Ombudsman calls out Oregon DHS over regulation of now-closed Mt. Hood Senior Living
PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Oregon’s Long-Term Care Ombudsman has uncovered their investigation into a senior living facility in Sandy that was forced to close after a missing resident was found dead on Christmas.
On Dec. 24, 2023, the Sandy Police Department began searching for Ki Soon “Harmony” Hyun, who was last seen at Mt. Hood Senior Living. Officials said the 83-year-old woman suffered from heart problems, and had previously been diagnosed with heart problems.
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That following afternoon, SPD reported she had been found dead in a “heavily wooded area” about a half-mile away from the facility she resided in.
In late January, the Oregon Department of Human Services issued Mt. Hood Senior Living an order of immediate suspension due to its failure to address the safety issues that posed a risk to residents.
But according to the newly-released report, ODHS did not handle the incident properly.
The ombudsman said the human services department “conducted a rapid and chaotic closure of the facility” on the same night it issued the immediate suspension order and “potentially traumatized the residents still living at the facility and their families.”
They also said 13 of the 18 relocated residents were moved to places the department should’ve deemed as unsafe.
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Furthermore, the ombudsman found that ODHS “did not appear to recognize the collection of red flags in the Agency’s possession for at least the seven weeks prior to the December 25th tragedy.”
According to investigators, the department’s licensing unit failed to intervene when it first learned Mt. Hood Senior Living did not have a licensed, full-time administrator working at the facility in early November.
The interim administrator then emailed ODHS, explaining that they did not have the proper credentials for their current role. The employee asked the agency when a licensed administrator should be hired, but in response, the department did not address the state’s licensing requirements.
Also in November, the agency’s regulator unit conducted an inspection to look into complaints they received about the senior living facility between July and August. Officials determined the facility, which opened in March, hadn’t fully trained many of its staff members.
Additionally, Mt. Hood Senior Living didn’t conduct background checks on at least two employees and was regularly understaffed. The investigation found some residents weren’t receiving with baths or help showering, and one resident sat in a recliner for over eight hours without being fed or hydrated.
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The ombudsman suggested an independent audit of the human services department’s licensing and regulatory functions, among other recommendations. In response to Fred Steele, director for the Office of the Long-Term Care Ombudsman, the agency said it “respectfully” did not agree with most of the report’s statements.
ODHS Director Fariborz Pakseresht and Director of the Office of Aging and People with Disabilities Nakeshia Knight-Coyle said the agency considered many options before immediately suspending Mt. Hood Senior Living, but the final decision was most effective for protecting residents.
According to the directors, the department deployed an on-site team to “swiftly” move the residents from the facility, and an off-site team to help residents and their families find other housing options.
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“The difficulty of this regulatory response is indicative of how Oregon’s long-term care system has increased in size and complexity in recent years,” Pakseresht and Knight-Coyle wrote. “Workforce shortages, which are commonplace among long-term care providers, have exacerbated the challenges.”
Their response also noted that they’re unable to address certain parts of the report, due to pending legal matters.
KOIN 6 has reached out to the former Mt. Hood Senior Living owner for comment.
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