SARASOTA -- The city has the fifth-worst nursing homes in the nation, tying with Seattle, according to a Denver company that rates health care quality.

Health Grades Inc. , which based its ranking on complaint and inspection surveys that state regulators conducted at 16,604 nursing homes, reported that half of Sarasota's nursing homes had four or more violations that resulted in patient injuries during the past four years. So did Seattle's homes.

State regulators confirmed Tuesday that one of the homes cited in the Health Grades list -- Integrated Health Services of Florida at Sarasota Pavilion -- is closing May 15.

The scope and severity of injuries, such as patients developing bedsores or losing great amounts of weight because of poor nutrition, placed most of the homes among the worst in the state.

Tampa and Orlando placed lower among the 22 cities on the list.

Two Florida cities made the list of the best nursing homes nationwide: Jacksonville and St. Petersburg.

Having cities on both lists shows the great disparity in Florida's nursing home care, said Peter Fatianow, senior vice president of corporate services for Health Grades.

"There are some really good ones and some really bad ones," he said.

Topping Health Grades' pick of Sarasota's 10 worst nursing homes were Waldemere Place and Harborside Healthcare, now called Springwood Rehabilitation and Nursing Center, each with 14 violations that resulted in harm to patients.

Others were Pines of Sarasota with 11; J. H. Floyd Sunshine Manor, 10; Integrated Health Services of Florida at Sarasota Pavilion, nine; and Lakeside Terrace Skilled Nursing Center, Springs at Lake Pointe Woods, Tandem Health Care of Sarasota, Sarasota Health Care Center and Emerald Oaks, now called Magnolia Health and Rehabilitation Center, each with seven.

The Integrated Health Services site intends to close May 15, according to the Agency for Health Care Administration. The home at 2600 Courtland St. has given its 105 residents the required three months' notice.

Joel Weiden, a spokesman for Integrated Health Services, declined to say why the home was closing. He said it was unrelated to the IHS chain's filing for bankruptcy protection a year ago. IHS manages the Sarasota home, which is owned by Lyrick Health Care, a Maryland company.

Administrators at some homes disputed the ranking, saying they've never heard of Health Grades. "My guess is that information is not really current," said Douglas Webb, interim administrator of Magnolia Health and Rehabilitation Center, 1507 S. Tuttle Ave.

Magnolia is the former Emerald Oaks, which was owned by Beverly Enterprises, a nursing home chain that pulled out of Florida in December. The home, under new management, got a clean bill of health from the state in November, Webb said.

"This facility is citation-free at this time. We cleared off any tags (for violations) that we had. This facility in the past did have some problems."

The Health Care Financing Administration, now called the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid, temporarily suspended payments for Emerald Oaks residents in late 2000, because of violations that occurred over several months.