Four people working at a Gillette assisted living center have been fired in the wake of an 88-year-old resident there being found dead in an outside courtyard Jan. 10.
Campbell County Health, which operates The Legacy Living and Rehabilitation Center, announced the terminations Thursday evening, saying they were the result of an internal investigation into the death. They include one full-time employee, two contract workers and one contract administrator.
The woman was being treated in the memory wing at The Legacy. She was found outside the facility at about 4:10 a.m., and the temperatures outside were between 10 and 35 degrees with 2 inches of snow falling the day prior.
Her and cause of death, including a toxicology report, are not being released at this time, according to Campbell County Coroner Paul Wallem, pending an active investigation by the Gillette Police Department.
The investigation is still ongoing, Deputy Police Chief Brent Wasson told Cowboy State Daily on Friday, who declined to provide additional details.
Other Terminations
The terminations were announced at Campbell County Health’s January board meeting Thursday night by CEO Matt Shahan.
CCH also terminated the contractual agreement with the unnamed agency that employed the contract workers, according to Shahan.
The hospital is not releasing the names of the employees, Bree Richardson, CCH director of marketing communications, said.
Following the death, CCH launched an internal investigation that included reviewing protocols and procedures as well as assigning an internal registered nurse to do a quality improvement review and imposed additional safety measures, Shahan said.
The internal review was submitted to the state licensing board, which is also conducting its own investigation, Richardson said, with results to be shared public upon release of the report.
“The recent events have shaken us all, and we are determined to take every possible step to reaffirm your confidence in our institution,” Shahan said.
The facility also has stopped accepting admissions to The Legacy as a precautionary measure, Shahan said.
Jen Kocher can be reached at jen@cowboystatedaily.com.
