Nursing home
Karen Acres Care Center
3605 Elm Drive, Urbandale, IA 50322 · Map
For profit - Corporation · 35 certified beds
Karen Acres Care Center is a Medicare-certified nursing home in Urbandale, Iowa. CMS rates it 4 out of 5 stars overall (3/5 for staffing, 4/5 for health inspections). Nurse staffing is 3.09 hours per resident per day, below the Iowa average of 3.83. Its most recent inspection on Jun 11, 2025 cited 2 deficiencies.
CMS quality ratings
Ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), updated monthly. 5 stars is the highest quality.
How Karen Acres Care Center compares
This facility vs. the Iowa and national averages, from CMS data. For staffing, higher is generally better; for turnover and deficiencies, lower is better.
| Metric | This facility | Iowa avg | National avg | Compared with the state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total nurse staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 3.09 | 3.83 | 3.89 | below avg |
| RN staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 0.55 | 0.73 | 0.68 | below avg |
| Aide staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 2.11 | 2.53 | 2.34 | below avg |
| Nursing staff turnover | 43.3% | 43.9% | 46.4% | below avg |
| Deficiencies cited, last inspection | 2.0 | 6.2 | 9.5 | below avg |
Staffing
Hours per resident per day as reported to CMS. Higher numbers indicate more direct care time.
Staff turnover
Lower turnover typically indicates better working conditions and continuity of care. National average for nursing staff is 46.4%.
Recent health inspection
CMS inspects nursing facilities regularly. Deficiencies are categorized by severity.
What inspectors found at Karen Acres Care Center
Specific deficiencies cited in recent CMS health inspections, most recent first. Severity follows the CMS scope/severity scale. Source: CMS Care Compare.
- Potential for harm
Ensure that a nursing home area is free from accident hazards and provides adequate supervision to prevent accidents.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Nov 25, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Ensure that a nursing home area is free from accident hazards and provides adequate supervision to prevent accidents.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Jun 11, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Procure food from sources approved or considered satisfactory and store, prepare, distribute and serve food in accordance with professional standards.
Nutrition and Dietary Deficiencies · Jul 7, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Ensure menus must meet the nutritional needs of residents, be prepared in advance, be followed, be updated, be reviewed by dietician, and meet the needs of the resident.
Nutrition and Dietary Deficiencies · Jul 7, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Honor the resident's right to a safe, clean, comfortable and homelike environment, including but not limited to receiving treatment and supports for daily living safely.
Resident Rights Deficiencies · Jul 7, 2024 · Full report (PDF)
Show all 10 deficiencies
- Potential for harm
Provide and implement an infection prevention and control program.
Infection Control Deficiencies · Jul 7, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Honor the resident's right to a dignified existence, self-determination, communication, and to exercise his or her rights.
Resident Rights Deficiencies · Jul 7, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Honor the resident's right to a dignified existence, self-determination, communication, and to exercise his or her rights.
Resident Rights Deficiencies · Mar 12, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Procure food from sources approved or considered satisfactory and store, prepare, distribute and serve food in accordance with professional standards.
Nutrition and Dietary Deficiencies · Oct 12, 2023 - Potential for harm
Provide and implement an infection prevention and control program.
Infection Control Deficiencies · Oct 12, 2023
Read the full inspection reports on Medicare.gov Each inspection there has a “Read the full report” link with the inspectors’ written findings.
About this facility
- Address
- 3605 Elm Drive
Urbandale, IA 50322 - CMS certification #
- 165460
- Ownership
- For profit - Corporation
- Certified beds
- 35
- Avg residents/day
- 30.3
- Provider type
- Medicare and Medicaid
- First certified
- 2002-06-01
- Setting
- Urban
Not SLA enrolled. This facility hasn’t enrolled in resident survey verification. Learn about enrollment →
Location and nearby
Explore the area around Karen Acres Care Center using Google Maps.
Other public records
- Website says Respite stays, nurse 24 hours a day, works with hospice
Full public records, with dates and sources
Care and services
From the community’s website
What Karen Acres Care Center says about itself, quoted from its own site. We have not checked these claims against licensing records. Ask about each one on a tour.
- Offers respite or short-term stays.
We offer skilled nursing and rehabilitation services, long term care, Hospice, and respite care.
(page, checked Oct 12, 2026) - Nurse on site: 24 hours a day.
: Karen Acres provides 24 hour RN or LPN coverage.
(page, checked Oct 15, 2026) - Offers hospice care on site or works with hospice providers.
We offer skilled nursing and rehabilitation services, long term care, Hospice, and respite care.
