Elopement or wandering refers to when patients with dementia, Alzheimer's disease, or other cognitive impairments leave their care facility or supervision without permission and potentially get lost, injured, or killed. This is a serious safety concern in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and hospitals that care for vulnerable patients who may not understand the risks of leaving on their own. When facilities fail to properly monitor these at-risk patients or don't have adequate security measures in place, they can be held legally responsible if the patient is harmed while unsupervised.
In personal injury and wrongful death cases, elopement incidents often indicate negligent care by the facility, especially if they knew the patient was at risk for wandering but failed to implement proper safety measures like door alarms, increased monitoring, or secure units. These cases can result in significant compensation for families when their loved one is injured or dies after leaving the facility unsupervised. The facility's duty includes not only preventing elopement but also having emergency procedures to quickly locate and retrieve patients who do manage to leave, since delays in finding wandering patients can lead to tragic outcomes.
