Beacons of hope
Friday, September 22, 2006 - Updated: 03:50 PM EST
Project Lifesaver can be lifeline to adults, children who wander off
Cape Codder Article Sept. 2006
Families with a member who has Alzheimer’s disease face many challenges such as medical treatment, increased financial burdens and the stress of caring for a loved one with a debilitating disease. Adding to the strain is the fact that more than half of people with Alzheimer’s are prone to wander and get lost. If they are not located quickly, they can become injured or die.
Orleans, Eastham and Brewster police departments will be fielding a new piece of equipment and developing procedures they hope will provide a larger safety net for individuals with Alzheimer’s living in the three communities. The radio band system can be also used for people with autism and Down’s syndrome, particularly if they are young, and children who are deaf.
Officers from the three departments completed two days of training through Project Lifesaver to learn search and rescue techniques using a radio direction finder to locate a person wearing a special wristband with a radio beacon.
"It’s a good use of community policing funds," said Orleans Police Chief Jeffrey Roy. The chief became interested in the technology after a tragedy several years ago when an elderly man with Alzheimer’s in Orleans wandered away from home and died before he was found.
William Knight, deputy superintendent for the office, explained that nationwide, 36,000 people with diminished cognitive abilities, such as a person with Alzheimer’s, wander off. Thirty-six percent are never found.
"One half that are not found in 24 hours die," said Knight, and the national average for the time it takes to find someone who wanders with Alzheimer’s disease is nine hours.
Thanks to Project Lifesaver equipment, "the recovery time now averages about 30 minutes," said Knight. The program and equipment was originally developed by the Chesapeake, Va.’s Sheriff’s Office in 1999.
For the system to be truly effective, Knight said families or caregivers must report a person missing immediately.
"The average person walks about four miles an hour," he said, and any delay in notification will increase the area responders will have to search.
With an increasingly aging population on the Cape, the chance for local police and rescue personnel responding to missing person calls is likely to rise.
Knight said that 50 percent of Americans over age 85 will develop Alzheimer’s, of which almost 60 percent will have a tendency to wander.
Brewster Police Chief Richard Koch explained that local councils on aging and assisted living centers will help coordinate the distribution of the radio transponder bracelets and identify individuals in the community who are the highest risk for wandering.
During a search, the radio receiver is used to hone in to the signal being broadcast from the wristband.
Norfolk County Sheriff Captain John Welch explained that officers attending the two-day Project Lifesaver course learn more than just how to use the bracelets and radio receiver, which the three departments will share.
"This brings a focus back to traditional search and rescue," said Welch, who added the local departments will keep a detailed binder of individuals in the communities who may wander, including photos and a description of typical routes the person has wandered to in the past.
An initial 20 radio bands will be distributed to Orleans, Brewster and Eastham. Gift accounts have been established for donations to purchase additional units for members in the community. Contact the police department or council on aging for more information.
Click below to see training photo’s
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