Oregon Governor Calls for Investigation into the Death of an 83-year-old Dementia Sufferer

CLACKAMAS COUNTY. Ore. — Oregon Governor, Tina Kotek, has responded to an appeal for an investigation by the family of an 83-year-old woman suffering from dementia who was found frozen to death less than half a mile from the Mt. Hood Senior Living facility in Sandy.

The Woman Froze to Death Less than a Mile from the Mt. Hood Senior Living Facility

Earlier this month we reported that Ki Soon Hyun was found late at night, less than 24 hours after she was admitted as an in-house resident on December 23, 2023. It was later established that the woman, described as a beloved mother and grandmother, had wandered outside when staff did not lock external doors.

The horror of her death from hypothermia took 28 days to fully unfold – that was how long it took before a state licensing team arrived on the scene to investigate the tragedy. Their investigation prompted a decision to move the 13 remaining residents to other facilities, although it was raining and close to midnight.

Governor Calls for Audit to Ensure Safety of Residents

The governor has called for an audit to be conducted by the Oregon Department of Human Services (ODHS) ‘to ensure safety of residents’ at the Mt. Hood facility. The ODHS will now secure the services of an auditor to conduct the review. In a letter, Governor Kotek asked the Commission on Senior Services to provide ‘recommendations for policy changes needed to ensure resident safety.’

The Hyun Family Responds to Governor’s Decision

The family of the old woman has officially applauded Gov. Kotek’s decision, saying ‘it is a travesty that the tragic death of our mother had to be the impetus for the ODHS to get their act together.’ Throwing their support behind possible policy changes, the family says perhaps these would prevent their painful loss from happening to other Oregon families.

‘All elderly people deserve care which is overseen by competent and fully trained providers in safe and secure facilities,’ the family states.

Her Hyun family has filed a multi-million-dollar lawsuit in the Multnomah County Circuit Court against the State of Oregon and the owners and managers of the Mt. Hood facility for wrongful death. The family state that Ki Soon Hyun was ‘the pillar’ of their family and that they never had the chance to tell her how much she was loved.

The Department of Human Services has not responded to calls for a statement about the allegations that residents at the Mt. Hood Senior Living facility were not kept safe.