They just drive around town to stores; farmers market, out to eat. everytime an elderly person goes missing in area it makes my sister and I think how would we trace our parents. They have a cell but seem to never have it on when they take it with them. They don't drive every day so we really don't want to pay a monthly fee plus large setup cost. Would be interested in ideas. Thank you.
Persons who reach a point where they don't know where they are or how they got there and lack coping skills regarding what to do about it may forget other critical things -- like which pedal is the brake, or how to respond in an emergency. Their response times may be too slow for safe driving.
Giving up driving is one of the most traumatic and distressing events in the lives of many elders. It was awful, terrible, and very bad for my husband. He mourned his little special edition Miata for a year. So I am very sorry to bring this up. But someone has to be concerned not only about the parents' whereabouts but also the safety of other people on the road with them.
If they are at a point that you are worrying about them getting lost, it may be time to take a broader look at the whole driving picture.
Sorry.
I don't see it as an invasion of privacy if that's what you're implying. Parents track their kids every day via cell phones, with and without the kids knowledge. Kids however get smarter. People with dementia go the other way and need supervision. Cameras, GPS, radar, sonar....I'm for any device that will help me know when it's time to get the keys from my Dad.
I hope my wife has a GPS implanted in me when I get like my Dad. She'll probably go cheap though, and use a shock collar.........
I would ask this. If seem to never have the cell phone on when they take it with them, how can you be sure they will turn the GPS tracker on when they get in the car?
How close are they to having their next driver's licence test?
Have you talked with their doctor about this and questioned how well he thinks their brains are working?
My dad has been incredibly rational about the whole thing.
When we first started on this journey with dad, he explained to me, my wife and our boys exactly how his decline would likely progress. He wrote up a very short version of his 80 plus years on earth. He took us through the will as it applied to each of us, showed us where some things were that he had already organized for us, told us how content he was about his life as a whole, asked me if I ever learned from my mom why she abandoned him, retold the story of the day before she left and the day she left, and said his only other hurt was his mother's death (BTW, it was by suicide.). Beyond that he said that he had lived a very blessed life and please keep coming to visit and call on the phone. Sorry, but I didn't know the answer to his question.
He drove for a bit only across the street to the grocery store, but when my step-sister said she didn't think it was safe, he was ok with that.
I guess that was his farewell speech in advance which his side of the family tends to do, usually with each child in private, plus the spouse if alive at that time.
I've never heard of anyone taking such a mater of fact, rational, organized, and here's what you need to know approach as him. It must be the engineer in him who always had things planned out like our vacations down to the tiniest detail so that things might go as smoothly as possible. Wow!
I would have the doctor evaluate their thinking, inform the doctor privately of your concerns, anticipate them trying to show they are possibly healthier than they really are for the doctor and take his advice to heart in light of the bigger picture.
In my case, Dad just passed his drivers test, doc says he's ok for now, and he won't discuss the issue at all. To him he's as capable as ever. The GPS is not the be all end all for the driving issue, but for now it is the best I can do.
Looking around in the class, most of them looked like they shouldn't be driving including the teacher! It scared the daylights out of me. But, that's just my opinion and I am I very cautious driver. The little booklet they passed out stated that some seniors drive with Alzheimers and drive in limited areas to avoid getting lost. Since I attended that class, I am more cautious than ever when driving and especially as a pedestrian, watch out!
I'm not saying tracking is bad, but I would focus my energy on stopping the driving, since innocent people, including them could be hurt.
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