Elderly with dementia may wander as a response to anxiety, an attempt to locate a familiar face from their past, a fear of being late to work, or a simple desire to spend time outdoors. While being lost or exposed to the weather or being unable to be located or returning home safely might greatly increase the risk, wandering itself poses little danger. If you are wondering how a memory care community in Palm Springs, FL helps keep residents safe from wandering, here is what you need to know.
Dementia and Wandering
Patients with Alzheimer’s disease or another kind of dementia often lose their sense of direction and start wandering as a result. The Alzheimer’s Association claims that as many as six out of ten patients with dementia experience wandering. It is possible that it occurs at any time and in any stage of the disease, so everyone should be on guard.
Dementia Care: In-Home VS. Memory Care
When the disease worsens and the family can no longer give a higher level of care required, including keeping their loved ones safe, they often turn to memory care communities. This is because they wish to prevent that increased threat to personal safety which results from wandering behavior.
It might be challenging to put a stop to this kind of behavior in the home. Many measures can be taken, but it will not be feasible to completely prevent your loved one from wandering. When caregivers add their own emotional strain to the situation, it is possible that they will not be able to maintain constant monitoring.
Memory Care Communities Offer Safety
Safe and comfortable living is a top priority in memory care communities. Some of the ways in which your loved one with dementia will be able to roam around freely while remaining safe are as follows:
- Close Monitoring
All points of entry and exit are either manned, alerted, or keypad-locked to prevent anyone from slipping out of sight.
- 24-Hour Supervision
Security and caregivers are available at all times in a memory care community.
- Engaging Activities
Exercise, stationary bicycles, yoga, and meditation programs are offered as options for residents’ free time that may help curb the temptation to wander. Team members may also go on strolls with residents.
- Tech Advances
Residents may be given the freedom to roam within certain boundaries set up by technological systems.
- Enclosed Areas
A memory care community’s enclosed courtyard is a great amenity since it gives residents a place to go about freely without worrying about being suffocated by the surrounding buildings.
- Color Coding
Disorientation can cause anxiety, but it can be alleviated by the use of color-coded doorways or corridors or other visual cues that provide clues to where the dementia resident is.
Because of the dangers associated with wandering, memory care communities take every step possible to ensure their residents are safe while still receiving the best person-oriented care available.