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The family of an 83-year-old woman who suffered from dementia and died after wandering away from her memory care facility is suing the Oregon Department of Human Services and Mount Hood Senior Living for alleged negligence.
The personal injury and wrongful death lawsuit, filed in Multnomah County Circuit on behalf of the family of Ki Soon Hyun, seeks more than $10 million in damages.
“Our mother’s death is tragic and shouldn’t have happened,” said daughter Soo Hyun, speaking at a press conference at the law offices of Kafoury & McDougal.
Attorney Mark McDougal said still no one knows exactly how Ki Soon Hyun got out without anyone noticing. She had moved into the Sandy facility only 24 hours before she went missing and froze to death on Christmas eve last year.
“I wouldn’t let these people take care of my dog or kid,” McDougal said. “Someone is there less than 24 hours, and they get out? Are you kidding me? They shouldn’t be in business. People at state shouldn’t be working there anymore.”
The complaint alleges that Mount Hood and its owner “were negligent in operating a memory care facility without adequate experience, training or resources.” It further alleges the state was negligent in allowing Mount Hood Senior Living to operate without a licensed, full-time administrator and allowing an interim administrator, who had self-declared she wasn’t competent for the role, to operate the facility.
An attorney for the facility did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Mount Hood Senior Living shut down in January, after the state found eight serious violations and suspended its license, KOIN 6 reported.
"We feel deeply for families and their communities anytime there is a loss of life. I am sure you understand, however, that we are unable to comment on litigation," a DHS spokesman said.
How Sandy memory care resident wandered away
Hyun’s daughter said the family made the tough decision to place Hyun in a memory care last November, after she had started wandering from her home and it became clear she needed more supervised care.
Soo Hyun described her mother, who immigrated from Korea, as a warm and loving.
“Her great joy in life was her grandkids,” Soo Hyun said.
Mount Hood Senior Living “checked all the boxes,” Hyun said.
“It was small and not overcrowded and brand new,” she said. “Our only concern was the caregivers appeared to be really young.”
Before Hyun moved in on Dec. 23, her family informed Mount Hood that Hyun was at risk of wandering. Employees assured the family the facility “was adequately equipped with features and passcodes and a solid security system and cameras and that there were many layers of protections for residents,” according to the lawsuit.
“They promised to provide round-the-clock supervision,” said daughter Alex Smith. But in truth, she said, the facility was chronically understaffed, and employees were “poorly trained.”
Hyun was last seen at breakfast on Dec. 24. Although she went missing less than 24 hours after arriving, the family wasn’t contacted until a few hours later, Soo Hyun said.
“We were utterly shattered and in disbelief,” she said.
Volunteers aided in the search, but the weather turned cold, and a rainstorm blew up, so it was called off, then resumed on Christmas Day.
“It was the worse 24 hours of our lives, knowing our mother was lost, scared, cold and by herself, wondering where her family was,” Hyun said. “Despite her dementia, she was physically healthy, and we wanted to cherish her time with us and that was taken from us.”
The elderly woman’s body was found about 800 yards from the facility in some woods. She died of hypothermia.
“What happened to our mom is outrageous and sad, but unfortunately, it’s not an isolated incident,” Smith said. “Seniors missing at care homes is a rising problem nationwide.”
Smith said the family is calling for “an immediate review” to make sure that locked facilities are indeed locked and for an independent audit of DHS’ licensing and regulatory process.
“Memory care centers present unique problems for safety,” said attorney Greg Kafoury. “People with dementia are not capable of being their own advocates. As a result, they’re easily victimized.”
These facilities charge as much as $6,000 to $10,000 a month, he said, but often cut costs to make more profit, at the expense of patient safety.
McDougal said he will negotiate with DHS to make reforms as part of the resolution of the lawsuit.
The complaint seeks damages from various parties ranging from $5 million to $19 million.