Dealing with dementia.
Dear Kate,
My grandfather has dementia and wandered away from home last week. We were all frantic until he was found. What information can you provide me with about wandering and dementia?
Sincerely,
Laurie
Dear Laurie,
According to the Alzheimer’s Association, it is common for a person with dementia to wander and become lost. Approximately 60 percent of individuals with dementia will wander at some point. People with dementia who wander often have a purpose or goal in mind. They may be searching for something, someone or trying to fulfill a former job responsibility. However, wandering can be dangerous for the wanderer and stressful for caregivers and family members.
As a family member, you can keep your loved one safe by knowing the risk factors for wandering and by enrolling in MedicAlert + Alzheimer’s Association Safe Return. This is the 24-hour nationwide emergency response service for individuals with Alzheimer’s or a related dementia that wander or have a medical emergency. You cannot always know when someone will wander, but this program will help you know what to do if it happens.
The MedicAlert + Safe Return includes the following:
- Member’s ID jewelry with personalized information and MedicAlert + Safe Return’s 24-hour emergency response number
- Personalized emergency wallet card
- Live 24-hour emergency response service
- Personal health record (PHR)
- Six Steps to a Safe Return magnet
If an individual wanders and becomes lost, family or caregivers can call the emergency response line. A community support network will be activated, including local association chapters and law enforcement agencies, to help reunite the family member or caregiver with the person who has wandered.
If a citizen or emergency personnel finds the member they can call the toll-free number listed on the member’s ID jewelry. MedicAlert and Safe Return will notify the member’s listed contacts making sure the person is returned home. The cost of the program is $49.94 plus $4.95 for shipping and handling.
I spoke with Melissa Searle, a social worker at Cedar Community specializing in Alzheimer’s and dementia care. Searle said Friendship House, the memory care unit at Cedar Community, is a registered Safe Return site. She has offered to assist any family member in filling out the paperwork for the MedicAlert + Safe Return and to answer other questions about Alzheimer’s and dementia care.
Searle facilitates an Alzheimer’s support group. Her group has come up with some “real life” tips to prevent wandering.
- Place black rugs in front of doors
- Keep shoes off and hidden
- Put more than one lock on a door; put a chain hook on the upper portion of the door above eye level. People with dementia have a tendency to not look beyond their line of vision.
- Fences with locked gates
- Alarm doors, beds, etc. Searle said the Alzheimer’s Association has many safety gadgets to ensure the safety of a loved one.
- GPS shoes, gpsshoe.com, can provide more information
Other tips include from the Alzheimer’s Association include:
- Encourage movement and exercise to reduce anxiety, agitation and restlessness
- Ensure all basic needs are met (toileting, nutrition, thirst)
- Involve the person in daily activities such as folding laundry or preparing dinner
- Place color-matching cloth over doorknobs to camouflage
- Place a mirror near doorways. The reflection of a person’s own face will often stop them from exiting a door.
- Reassure the person if he or she feels lost.
The Alzheimer’s and Related Dementia support group is held the second Wednesday of every month from 1 to 3 p.m. at Cedar Bay West and is open to the greater community. Searle can be reached at 262.306.4267 for more information about the support group, assistance with the MedicAlert + Safe Return paperwork and Alzheimer’s disease and dementia care.
Searle and I recommend that you search the Alzheimer’s website, alz.org. She also recommends a website specific for caregivers alz.org/national/documents/Lib_Best_FCare.pdf.
Sincerely,
Kate Sullivan
Geriatric Care Manager
Cedar Pathfinders
