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.
Llama, just b/c someone becomes lost is hardy the basis for concluding that "that means their eyes are not where they should be". That applies more to texters and cell phone talkers than older people, with whom there can be vision issues but there can also be cognitive issues. With someone texting, it's just sheer irresponsibility if not stupidity.
Would you advocate preventing a texter from driving? I certainly would, just as adamantly as I would argue that someone driving in impaired state should not be driving.
How many people are killed by drunk driviers? How many by elder drivers? And how many by texters? Let's see the stats.
This is a good discussion and the issue comes up quite often on this forum. There is no one answer for each situation. My very first post on this forum several months ago was about elders driving and I shared the info about the GPS tracking system I had just begun using. I was immediately chastised by another poster for being irresponsible and told myna dad had no business driving. I have also seen many posts where the elder has had wrecks, gotten lost, driven through the garage door etc. and I have advised that the driving should be ended immediately. In some cases there is no question that things have continued far too long and there is immediate danger to the driver and the public. As much as I would like to get the keys from my Dad at this point I have no justification to do so. It would involve a physical confrontation. He has not gotten lost, no dings or scratches, no fender benders, no tickets, nothing. I recently took a ride with him to the grocery store and was amazed at how well he does. But with his dementia I know it won't be long before I have to intervene and it will be nasty. He is not about to let his young punk son tell him what to do.
So I watch him every day on my GPS and mom can call me or 4 grandsons and we can all access the GPS system on I phones or laptops in a second if a trip to the store takes too long. So far she has yet to alert us to any problems.
While there are many similarities to the problem of elders driving there are also many different situations and methods for dealing with driving and resolving the situation. My GPS works for me, at the moment, but may not be effective for others.
However, common sense when on any meds, or once a diagnosis of dementia is made, (get a second opinion); did you know that with epilepsy people should not drive? Take a look at the car, are there too many new dings?
My friend had a neighbor who repaired her car before her adult children could see the dings, and dents! She was 90. It is really not age related, to some extent.
Always give the elder the benefit of the doubt by reporting anonymously to the DMV, let them re-test and decide.
Have you ever been in the car with someone and they just stopped (no stop sign, no light) as if there was a stop sign? That could be one of the bad signs we're not always aware of.
Safe driving everyone!
I've read some of the techniques advised are to stay around familiar areas, don't drive as night, allow more distance between vehicles, etc. But given the number of distracted drivers, I think the risk of accidents occur, and that often requires split second reaction time.
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!
You know this is an epidemic due to the implementation of the "Silver Alert" similar to the "Amber Alert" for persons with Dementia who have not returned home when driving. Good luck and just remember its not their fault, it's the illness.
Everyone gets lost. However driving with Alheimer's can kill people.
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.
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.
"How ya doin", an expansion of my joke to imply, should we now be worried about you?
Guess I will give up humor, imop.
I am for gps tracking, and elder/teen tracking. Trying to reconcile that with my concerns about my own privacy, however, I am for doing what needs to be done to protect someone in our own family. Others would be more concerned about privacy rights. I am no longer concerned about everyone's rights because they have so many rights it's against my rights!
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.
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.........
The person can also wear an identity bracelet, medical alert necklace, etc. with you as the emergency contact.