(page, checked Oct 12, 2026)
Staff pay and workplace safety
Federal records about how the employer here treats its staff.
Federal wage and hour cases
The Department of Labor checks that staff are paid minimum wage and overtime as the law requires.
DOL also concluded 1 case here with no violations found, most recently for a period ending Apr 24, 2007.
Source: U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division enforcement data, loaded Oct 15, 2026. Concluded cases only. The dates are the period in which DOL found violations, not when the case opened or closed. Back wages are what the employer agreed to pay; penalties are what DOL assessed. DOL does not publish a page for each case, so search the dataset by case number.
Location and nearby care
- Nearest hospital with an emergency room
- Broadlawns Medical Center, Des Moines. 4.4 miles away, straight line. CMS overall hospital rating: 3 of 5 stars.
- Nearest Medicare nursing home
- Royal Oaks Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Urbandale. 1.2 miles away, straight line.
- Nearest home health agency office
- Centerwell Home Health, Urbandale. 1.2 miles away, straight line. Agencies travel to clients, so ask which ones serve this address.
- Nearest pharmacy
- Medicap Pharmacy. 0.4 miles away, straight line. From OpenStreetMap, which does not list every pharmacy, so one may be closer.
- Area
- USDA classes ZIP code 50322 as metropolitan (metropolitan core).
- Dialysis within 15 miles
- Davita Windsor Heights Dialysis, Windsor Heights, 2.0 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 3 of 5 stars)
Davita West Des Moines Dialysis, West Des Moines, 4.6 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 4 of 5 stars)
Davita Central Des Moines Dialysis, Des Moines, 5.3 miles away, straight line (has a shift starting after 5 pm; CMS rating 3 of 5 stars) - Hospice
- 13 Medicare hospices tell CMS they serve ZIP code 50322.
Hospice Of The Midwest, LLC, office in Johnston, 2.2 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars)
Unitypoint Hospice, office in Urbandale, 2.7 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars)
Wesleylife Hospice, office in Urbandale, 2.8 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars) - Nearest geriatric medicine practice
- Ch Specialty Services Ia PC, Osceola. 40.9 miles away, straight line. 2 geriatric medicine doctors listed there.
Distances are straight lines from the community, not driving distance. Hospitals, home health, dialysis, hospice and doctors come from CMS provider data (CMS, hospital list updated Jul 22, 2026). Star ratings are CMS’s own.
Emergency and natural hazard risk
Public hazard maps for this location. Ask the community about its emergency plan, its generator and where residents would go in an evacuation.
- Flood zone
- Outside the high and moderate risk flood areas on FEMA's flood map (Zone X, minimal flood hazard, or not studied). (FEMA flood map)
- FEMA National Risk Index
- Overall: relatively moderate. By hazard: hurricane very low, inland flooding relatively moderate, wildfire very low, tornado relatively high, heat wave relatively moderate, earthquake very low. These are FEMA’s ratings for the census tract, compared with tracts nationwide. (FEMA, December 2025)
A flood zone describes the map at this point, not the building's elevation. In an emergency, follow the local emergency management agency.
What we checked
Every public source we searched for this community. “Nothing on record” means we found no record that matched it. A record can be missed when a name or address differs.
| Source | Data as of | What we found |
|---|---|---|
| U.S. Department of Labor wage and hour cases | Oct 15, 2026 | See above |
| OSHA workplace safety inspections since 2016 | Oct 15, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| FEMA flood map | See above | |
| USDA wildfire risk | Apr 15, 2026 | Not shown: FEMA rates wildfire risk here very low |
| FEMA National Risk Index | See above | |
| CMS hospitals, home health, dialysis, hospice and doctors; OpenStreetMap pharmacies | See above | |
| HUD Multifamily Properties - Assisted | Jul 6, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| State Veterans Homes (NASVH directory) | Sep 20, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| CMS Hospice - General Information | Aug 19, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| CMS Home Health Care Agencies | May 27, 2026 | Nothing on record |
| The community’s own website | See above |
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Frequently asked questions
Is Karen Acres Care Center a good nursing home?
CMS gives Karen Acres Care Center an overall rating of 4 out of 5 stars, including 3/5 for staffing and 4/5 for health inspections. These ratings come from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and are updated monthly.
How is Karen Acres Care Center staffed?
Karen Acres Care Center reports 3.09 total nurse hours per resident per day, compared with the Iowa average of 3.83.
Has Karen Acres Care Center had inspection problems?
Its most recent CMS inspection cited 2 deficiencies.
How many beds does Karen Acres Care Center have?
Karen Acres Care Center is certified for 35 beds.