-: An elopement case or wanderer case is a resident,
usually they have Alzheimer's or dementia,
and they have a tendency to want to leave the facility.
Maybe they're going home or maybe they were joggers
and they want to go out on a jog.
because of their propensity to wander out of the facility,
they're in a locked, secure unit,
and a lot of our cases have to deal with,
usually it's an employee who've jarred the door open
or maybe the locking mechanism on the door has been broken
for a month and someone leaves, wanders outta the facility
'cause he thinks he's going on a jog,
and horrible things can happen, as you can imagine.
It is a concern in nursing homes,
and that's why their loved one trusts the facility,
because they have a secured unit.
For the vast majority of our cases,
we do not blame the CNAs.
In fact, they're our best witnesses.
The caregivers are usually understaffed and undertrained,
so we don't fault the individual caregivers.
It's usually the nursing home that doesn't have systems
in place to prevent things.
-: If you suspect that your loved one is being abused
or neglected, you should call the Harvey & Foote Law Firm
and we can talk to you about your options
and what you can do to help in this situation.
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