My husband is in a geripsych unit for a med adjustment, and today I met a woman whose husband is also there. She told me that two years ago, her husband (who has EOAD) was living in a secured dementia unit of a NH and he jumped out of an unlocked 3rd floor window. He had fractures and was taken to the hospital. When she investigated further, there were many windows in the dementia unit that could not be locked. She removed him from the facility and has been caring for him at home.
I am posting this because I would never have thought to check to see that windows are locked in a secure (haha) dementia unit! This is an old, established nonprofit NH that talks the talk, if you know what I mean. They know all the buzzwords and their literature is full of marketing glitz, they have a garden and resident pets, etc. But when it came to a simple thing like locking the windows, they neglected to do it.
I did check this out before I placed Lynn because as I have said on other posts he would try to exit seek out of our bedroom window. They not only have locks on the windows but they have precautions in place so that the windows can not be opened more that a few inches. Enough to get some fresh air but not enough that anyone could fall out, by accident or choice.
The wife said her husband mistook the window for a door. My husband isn't a wanderer at this stage, but I'm going to check this out when I go back to the ALF I picked out.
i can only imagine how horrible that must have been. poor guy. if that is true about unlocked windows then of course its false adversting and breach of a multitude of other legal infractions. its irrational then, that the facility is qualified to be deemed SECURE DEMENTIA unit. the whole word secured means just that, no way out. its why we chose one that reads that for security purpose-.. that would not have been a very hard lawsuit to win for big bucks. its a very good idea to see just how secure the units are and whether windows are locked made of glass or anything else that could cause an accident waiting to happen.
My husband exited one facility by basically crashing through a high wooden fence. He exited his final facility which was double locked and he was wearing a wanderguard. Dementia patients can still maintain their basic intelligence. Once he actually walked out on the heels of his doctor. Once, while I was still a home health coordinator I was locked in a dementia unit with no staff in sight. A resident gave me the key code to get out.
My hubby left his first daycare, crossed a busy street, went to 7/11 and bought coffee for himself and the receptionist. She bawled him out for leaving when he came back. When he was telling me the story, he said indignantly "That's the last time I'll buy coffee for her!" He also spotted an unlocked door that the staff left open to go outside and smoke, left through it and was walking in the direction of our house. It took one person in a car and another on foot following him to bring him back. Both of those occurred when he was early stage.
At the second daycare, he followed an entertainer out the front door.
The third daycare (still attends) is like Ft. Knox and has 4--yes 4--levels of security. He has never gotten out of there unsupervised.
I hadn't thought of windows and my hb is a wanderer. He's scheduled to stay in an Alzheimer's wing of our local nursing home at the end of the month while I attend a family wedding. Now I'm going to ask if windows are locked. Will also ask about staff taking smoke breaks. Facility is supposed to be a totally non-smoking facility.
The urge to "get out" can be very strong. In the geripsych unit, there is a large window with chairs in front of it. I like to sit there with my husband when I go to visit and show him the trees, sky, etc. As each patient walks over to the window, they all say "I wish I could go out there", etc. I guess they feel imprisoned, and I don't blame them. It's hard to be so restricted after a lifetime of freedom, but of course, there's no other way to keep them safe. This unit doesn't have access to a secured outdoor area that I've seen in some of the ALF's.
i cant think that a well planned dementia unit would not have all these concerns addressed. like you would THINK that they would use double paned security glass on windows etc that cant be broken to cause injury like they use around pool areas. yes more money but it is supposed to be secure. they must know the need to break 'free' exists in almost every dementia patient. they see it daily. with all the escapees stories i would be very leary of them staying really secured then unless like marilyn says Ft Knox type.Especially if they have a history of being a runner. but then that can happen at any time even if they havent been.
divvi--the sad fact is that they are businesses and like every other business, it is all about the bottom line and what they can get away with. The more I learn and see, the less I like about ALF's and NH's. And yet for some patients, there is no other practical option.
DH was in an ALF "secure" unit in 2008. He was able to walk out the secure doors behind another resident's visitor, but staff caught him and returned him to the unit. He was almost able to limb over the 12 foot fence in the courtyard because they had chairs and benches so residents and visitrs could sit outside. They never considered a dementia patient could/would climb the fence because most of the population were elderly and further along in their disease. DH was 59, physcially fit and entirely capable of plotting his ecsape. Finally he knocked out the screen from his ground floor window and crawled out and escaped at 11:00 pm without detection. The ALF wouldn't take him back because they couldn't "keep him secure" and said they had no way to secure the windows.