Anyone have experience with an electric wheelchair?

I have seen some horrendous out of control electric wheelchair / scooter accidents And this is from people that did not have dementia. . And I guess an electric wheelchair would not be as hazardous as the electric scooters.

I guess I should say it depends on the level of dementia.
If you would let her drive a car then she should be fine with an electric wheelchair.
If you would not let her drive a car do not let her drive an electric wheelchair.
Also keep in mind that even IF she could operate one today there is a good possibility that with the decline of dementia she would not be able to operate one next week.

If you are seriously thinking about this have her assessed by an OT and a PT to determine if she understands how to operate it.

I would think carefully about letting people with dementia operate anything electric. Is your mom able to determine when to go or stop safely? A friend of mine got run into by an older man riding an electric cart at Costco. He might have had dementia, because he didn't even acknowledge or apologize after he ran into her. My friend's foot was mildly injured from the wheel of the electric cart. A child would probably have been knocked over then run over.

I stop letting my mother use the electric carts at the supermarkets once she developed Alzheimer's. She loses control and can not go or stop appropriately.

Does the AL have a Physiotherapist or Occupational Therapist? One of those professionals can assess if an electric wheelchair is useful, practical & safe for your Mother.

My relative managed one quite well in rehab (mobility problems due to stroke) from room to dining room etc. But another relative was deemed unable to use safely - due to deficits to eyesight, spacial awareness, also some impulsiveness.

It may work for a time, depending on type of dementia & severity. There will be a benefit to her independence but the risk of injury to herself & others needs to be factored in.

Just curious, has Mother asked for an electric chair?

Speaking from my own experience, with my own mother, she could never use an electric wheelchair (except 'maybe' outside, but with a solid chain attached to something very secure) because she never, ever pays attention to anything in the present. She would have it ramming into everything, including the walls, tables, stands.. I bet there would be thousands of dollar in damages within 1 hour.
Even outside, I'd lay money that she'd wind up headed right towards the hillside on the left side of our property (while looking to the side or behind her, talking to someone who wasn't even there) and "wreck" it so she wound up hurt.
Only YOU could determine if it would be a good idea, and if you have hesitations, it must be for a reason.

I'd be super cautious about allowing this much 'movement' by an elder who cannot fathom how to drive one of these. My mom used to take the grocery store carts and spent much of her time ramming into things. Ankles seemed to be her favorite. She had no sense of space or distance, that's one reason she had to stop driving some years ago.

I am currently re-habbing from ankle surgery and I have a scooter. It's useful and safer than crutches, but I have to say that after I am done with this thing, I will have to have ALL my doors and doorways re-finished. I've been super careful but still cannot seem to manage the tricky manuvers it requires to 'turn'. Our house is pretty small and the hallways are tight. DH has seen for himself that we do, in fact, need to size DOWN, but with wider halls and such. A wheelchair in our house? Useless, since they can't fit through doorways.
I honestly have never seen a positive result from having a patient move to an electric wheelchair-unless they stay in one big room and don't attempt to move about a lot. Also, a LOT of muscle mass is lost when all that is being 'used' is one hand.

Check Craigslist or some local seller and see if you can get one for less than buying one. Then try it out. My dad spent ONE DAY with an electric wheelchair and hated it so much he refused to ever get in it again.

I believe that everyone reacts differently with dementia or any other medical issues. My best friend is the primary caregiver for her youngest sister who is 51. She has Down’s syndrome and dementia. She refused to walk some time ago. She was capable of walking but simply stopped. She also stopped speaking. At one time she was very high functioning.

Her sister is in a regular wheelchair. She pushes her everywhere. It’s a lot of work. She uses a board to get her out of bed. She has lost all muscle mass.

Can your mom still walk? I really encourage allowing her to walk as long as she can. Once a person stays in a wheelchair for an extended period of time they never walk again.

My mom died this April at age 95. She had Parkinson’s disease and slight dementia. Mom struggled with mobility issues. She used a walker. Her neurologist strongly recommend that she not go into a wheelchair. She walked with her walker until the very last month of her life. She was completely bed bound during her stay in her hospice house.

Everyone reacts individually. My mom did home health and rehab where she received occupational and physical therapy. Have you tried therapy for your mom? A doctor can order it.

Wishing you the best with whatever you decide is best for your mom.

Someone who may not be able to remember how to operate it in all directions is very likely to get the chair and patient stuck in a tight situation. Notorious for tearing up walls, doors, furniture. They are extremely heavy.

you might start with a small transport wheelchair and let her sit, use her legs to walk around. will work good on tile floors, not so good on carpets. Same for the large wheeled wheel chairs.

Does your mom use a walker? If not, then that would be the next step.

If you do decide to get her a scooter or electric wheelchair, I can guarantee you that you will find used ones in your local area. But they are not simple to operate and for someone with dementia, I would think that you would have reteach how to use it daily, if not hourly.

Honestly I would not go that route. My dad has all of his mental capacity but some times the scooter is sensitive. I call him a bull in a china shop when we used to dine in restaurants. He still uses it to roam the neighborhood and stop by our house. But for the doctors we use a wheelchair. I. The electric scooter you have to be like a car 360 degree aware of your surroundings. On a cruise I had a middle aged lady at the buffet decide she wanted to back up. Without looking and full gear she was practically on my toes before a cruise staff jumped between us. I had a plate of food that would of dumped on me or her. Luckily no one was hurt.

My mom used an electric wheelchair for many years. She lived in an independent living situation, and when the arthritis in her knees got too bad, she used the wheelchair do drive around the campus. The first signs of dementia may have been when she started using the wheelchair around her apartment instead of getting physical therapy as the doctor suggested. That caused her to lose her ability to walk.
As her dementia progressed, my mom's driving got worse. She began bumping into walls and having difficulties with turns. I began worrying that she would run into another resident and hurt them. Fortunately, just as I was about to take the wheelchair away from her, the Covid-19 lockdown started, and she didn't get close enough to the other residents to cause harm. I stayed with her during the lockdown, and once, while we were taking our walk around the grounds, she clipped my ankle and I fell down. Since she was worried about me, she leaned forward with her hand on the joystick, causing the wheelchair to try to go towards me. It didn't hurt or run over me, but I couldn't get my foot out. I panicked and started yelling, "STOP IT! STOP IT!" which my mom didn't understand, because she didn't realize she was pushing the joystick. Eventually, she took her hand off the joystick, and I was able to get up. Surprisingly, I only had a little bruise. It was funny in retrospect, but I certainly learned to stay out of range of the wheelchair.
Her ability to drive got worse and worse. Going to the bathroom in the middle of the night took minutes to drive sloooooly down the hall to the bathroom, endless maneuvering to get it in just the right position to transfer to the toilet, then the same routine to get back to bed. Eventually my mom forgot how to drive the wheelchair completely. One day she wanted to get in her "car" and drive down to the drugstore, but she couldn't figure out how to drive it. I called the wheelchair company and had them come get it.
If you want to pursue this, talk to your mom's doctor, and get a physical therapy evaluation with a wheelchair provider. They can determine if your mom can safely use the wheelchair, and recommend one that is the correct size. With this, insurance or Medicare will pay for it, but the process can take months.