Administrator resigns after one year at S.D. mental health hospital

Mark Walker

Argus Leader

Troy Jones, South Dakota Human Services Center (HSC) administrator, discusses HSC in his office Friday, June 3, 2016, at the South Dakota Human Services Center in Yankton, S.D.

The head of South Dakota's mental health hospital has resigned barely a year after taking the job and vowing to improve employee safety and morale.

Human Services Center Administrator Troy Jones announced his resignation Monday for personal and family reasons, according to a spokeswoman with the Department of Social Services. His last day will be Aug. 31.

"I feel honored and blessed to have worked with some of the most dedicated, compassionate and caring individuals," Jones said in an emailed statement Tuesday. "During the past year we have made significant and positive strides in many areas of the hospital, and I am confident the facility will continue to work as a cohesive team moving the hospital forward."

Jones took over as administrator last May, a week before an Argus Leader Media investigation revealed rising turnover and violence against employees at the Yankton hospital. The position has been vacant for more than a year.

The misuse of restraints was among dozens of problems flagged in a CMS report, delivered amid growing violence at the South Dakota Human Services Center in Yankton. View previous coverage on the Argus Leader investigation at argusleader.com.

His departure leaves state officials searching for its fourth administrator since 2011. Cory Nelson left the post in 2011. Ric Compton was named administrator of the hospital in 2012, but resigned from the position three year later.

"Troy did a great job as administrator," DSS Secretary Lynne Valenti said in an emailed statement Tuesday. "The Department is sad to see him go, but we understand that family issues come up and support his decision."

An Argus Leader Media investigation in 2016 workers leaving the state hospital at a rate of about one every three days since July 2008. The number of employees injured by patients has gone up in three of four years, peaking at 222 in fiscal year 2014.

Phyllis Arends, executive director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Sioux Falls, said she is concerned the hospital will again go without constant leadership.

“NAMI’s concern has always been about the quality of care given to the patients of HSC and it’s really important to have stable leadership at the top,” Arends said.

Gov. Dennis Daugaard had expressed support for Jones during his tenure and encouraged critics to show patience as he addressed the hospital's challenges.

“Troy did an excellent job at HSC," said Tony Venhuizen, Daugaard’s chief of staff, in an email. "He is leaving for family reasons, and the governor is sorry to see him go."

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