findings

Last standard health inspection: August 25, 2025 (1 year ago). No citations were recorded.

No health-inspection citations on record for this facility in the current CMS release.

Who owns this home

Full record

Part of WESLEYLIFE, which operates 10 homes. Staffing budgets are usually set at chain level, not in the building.

What families say

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Common questions about The Cottages

What is the ElderGrade for The Cottages? +

The Cottages holds an ElderGrade of B (82 out of 100), which we describe as "above average". The grade combines its inspection citations, nurse staffing levels, staff turnover, resident outcomes and enforcement history from the federal CMS record.

How many nursing hours does each resident get at The Cottages? +

Residents receive an average of 4.18 nursing hours per day across all nursing staff, against a national average of 3.86 hours.

Has The Cottages been cited for harming residents? +

No. None of the 0 citations on record were scored at the levels CMS uses to indicate actual harm or immediate jeopardy.

Does The Cottages accept Medicaid? +

Yes, The Cottages is certified to accept Medicaid, which is the programme that pays for long-term custodial care once a resident meets their state's income and asset limits.