Dementia

Does she live with you or on her own?
My H has dementia and I spent about 18 hours a day constantly with him or certainly in ear/shot.
The only sure and certain device is a human being.
I hope your mum is a little more independent for your sake.
Ask your Social Worker about a device which registers falls. I can't remember what it is called.

Sorry, but no device can keep someone safe at home. Person with dementia cannot be trusted to activate the device when required and left alone may fiddle with the controls, put them away or lose them. If you are thinking of a surveillance camera then it would only be effective if someone was watching it 24/7.

I am a member of Talking Point forum and see there that Carers attempting to monitor their PWD from a distance, tend to suffer MORE stress than Carers who have committed to never leaving the PWD alone.

We do have a MECS alarm (Mobile Emergency Care Service) but it is me (the carer) who wears it, in case I fall, etc. I could summon help for myself or DH but DH would not press it, has no understanding of its purpose.

We had the MECS system in place but as Granny23 says the person has to know what to do with it if they fell. There was a mat which went under the mattress and triggered the alarm if my mum was out of bed for longer than the obvious trip to the loo but to be honest that was more bother than it was worth as she'd never slept very well and often got up and wandered about. You can get the Amazon Echo show system which you could talk to her on or there are various security cameras you can set up but sadly there is nothing that will 'keep her safe' other than someone being with her 24/7.

Yeah I thought so too. Someone being with her might be the best possible option to do. But there are times when I'm not at home for sudden trips and I was thinking of putting up cctv cameras all over the house and have someone to look into her 24/7. What do you guys think?

I'm guessing that you are not in the UK? Here the usual solution is for the PWD to go into 'respite care' while the main carer is away. Locally we have a Council run Respite facility which needs to be booked well in advance but keeps two rooms for 'emergency admissions'. Private Care Homes can usually be more flexible with short term stays.

OH! When you mentioned 'trips' I thought you meant trips away from home. However, after reading I think you meant trips or falls in the home. Sorry.

Ann60 - that must be very difficult for you, my SIL has dementia, newly diagnosed, and it is heartbreaking.

I suggest getting a care line installed and a key box for outside the premises. Look at things like loose wires, gigs with curly corners and anything that is a trip hazard. Also a pair of very sturdy steps. If she is anything like my mum she will try to,climb on chairs to reach things. Does she cook for herself? If so safety guards around the top of the cooker. Look at AgeUK they have lots of ideas and can point you in the right direction for aides.

Rugs not gigs

My mother-in-law uses TEC-Angel which is a monitoring and alert system you put in all the rooms around the house. It detects when she moves around the house and sends a text alert to my wife when she hasn't moved for a long time, doesn't go out for several days or she goes out late at night. It also alerted us when there was a power outage. They have a website for you to look at. www.tec-angel.co.uk. Bob

What I meant by 'trips' is being away at home. Yes you were right Granny23.

I suggest you contact the Alzheimer's Society for advice.

Thank you for the suggestion Bob. I've been contacting someone in our relatives who might wanna help me take care of her while I'm away. My friend also told me to attach a tracking device to her for additional security and emergency purposes. What do you guys think? Well anyways, thank you all for your replies.

You can hire a caregiver for her better care at home

Alzheimer's Society website is useful. My DM has dementia, we have a fall alarm system, carers three times a day ( long visits) and we are next going to install cctv to ensure that she is ok when she hasn't answered the phone, just to be safe.

Hmm yes indeed the website is very useful. I haven't thought of hiring a caregiver though. If someone can recommend me one, then maybe I'll think about it.

You can check this angelseniorcare.com/ for hiring a caregiver for your lovely mom.

Are you in US if so the advice of agencies ect given may be very different and not useful to you
Do you live with her?
Is she in very early stages?
Is she on tablets to delay the onset of more serious problems?
First don’t panic it will make her panic Dementia will take many different stages and you will not need to set everything up in the first intstances it is ever changing and you will have to change with it It is completely depleting of the carer as the stages progress so help would be advisable
If she is in early stages really just go along as normal but being a bit more vigilant
She will not want to lose her independence so may kick off if you start doing things for her that’s shes used to doing for herself
Do not tell her what to do, go along as much as you can with any imagined thoughts DO NOT FIGHT her if you see her doing anything dangerous, like with a child you immediately want to say don’t do that you ll hurt yourself but DISTRACTION is the far better option
Keep her busy give her useful tasks... as she progresses there will be many safety issues to add but don’t start off with them Gradually introduce things as needed over the years
Do consult an Dementia society in U.K. we have really useful voluntary agencies hopefully you have them in US too

Thank you for the recommendation alansymonds78. I'll try to check on it.

Welcome natnatroswell22

Everyone with dementia is an individual! Far too may generalisations on here. I run a care service that supports many people with dementia to live at home. Some have been through a SAGE assessment and are still safely driving.
Telecare is extremely useful in keeping people safe, there is GPS tracking available for those who still want to go out on their own but may get lost. The Court of protection is keen to support those who really want to live in their own homes and if someone is happy living alone, perhaps wit a pet and they have indicated they do not want to be admitted to a care home their wishes will generally be listened to. The life expectancy of most older people having care is not that long and I know few of them would prefer a few extra months in a care home to being in their own home. There was a wonderful advert on Horsequest this week in the Wanted column - a 16.2 horse was being sought for an 82 year old man who had dementia and had previously been the master of 2 hunts. Positive risk taking at its best. People with dementia are individuals and should not be described as being similar to children and "Kicking off" when their rights are challenged.

Yes, I'm in Seattle and mom lives with me. She has been diagnosed with early stages of dementia. Thanks for the advise BlueBelle. I'm trying my best not to fight with her coz she easily gets agitated.

Yes indeed you're right PernillaVanilla. I agree with you. Thank you for sharing this.