Because of the possibility of wandering outside the facility has a door alarm. The device is attached around her wrist like a watch. Mom frequently forgets and removes the device from her wrist. Does anyone have any suggestions of how to proceed?
They have some wrist or ankle devices that are not easily removed. Your mother's facility might have to get them. My mother cut hers off and they removed her scissors and knives.
I am guardian for my aunt with young onset Alzheimer’s and the facility that she is in puts it around her ankle instead. She forgets about it and is now used to it. She thinks it’s a medication reminder for staff and is fine with it.
Those locators also come in pendant form. If your mom likes jewelry maybe she would like that better. My grandmother made a pin out of hers and pinned it on everyday. She didn’t like it on her wrist either. Good luck.
I was advised my Mom needed to be in a secured memory care home or she would be in a real danger, due to her Alzheimer's and her wandering. I am so glad I was informed of that prior to placing her. Prior, I had not heard of that.
In the memory wing of the home, residents had a large area to walk around, area for the residents dining, another area for games and art, lounge area with television, also an outdoor area that was enclosed. As family we had a code to input into the door for our departure.
While in assisted living my mother in law didn't have a med alert/tracker as they didn't have them back then. She wondered off one day and darn if she didn't flag down a police car telling them she was lost. She described where she had been living and they figured it out and took her back. She was the talk of the whole place. :-)
She needs to be in Memory Care, not assisted living. The care they provide in Memory Care is far superior, and she'll thrive while you'll get some peace of mind.
Thirty plus(30+) years ago I worked as a Nursing supervisor in a NH. Back then we did not have memory homes as they are now. I do not want to sound innocent, but aren't home and facilities supposed to address the question of wandering/removal of devices to track residents? I know that is what I did! I made all sorts of different carrying devises for individual residents. And in the two years I worked there, we never had anyone leave the NH, and I worked the 3-11 shift, sometimes working a double shift. Families who left their loved ones in our care felt safe and comfortable. Have things changed that much? Just wondering.
I took care of my mom for 25 years and I would say that she needs to be in a facility that is locked but has an outdoor courtyard area that she can go and enjoy. My husbands cousin left his facility to buy a newspaper and was hit by a car in Florida and killed. Being in a locked facility with an outdoor area would take alot of the worry away.
I would think the ankle bracelet would be a better choice...Check with them and see if they can accommodate you...That bracelet on her arm must be uncomfortable for her..We use the ankle bracelet with the sock underneath.
Fingerless mittens may help. My father had dementia and while he was in the hospital he kept removing his tubes and the mittens they placed on his hands cured the problem.
At Moms NH most of the devises were on the residents ankle. They weren’t removed at night, and were loose enough that socks could be work under it. They switched to the ankle from the wrist when her skin became so thin that the strap actually gave her wrist a skin tear. I don’t think she ever noticed she was wearing it and never messed with it. Finally when she stopped walking they removed it and put it on her wheelchair.
My mom would remove the wrist device as she thought it should come off at night as she used to take off her watch. The wrist device is too visible! We took the wrist device and separated the tracker piece putting it on a faux-pearl like string as though it was a pendant necklace. Most often we tucked it under her shirts or nightgown so it wasn’t visible. She tolerated the “necklace” as it wasn’t so easily removed nor visible.
Does your mom use a walker? Attach the device to the walker. Where she goes...the walker goes..the device goes. It does sound like your mom should be in a Memory Care wing or facility rather than Assisted Living. Do the aids help her get dressed in the morning? If so the device could be attached to a belt loop or placed in a pocket. The device could be placed on her ankle. Or..what I did for my Husband when I had a tracker on him...I placed the device on the dominate wrist so he was unable to remove it using his other hand. (He was right handed, I put the tracker on his right and he was unable to use a screwdriver, scissors, or knife with his left hand to remove it)
Perhaps staff can switch to an ankle monitor; she probably feels the wrist device with the constant movement of her hands. My mom is a wanderer and attends an adult daycare. They secure her with an ankle monitor every morning upon arrival and remove it at the end of her day. She does not realize it is on, and cannot remove if she tries.
If your mom is in a facility that offers a continuum of care, they should be moving her to Memory Care at this point. What type of facility is she in? This info would be helpful.
Different states have varying rules, policies, laws, etc. on how long term care facilities manage the care of residents with dementia. I'm surprised the facility feels comfortable caring for a person with that type of behavior. When my LO began to wander in AL, the facility said they would not be able to provide her care any longer, unless, she had an around the clock assistant, which was not feasible due to the costs. Her doctor prescribed Secure Memory Care at that time. There is much more security and the residents are accounted for at all times.
The problem with the watch, is that it only works to help track her after she is gone. So, who would know to track her if it's not being monitored at all times? Also, even if she is wearing the monitor, it wouldn't prevent her from walking out into traffic, getting into a car with strangers or falling off a bridge.
-Pendant style.
In the memory wing of the home, residents had a large area to walk around, area for the residents dining, another area for games and art, lounge area with television, also an outdoor area that was enclosed. As family we had a code to input into the door for our departure.
I would highly advise this.
talk to the supervision
It does sound like your mom should be in a Memory Care wing or facility rather than Assisted Living.
Do the aids help her get dressed in the morning? If so the device could be attached to a belt loop or placed in a pocket.
The device could be placed on her ankle.
Or..what I did for my Husband when I had a tracker on him...I placed the device on the dominate wrist so he was unable to remove it using his other hand. (He was right handed, I put the tracker on his right and he was unable to use a screwdriver, scissors, or knife with his left hand to remove it)
The problem with the watch, is that it only works to help track her after she is gone. So, who would know to track her if it's not being monitored at all times? Also, even if she is wearing the monitor, it wouldn't prevent her from walking out into traffic, getting into a car with strangers or falling off a bridge.