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32 | The details of the complaint allege that the facility allowed a stranger to access to residents’ mailboxes. It was reported that an anonymous letter was placed in the residents’ mailbox outlining how some of the residents are being unjustly rude to staff. The letter goes on to suggest that if there are any concerns, residents should not shout or be rude to staff but write down their concerns and place them in the suggestion box and from there their concerns will be addressed. On 7/28/2026, from 10:30am-2:00pm, the department interviewed staff (S1-S4) and residents (R1-R10) about the allegation.
4 of 4 staff denied the allegation that the Facility gave stranger access to resident mailboxes. All staff (S1-S4) stated that they did not give a stranger access to the residents’ mailboxes. Staff stated that the only people that have access and authority to open the mailboxes are the residents who have a key that will only open their mailbox. The concierge staff has the authority to open the mailboxes because they are the ones who receive the incoming mail from the postal mail carriers as well as giving them the outgoing mail. From there according to executive director (S1), who also has authority to open the mailboxes, the concierge staff then sorts and processes the mail and distributes it to the residents’ mailboxes.
S1 stated that they gave the authority to the concierge staff to distribute the letter and place it in all the residents’ mailboxes because it concerned the facility and the residents living in the facility.
The department interviewed residents (R1-R10) about the allegation and 9 of 10 residents that were interviewed stated that they had no objection to receiving the letter and that they have not had any issues with anyone accessing their mailbox without their permission. While R1 stated that they wanted clarification that it was not against the law to get such an anonymous letter in their mailbox.
The department reviewed the letter from Concerned Residents and observed that the letter stated that there was an increase in incidents, especially in the dining room, where residents shout at or even threaten staff members about issues with the food. The letter goes on to say that the issues the residents are upset about do not originate with the servers, therefore there is no need to be rude or offensive to someone who is doing their job to the best of their ability. Lastly, the letter asks that if the residents have an issue, they should put their concerns in a comment card and have their issues addressed by management. The department did not observe any personal rights violation by the facility by placing a letter from other residents, who wanted to remain anonymous, in the residents’ mailboxes because the letter addressed issues that concerned the residents as well as the facility.
Based on interviews and records reviewed, there is insufficient evidence to support the allegation that Facility gave stranger access to resident mailboxes. Although the allegation may have happened or is valid, there is not a preponderance of evidence to prove the alleged violation did or did not occur, therefore the allegation is Unsubstantiated.
No citations were issued for this complaint investigation.
An exit interview was conducted with Dawn Smith, Executive Director, and a hard copy of this Complaint Investigation Report was provided.
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