My mom has been at an assisted living facility for about 4 months. She seemed to be doing really well, tells me how much she likes it, staff are friendly, etc. She can't remember much so she can't tell me what goes on during the day. Today I was visiting and the adminstrator pulls me aside and tells me that mom has started waking up in the night and comes out of her room and is confused. They are suggesting moving her to a room that is further away from the entrance so it's less likely she will just walk out. she also said that mom was speaking up in meetings, basically saying whatever she's thinking, and it was bothering other residents. Nothing inappropriate. that doesn't sound like my mom, but I know behaviors can change. I'm freaking out a little. the administrator doesn't want to put mom in memory care and neither do I, but not sure what to suggest to keep mom from wandering at night. One thought was to give her something to help her sleep the night, but i'm afraid that's a slippery slope. another idea was for her to be more physically active during the day- she's gained weight since moving in and is losing track of day and night, keeps her curtains shut all the time. also thought maybe putting a sign on the door at night that reminds her where she is and encourages her to go back to bed. any other ideas out there?
Do you mean to tell me that the nursing home isn't locked down at night?? I can't believe it. That's a serious issue, in my opinion. What are they thinking?? I would move her to the memory care floor immediately. If she REALLY doesn't need that floor (her social interaction will be quite different), then, in my opinion, she should be moved to another facility. Anybody can walk in? Anybody can walk out? Ridiculous.
Sleeping pills are a last resort. Seniors can easily over-ride them, and then they're on their feet in a woozy state. Can you spell hip fracture?
This is the nursing home's problem. Tell them to solve it or you're moving your mom. They're coming to YOU with the problem as though there's something YOU can do. If their front doors were secure, they'd merely have to escort her back to bed. Most nursing homes have what they call in the Chicago area "Night Owls" -- at least one staff member whose job it is to get oldsters back in bed after a short social interaction. This isn't an uncommon problem.
I would talk to the nursing manager and ask her exactly what they intend to DO about this problem. It's not yours. It's theirs.
Yu may want to see about getting her out a couple days a week for socializing.