Nursing home
Birchwood Health Care Center
604 1St Street Ne, Forest Lake, MN 55025 · Map
Non profit - Corporation · Part of Lifespark (4 facilities) · 100 certified beds
Birchwood Health Care Center is a Medicare-certified nursing home in Forest Lake, Minnesota. CMS rates it 2 out of 5 stars overall (4/5 for staffing, 1/5 for health inspections). Nurse staffing is 3.91 hours per resident per day, below the Minnesota average of 4.23. Its most recent inspection on Apr 10, 2025 cited 8 deficiencies.
- 3 fines totaling $132,781In CMS records: 3 total penalties.
CMS quality ratings
Ratings from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), updated monthly. 5 stars is the highest quality.
How Birchwood Health Care Center compares
This facility vs. the Minnesota and national averages, from CMS data. For staffing, higher is generally better; for turnover and deficiencies, lower is better.
| Metric | This facility | Minnesota avg | National avg | Compared with the state |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total nurse staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 3.91 | 4.23 | 3.89 | below avg |
| RN staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 0.80 | 1.06 | 0.68 | below avg |
| Aide staffing (hrs/resident/day) | 2.04 | 2.55 | 2.34 | below avg |
| Nursing staff turnover | 34.3% | 42.4% | 46.4% | below avg |
| Deficiencies cited, last inspection | 8.0 | 8.0 | 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.
Penalties in CMS records: 3 fines totaling $132,781, 3 total penalties.
What inspectors found at Birchwood Health 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
Provide and implement an infection prevention and control program.
Infection Control Deficiencies · Dec 19, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Immediate jeopardy
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 13, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Safeguard resident-identifiable information and/or maintain medical records on each resident that are in accordance with accepted professional standards.
Resident Assessment and Care Planning Deficiencies · Nov 13, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Provide care and assistance to perform activities of daily living for any resident who is unable.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Apr 10, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Implement a program that monitors antibiotic use.
Infection Control Deficiencies · Apr 10, 2025 · Full report (PDF)
Show all 12 deficiencies
- 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 · Apr 10, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Ensure each resident’s drug regimen must be free from unnecessary drugs.
Pharmacy Service Deficiencies · Apr 10, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Reasonably accommodate the needs and preferences of each resident.
Resident Rights Deficiencies · Apr 10, 2025 · Full report (PDF) - Actual harm
Provide appropriate pressure ulcer care and prevent new ulcers from developing.
Quality of Life and Care Deficiencies · Feb 9, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Set up an ongoing quality assessment and assurance group to review quality deficiencies and develop corrective plans of action.
Administration Deficiencies · Feb 9, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Observe each nurse aide's job performance and give regular training.
Nursing and Physician Services Deficiencies · Feb 9, 2024 · Full report (PDF) - Potential for harm
Have a registered nurse on duty 8 hours a day; and select a registered nurse to be the director of nurses on a full time basis.
Nursing and Physician Services Deficiencies · Feb 9, 2024 · Full report (PDF)
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
- 604 1St Street Ne
Forest Lake, MN 55025 - CMS certification #
- 245200
- Ownership
- Non profit - Corporation
- Certified beds
- 100
- Avg residents/day
- 80.4
- Provider type
- Medicare and Medicaid
- First certified
- 1974-12-01
- Chain
- Lifespark (4 facilities)
- Setting
- Urban
Part of Lifespark
Lifespark operates 4 nursing facilities across the United States. View all Lifespark facilities →
Not SLA enrolled. This facility hasn’t enrolled in resident survey verification. Learn about enrollment →
Location and nearby
Explore the area around Birchwood Health Care Center using Google Maps.
Other public records
- Website says Works with hospice
Full public records, with dates and sources
Care and services
From the community’s website
What Birchwood Health 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 hospice care on site or works with hospice providers.
Our Doulas work hand-in-hand with clinical hospice teams, acting as advocates and guides.
(page, checked Oct 15, 2026)
Location and nearby care
- Nearest hospital with an emergency room
- Fairview Lakes Health Services, Wyoming. 2.6 miles away, straight line. CMS overall hospital rating: 3 of 5 stars.
- Nearest Medicare nursing home
- Meadows on Fairview, Wyoming. 2.5 miles away, straight line.
- Nearest home health agency office
- Advanced Medical Home Care, LLC, White Bear Lake. 16.3 miles away, straight line. Agencies travel to clients, so ask which ones serve this address.
- Nearest pharmacy
- Rolseth Drugs. 0.4 miles away, straight line. From OpenStreetMap, which does not list every pharmacy, so one may be closer.
- Area
- USDA classes ZIP code 55025 as metropolitan (metropolitan high commuting).
- Dialysis within 15 miles
- Davita Wyoming Dialysis, Wyoming, 2.5 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 4 of 5 stars)
Fmc - Blaine Dialysis, Blaine, 13.6 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 4 of 5 stars)
Davita Central Avenue Dialysis, Blaine, 14.6 miles away, straight line (CMS rating 3 of 5 stars) - Hospice
- 23 Medicare hospices tell CMS they serve ZIP code 55025.
Suite Living Hospice, LLC, office in White Bear Lake, 17.1 miles away, straight line
Ecumen Hospice, office in Shoreview, 18.3 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 4 of 5 stars)
Lakeview Hospice, office in Oak Park Heights, 18.5 miles away, straight line (CMS family survey rating 5 of 5 stars) - Nearest geriatric medicine practice
- Allina Health System, Coon Rapids. 17.6 miles away, straight line. 1 geriatric medicine doctor 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: inland flooding relatively moderate, wildfire relatively 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 | Nothing on record |
| 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 relatively 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 Birchwood Health Care Center a good nursing home?
CMS gives Birchwood Health Care Center an overall rating of 2 out of 5 stars, including 4/5 for staffing and 1/5 for health inspections. These ratings come from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services and are updated monthly.
How is Birchwood Health Care Center staffed?
Birchwood Health Care Center reports 3.91 total nurse hours per resident per day, compared with the Minnesota average of 4.23.
Has Birchwood Health Care Center had inspection problems?
Its most recent CMS inspection cited 8 deficiencies.
How many beds does Birchwood Health Care Center have?
Birchwood Health Care Center is certified for 100 beds.