What is Elopement?

If you say the word "elopement", most people think about a couple running off to get married. In the nursing home industry, elopement refers to a resident who leaves the nursing home unattended.
Some nursing home residents are lucid. They may be in the nursing home for a variety of reasons. But they are permitted to move around the nursing home unattended. They are safe to walk by themselves. They can even leave the facility and sit outside or walk among the grounds without any issue. Other nursing home residents, because they suffer from dementia, including Alzheimer's disease, or have other issues causing confusion, are not allowed to leave the nursing home unattended because it can be incredibly dangerous. A resident who is confused and finds himself outside of the nursing home can face any number of dangers.
We represented the family of a nursing home resident who was found blocks away from the nursing home, on the ground in the driveway of a home near the nursing home. He had left the facility with no shoes on, wearing pajama pants and a t-shirt, in the freezing cold. He had fallen down and broken his hip. Fortunately, a person walking their dog found him and called 911. If he had not been found when he was, he would have died of hypothermia.
Tragically, some nursing home residents elope out of the nursing home unattended and drown in nearby bodies of water. Tragically, some nursing home residents elope out of nursing homes unattended and are struck by passing cars. Elopement is a very serious issue. If your loved one is not able to leave the nursing home on their own safely, then you need to make sure that the nursing home is taking every precaution so that they do not leave the nursing home unattended.
Nursing home residents who cannot leave the nursing home unattended need to be in a locked unit that they cannot leave on their own. This can be accomplished in a variety of ways. The doors should lock. Often, there are releases for the doors that are put up high where a nursing home resident who's confused cannot push the button. Sometimes the door has a code on it to open it. Nursing home residents, who cannot leave the nursing home unattended, should have what is known as a “WanderGuard”, which is a bracelet or anklet that sounds an alarm if they go through a door. But most importantly, they should be in a locked unit. We have represented residents who were not supposed to leave the nursing home unattended but, unfortunately, were placed in units where the doors were not locked. If someone you love is in a nursing home, and they cannot leave the nursing home unattended safely, you need to make sure that the unit that they're in is a locked unit. You need to make sure that the doors to the outside cannot be opened by your loved one.
There are even dangers inside the nursing home. We represented the family of a resident who got into the kitchen and consumed cleaning products and suffered horrible injury.
If your loved one has any incident of elopement, even if they are not injured, you should seriously consider moving them to a different nursing home. You could access Medicare's nursing home compare website at https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare and look up nursing homes in your area. You can sort the nursing homes by distance. You can sort them by their five-star rating. And you can find a nursing home where your loved one will receive proper care.
It is always challenging to transfer your loved one from one nursing home to another. It is always a difficult process. And it is always difficult on your loved one since a change to a new facility, especially for a loved one who has any type of confusion, can be very challenging. However, if you are not confident that the nursing home where your loved one is a resident is keeping them safe, and making sure they do not leave the nursing home unattended, then you must consider moving them to a better nursing home.
In Ohio, there is a law known as the Nursing Home Resident's Bill of Rights. One of the many rights guaranteed to nursing home residents in the State of Ohio by law is the right to a safe environment. There are also a series of federal regulations that govern the care of nursing home residents in a nursing home. One of the federal regulations requires all nursing homes in the United States to provide their residents with adequate supervision to prevent accidents. Nursing homes are obligated to provide their residents with a sufficient number of staff to provide for the needs of each and every one of their residents.
We always recommend that you visit your loved one at all different times and on all different days. Visit first thing in the morning. Visit in the evening. Visit during mealtimes. Visit during the week and also on the weekends. Your loved one has the same needs at 7:00 a.m. on a Sunday as they do at midnight on a Wednesday. Your loved one has the same needs on Christmas Day that they do on a random Tuesday. When you go to visit your loved one, do you see staff? If you visit your loved one for an extended period of time, does the staff come and check on them? And most importantly, as indicated above, is your loved one in a unit that they cannot easily leave on their own without the help of a staff member?
If someone you love has been neglected or abused in a nursing home, please call us at The Dickson Firm at 1-800-OHIO LAW, as it would be our pleasure to talk with you and to help you in any way that we can. Someone is available to take your call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.