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Forest Hills Healthcare Center: Food Safety Failures - OH

Healthcare Facility
Forest Hills Healthcare Center.
Cincinnati, OH  ·  4/5 stars

That was just one item on a list that grew longer the further inspectors walked through the facility's kitchen on the morning of April 27.

The walk-in cooler held two cartons of heavy whipping cream, opened and partially used, with no open date marked on either. A cart held a 22-quart container of dark liquid with no label and no date. Next to it sat a pink plastic pitcher resting directly on the cart's surface, its exterior coated with a dark, unidentified material. A large pan of pasta mixed with ground meat sat covered in plastic wrap, undated, with the serving scoop resting directly on top of the food. A box of bacon sat on the floor. A tray of individual fruit cocktail bowls was covered but not dated. A cart of individually poured beverages had no dates.

The Director of Dietary Services, identified in the report as DDS #505, was present for each observation and confirmed each problem as inspectors pointed to it.

The walk-in freezer held a bag of frozen chicken breasts that was neither sealed nor dated, and a bag of pork pizza topping in the same condition. The reach-in cooler next to the tray line counter held pre-poured juices, milk, thickened beverages, and tea — covered, but none of them dated. DDS #505 confirmed both.

The inspection was a complaint investigation. It covered 109 of the facility's 112 residents, the three excluded being those who did not receive food from the kitchen.

Three days later, on April 30, inspectors moved to a nurses' station refrigerator. Inside was a plastic bag of food labeled with a resident's name and dated April 21, nine days earlier. Three half-sandwiches wrapped in plastic sat alongside it with no date at all. A licensed practical nurse confirmed both findings on the spot.

The facility's own written policy, dated February 2026, stated that all foods would be stored six inches above the floor, wrapped or in covered containers, labeled, and dated. The bacon on the floor of the walk-in cooler had been stored there anyway. The pasta, the cream, the dark liquid, the chicken, the pork, the juices, the sandwiches — none of them met the standard the facility had put in writing two months before inspectors arrived.

A separate policy on resident food storage, itself undated, stated that personal refrigerators would be monitored daily, food would be labeled appropriately, and unsafe food including moldy food would be discarded. The three bags of grapes in the room of Resident #20 were moldy when inspectors found them. CNA #314 confirmed it. The policy said daily monitoring. Nobody had.

The inspection report rated the harm level as minimal or potential for actual harm. Foodborne illness from improperly stored or spoiled food can cause severe gastrointestinal illness, dehydration, and, in elderly or medically compromised patients, outcomes that escalate quickly. The 109 residents potentially affected by the kitchen conditions include people who depend on the facility for every meal.

What the 22-quart container of dark liquid was, the report does not say. What was coating the pink plastic pitcher sitting beside it, the report does not say either. DDS #505 was standing there when inspectors found it and confirmed the items were unlabeled and undated. No explanation for the contents appears anywhere in the inspection record.

The moldy grapes in Resident #20's room were still there when inspectors arrived on April 30. The policy requiring daily checks of personal refrigerators was in place. The grapes were undated, so there is no way to know how long they had been sitting there before anyone looked.

Full Inspection Report

The details above represent a summary of key findings. View the complete inspection report for Forest Hills Healthcare Center. from 2026-04-30 including all violations, facility responses, and corrective action plans.

Download the official CMS inspection PDF from Medicare.gov

Additional Resources

Editorial Standards & Data Disclosure

Data source: This article is based on inspection data downloaded directly from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) via Medicare.gov. CMS releases inspection reports in bulk; we publish the findings as documented by state surveyors in the official Form CMS-2567 Statement of Deficiencies.

Plan of correction: The CMS report we receive does not include the facility's plan of correction. Facilities submit plans of correction separately to state survey agencies and those responses may not be reflected in CMS data at the time of publication. The absence of a plan of correction in our data does not mean one was not filed. Readers who want information about corrective steps taken are encouraged to contact the facility directly or their state survey agency.

Corrections may have occurred: Inspection reports reflect conditions observed on the date of the survey. Facilities may have implemented corrections, staffing changes, additional training, or other remediation since the report was issued. We report what CMS provides and encourage readers to seek current information from the facility.

Editorial process: Inspection findings are extracted from CMS source documents and synthesized using AI, reviewed for factual accuracy against the original report by our editorial team.

Professional review: All content reviewed by Christopher F. Nesbitt, Sr., NH EMT & BU-trained Paralegal.

Last verified: September 6, 2026  ·  Our methodology

Quick Answer

FOREST HILLS HEALTHCARE CENTER. in CINCINNATI, OH was cited for violations during a health inspection on April 30, 2026.

That was just one item on a list that grew longer the further inspectors walked through the facility's kitchen on the morning of April 27.

Health inspections identify deficiencies that facilities must correct. Violations range from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the full report below for specific details and facility response.

Frequently Asked Questions

What happened at FOREST HILLS HEALTHCARE CENTER.?
That was just one item on a list that grew longer the further inspectors walked through the facility's kitchen on the morning of April 27.
How serious are these violations?
Violation severity varies from minor documentation issues to serious safety concerns. Review the inspection report for specific deficiency codes and scope. All violations must be corrected within required timeframes and are subject to follow-up verification inspections.
What should families do?
Families should: (1) Ask facility administration about specific corrective actions taken, (2) Request to see the follow-up inspection report verifying corrections, (3) Check if this represents a pattern by reviewing prior inspection reports, (4) Compare this facility's ratings with other nursing homes in CINCINNATI, OH, (5) Report any new concerns directly to state authorities.
Where can I see the full inspection report?
The complete inspection report is available on Medicare.gov's Care Compare website (www.medicare.gov/care-compare). You can also request a copy directly from FOREST HILLS HEALTHCARE CENTER. or from the state Department of Health. The report includes specific deficiency codes, facility responses, and correction timelines. This facility's federal provider number is 366389.
Has this facility had violations before?
To check FOREST HILLS HEALTHCARE CENTER.'s history, visit Medicare.gov's Care Compare and review their inspection history, quality ratings, and staffing levels. Look for patterns of repeated violations, especially in critical areas like abuse prevention, medication management, infection control, and resident safety.