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Vista Care interim director apologizes after December incident; residents press for stronger safeguards
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Summary
Kelly Anderson, interim executive director of Vista Care, apologized to Lebanon residents for a December incident at a group home and described retraining and staff changes. Neighbors pushed for concrete safety steps, raised repeated police calls and questioned state limits on discharge and placements.
Kelly Anderson, interim executive director of Vista Care, told the Lebanon City Council on Jan. 12 that her agency takes “full accountability and full responsibility” for an incident in December at a group home the provider supervises.
“My name is Kelly Anderson. I’m the interim executive director for Vista Care here in Southern Illinois,” Anderson said in a presentation opening. She described Vista Care’s work supporting people with disabilities across several counties and said the December incident was “unacceptable” and “a failure of supervision.” Anderson said the staff member responsible is no longer employed and that the agency conducted an internal review and retraining.
The visit moved quickly to a 15-minute public question-and-answer session in which multiple neighbors and council members pressed Vista Care for specifics on oversight and future safeguards. A nearby resident who identified himself as Eric said the December incident was not isolated and that law-enforcement calls to the supervised address have been frequent: “I don’t have the count of how many times law enforcement has been summons to the address that you now, since 2024, supervise. But I know it’s it’s it’s over 10, and it’s over 20,” he said.
Anderson acknowledged the community’s fear and said Vista Care has taken steps including retraining staff, reviewing protocols and removing the staff member who supervised the resident that night. She also described constraints the provider faces under state placement and guardianship rules: discharging a resident can require repeated notices, appeals and finding a new placement, she said, and state institutions and beds are often unavailable.
Residents asked for concrete, cost-effective measures to reduce the chance of repeat incidents at the house on Powell Field: alarms, window protections, improved screening or 2:1 staffing. Anderson said the company provides one-on-one staff to that resident and noted that higher staffing ratios would require additional funding from the state or other sources. “We provide her 1 on 1 staff,” Anderson said when asked directly about supervision levels.
The exchange also covered workforce stability: Anderson estimated turnover at the house at about 50% annually, a resident and council members said that high turnover contributes to inconsistent supervision, and some urged the council and provider to seek practical property-level solutions such as alarms or repaired screens.
Anderson left contact information and handouts and invited neighbors to report problems directly so the provider can respond. The council did not take formal action on the presentation; members said they would continue to press for accountability and that the city and neighbors will follow up if issues persist.
