Health & Fitness
Lost From Dementia
Quickly finding the missing person is critical, since it is estimated that half of those who are not found in the first 24 hours will suffer serious injury or death.
In recent years, Silver Alert programs have been adopted by many states to locate missing seniors. The programs, modeled on the Amber Alert system to find lost or abducted children, involve alerts sent out to local law enforcement and media outlets that provide a detailed description of the missing person as well as the kind of car they may be driving and the license plate number. Billboards on highways and TV and radio spots alert the public to those details.
Silver Alerts help local law enforcement find elders with Alzheimer’s or other cognitive impairment and return them home safely. For families and caregivers of loved ones assisted by the Silver Alert, it also increases awareness of the possibility of future problems or the need for additional assistance. The researchers found that most missing drivers were men, ages 58 to 94, who were cared for by a spouse. Most got lost on routine, caregiver-sanctioned trips to usual locations. Only 15 percent were found while driving, with most discovered in or near a parked car. Law enforcement officers recovered the large majority of drivers with dementia.