Birmingham · 35210
Fair Haven
1424 Montclair Road
Birmingham, AL 35210
Kirkwood by the River
⌖ Birmingham, AL · Jefferson County
No photos yet
Medicare overall rating 3 of 5 stars
Certified beds61
Medicare / MedicaidMedicare only
OwnershipNon-profit (corporation)
About Kirkwood by the River
Kirkwood by the River is a 61-bed nonprofit nursing home in Birmingham, AL. Medicare rates it 3 out of 5 stars overall (average); the average in Alabama is 3.0. At its last full inspection (Oct 2021), inspectors found 1 problem, fewer than the Alabama average of 4.0. None of the problems in its recent inspections were found to have harmed residents. About 36% of its nursing staff left in the past year. It has had no federal fines in the last three years. Its quality ratings are stronger for long-term care than for short-term rehab.
Written from Medicare’s published figures; nothing here is paid for or written by the home. Our methodology
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Key details
Facility nameKirkwood By The River
LocationJefferson County, Alabama
Phone(205) 956-2184
Address3605 Ratliff Road, Birmingham, AL 35210 · Jefferson County
CMS provider number15457
Ownership typeNon-profit (corporation)
Official inspection reportsRead them on Medicare.gov ↗
Medicare enrolled sinceSeptember 8, 2006 (20 years)
✓ Medicare✗ Medicaid
Quality & inspections
Explore this facility's official CMS inspection history, staffing levels and quality measures below — sourced directly from Medicare's public records.
Ratings and inspection data on this page come directly from CMS's public records and are never altered for any paid listing. Medicare data as of September 2026.
What Medicare found
4 strengths in Medicare's inspection, fine and staffing records for this home. 3 care-quality measures are worse than the state average in the rehab and long-term care section below.
Strengths
- Serious health citationsNone on recordNo citations for actual harm or immediate jeopardy since Oct 2021.Strength
- Fines and penaltiesNoneNo federal fines or payment denials in the last three years.Strength
- Health citations at last inspection1 (Oct 2021)Alabama average: 4.0. Most citations are minor and corrected within weeks.Strength
- Nursing staff turnover36% a yearAlabama average: 47%Strength
Source: Medicare (CMS) inspection, penalty and staffing records, compared with the Alabama average. Problems may have been corrected since; ask the home about anything listed here. How we choose these
Short-term rehab or long-term care?
Medicare rates these separately, and many homes are better at one than the other.
Short-term rehab
For a stay of a few weeks after a hospital visit, such as after surgery or a stroke.
- Sent back to the hospital54.9%State average: 24.8%Worse than average
- Needed an emergency room visit11.6%State average: 11.3%About average
- Newly given antipsychotic drugs1.9%State average: 2.0%About average
Long-term care
For residents who live at the home for months or years.
- Falls with a major injury6.2%State average: 3.3%Worse than average
- Pressure sores (bedsores)4.7%State average: 5.4%About average
- Given antipsychotic drugs39.0%State average: 21.2%Worse than average
- Hospital stays per 1,000 resident days2.0State average: 2.0About average
Source: Medicare (CMS) quality measures, compared with the Alabama average. Lower is better for every rate shown.
Who pays, and how full it is
Many residents here pay privately or through insurance. In Alabama, Medicaid pays for 68% of resident days at a typical home.
- 0% Medicaid
- 12% Medicare
- 88% Private pay, insurance and other
Beds in use, on average90%Alabama typical: 87%
Cost of care per resident day$914Alabama typical: $308
Shares of resident days, from the home’s Medicare cost report for the year ending December 2024. The cost per day is what care costs the home to provide, not the price you would pay; ask the home for its private-pay rate. A busy home may have fewer open beds, so ask about availability.
Ratings over time
Its overall Medicare rating is 3 stars now, down from 4 stars in January 2019. It has ranged from 2 to 5 stars and changed 12 times.
Overall rating3★
Health inspections4★
Staffing1★
Quality of care2★
Nurse hours per resident per day4.7
20192020202120222023202420252026
Show the values by year
| Month | Overall | Inspections | Staffing | Quality | Nurse hours |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan 2019 | 4 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 5.1 |
| Jan 2020 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 5.3 |
| Jan 2021 | 5 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6.7 |
| Jan 2022 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 5.7 |
| Jan 2023 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 3 | 4.3 |
| Jan 2024 | 5 | 4 | 5 | 4 | 6.1 |
| Feb 2025 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 4.7 |
| Feb 2026 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 4.7 |
| Sep 2026 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 2 | – |
Source: Medicare (CMS) monthly Care Compare releases since 2019. Medicare has changed how some ratings are calculated over the years and paused most inspections in 2020, so some jumps reflect rule changes rather than changes at the home. Our methodology
See the full inspection reportEvery citation, fine, staffing figure and quality measure Medicare publishes for this home
From Medicare’s September 2026 data. Each inspection is dated below; staffing comes from payroll records for a recent quarter, and resident outcomes cover the latest period Medicare reports.
Inspection summary
How this facility compares to state and national averages on CMS-reported problems.
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Three-survey history
Citation counts across this facility's three most recent inspection cycles, so you can see whether problems are trending up, down, or holding steady.
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