Driving is a major issue for people with dementia and their relatives. In all but the most urbanized areas, a car represents independence and may even be a necessity. But it is also a threat to the lives of the driver, the passengers, and those he may inadvertently hit if he is no longer a safe driver.
The question about the ability of the person with dementia to continue to drive comes up as soon as the diagnosis is made, and sometimes even before. Others may have noticed changes in the way the person handles the car, if he is able to follow directions, and how often he gets lost on the way to familiar places. Sometimes friends and relatives will refuse to ride in the car if the person with dementia is driving, and give a variety of excuses rather than say that they no longer feel safe with her behind the wheel.
There are many reasons that family members are reluctant to acknowledge that the person with dementia should no longer drive. Perhaps no one else is able to drive and no other means of transportation is readily available. They may want to protect the feelings and dignity of the person with the diagnosis of dementia. They may explain minor accidents by blaming the situation or other drivers.
Stopping driving need not be a sudden event. It is best if it is a step-wise process. In the early stages of dementia, the person may be safe driving in very familiar areas. Perhaps someone can drive behind him once a month to check his driving, and let you know if he feels it is still safe. In cases of disagreement, an on-road driving test may help the family, and possibly the person with dementia, accept that she is no longer competent to drive.
While the reluctance to take the keys away is understandable, not taking them may lead to serious injury to the person with dementia or to other people. Laws differ from state to state regarding the responsibility of doctors and family members to have the driving skills of a person with dementia evaluated and then, if necessary, to have the license revoked. All states allow health professionals and others to report individuals they believe to be medically unfit to drive due to dementia or other conditions. This reporting is anonymous. After a report has been filed the subject of the report will be notified. She then must prove she can still drive safely. She may have to retake the standard on-road driving safety test.
Signs that the person is no longer a safe driver include:
- braking often for no apparent reason
- missing signs and signals
- getting angry easily
- swerving in and out of lanes and getting lost in familiar places
- crashes
- dents on car
- not reacting to traffic signs
- driving too fast or too slow
- poor judgment
- turning around to talk to the person in the back seat and forgetting that he is driving
Hi RongWalsh, Thanks for your question. I think it probably depends on the senior and what their driving problems are. You may be able to find the answer in our topic center about safe driving for seniors: (http://www.caring.com/seniors-driving-safely). You can also ask your question in our Ask & Answer section here:(http://www.caring.com/questions/new). I hope that helps -- Emily | Community Manager
If a family member is sitting in the car with the person who has dementia, can she / he still drive? Please let me know. Thanks !
My Mom (77 years-old with Alzheimer's disease) drove until last July when she had a urinary tract infection and became really confused. Prior to this, we knew it was just a matter of time until we intervened on her driving and living situation. We (her children) had been researching how to go about this without making it overly traumatic (her husband is legally blind). Mom had been afraid that she would forget to renew her driver's license - was terrified that she would be unable to pass another driver's test - and obsessed over it constantly. It turned out that we just kept putting her driving off. "The doctor has not yet cleared you to drive with all your new medications, so you can not legally drive." The doctor WISELY kept saying this, and now she never even realizes that she used to drive! Her abilities have dramatically declined over the past 8 months. An interesting point is that when I went with Mom to get a state ID card in lieu of a driver's license, they told me that she could only get her driver's license renewed there, that we would have to go to a different location to get the state ID card. Mom was OBVIOUSLY confused, which must have been apparent to the clerks who ended up renewing her driver's license. I commented that Mom no longer drives, that her children take her everywhere she needs to go. They took Mom's picture for her new driver's license, and Mom gushed over how they took her picture without her knowing it, although she posed for the picture (we patted her hair and put on lipstick)! Not once did the clerks question Mom's ability to drive. If the weather had not been so bad that day, we would have driven to the different location, but we were already soaked to the bone. Plus, the situation was so amazing that I went along with it, just to see how far it would go. I was HOPING they'd tell Mom she needed a driver's test, or something to that effect, but that did not happen! My husband was rather annoyed with me for getting the license renewed, but as I said, I wanted to see how far the clerks would go! Mom doesn't realize that she ever drove or that she has a driver's license, plus, she no longer has car keys!