How to Prevent Wandering at a Senior Care Facility

Institutional facilities are better equipped to deal with wanderers than home settings, as some of the most effective means of preventing wandering include a combination of locks, alarm systems, 24-hour surveillance and wandering monitoring devices like Wanderguard.

Staff also plays a crucial role in curbing unsafe wandering behaviors. If you are placing your loved one in a nursing home or Alzheimer’s facility:

• Tell the staff that he or she has a history of wandering.
• Ask how the facility identifies wanderers and what measures they use to keep them safe.
• Share details about your loved one’s patterns of wandering.

Alzheimer’s causes disorientation, confusing the person’s sense of time and place. Living in a facility can exacerbate this disorientation. To offset this, destinations should be clearly marked. Bathrooms may be marked with a picture of a toilet, for example. It may be useful to mark the resident’s door with a sign bearing his or her name in large print as well as a photo of the person as a young adult. Wanderers who live in facilities often try to leave. This can be deterred by concealing or camouflaging exits, but facilities that care for wanderers should also be secure. Using black insulation tapes in two different grid configurations, one study found that “the use of a horizontal grid reduced exit door contact by up to 97% for four of [ten] patients with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.¹”

Efforts to control wandering should use the gentlest methods possible. People with dementia can read body language and facial expressions, so remaining calm will help reduce the wanderer’s stress as well. Approach slowly and speak softly. Establish what the wanderer is doing. Ask specific, answerable questions. For goal-directed wandering, some strategies include:

• Validation. What does the wanderer’s emotional state appear to be? Establish a rapport by validating his or her feelings with positive, open statements such as, “You look worried.” Offer to help.

• Distraction. Focus the wanderer’s attention on something more positive. Try establishing a common goal, such as searching for something together, steering the person toward that goal.

• Redirection. Once you have the wanderer’s attention, redirect it in a reassuring manner. For example: “I’m sorry you’re upset. Let’s sit down for a cup of coffee.”

After the situation has been controlled, it may be possible to redirect the wanderer’s attention once again to a calming activity such as listening to music, looking at photos or working on a puzzle. Many Alzheimer’s facilities and nursing homes have gardens, courtyards or pathways that are specifically designed for wanderers; this may be a good time to suggest going for a walk.