earch teams now have a new tool at their disposal to aid in finding patients with Alzheimer’s or dementia when they wander away.
Monmouth County Sheriff Joseph W. Oxley and John A. Wanat, executive director of the Monmouth County Office on Aging, have announced a new collaborative program to locate and rescue Alzheimer’s patients who may wander from home and become lost.
The program, Project Lifesaver, uses bracelets that emit radio signals. Missing patients can be tracked for great distances by specially equipped teams from the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office.
"The project focuses on Alzheimer’s patients and others with related dementia disorders," Wanat said. "Alzheimer’s disease is one of several disorders that cause a gradual loss of brain cells. There are approximately 5 million persons with Alzheimer’s in the United States today."
Each battery-powered bracelet weighs 1 ounce and emits an inaudible tracking signal 24 hours a day. Sheriff’s officers use radio frequency receivers to locate the bracelets. Average location time using this system is less than 30 minutes. Representatives of the Sheriff’s Office will visit participants on a regular basis to check the equipment and change the batteries.
"Each bracelet has a separate radio frequency that will allow sheriff’s officers to hone in on the specific missing individual who is wearing a bracelet," Oxley said. "The transmitters receiving the radio signals can detect within a one-mile radius, or five miles, if the search is done by air."
Project Lifesaver is an initiative developed by the Chesapeake, Va., Sheriff’s Office. Its mission is to use state-of-the-art technology in assisting those who care for people with Alzheimer’s and other related mental dysfunction disorders who become lost."
The Monmouth County Office on Aging provided a grant for $8,300 to fund the initial equipment to launch Project Lifesaver in Monmouth County.
Two sets of tracking equipment and 10 tracking bracelets, plus maintenance costs, were made available through the grant. Additional tracking bracelets can be purchased through the Office on Aging for $250, plus a monthly maintenance fee of $20. Trained specialists at the Office on Aging will accept and process applications for enrollment in the program based on medical need. Those approved for participation in Project Lifesaver are visited by the Senior Services Unit of the Monmouth County Sheriff’s Office who install and maintain the bracelet.
Project Lifesaver is the newest addition to the recently established Senior Services Unit. The Sheriff’s Office Senior Services Unit provides safety and education resources for older residents. The unit serves as an informational clearinghouse where residents can schedule programs, maintain correspondence, and receive safety brochures with the help of staff members and a Web page.
Interested residents may apply to participate in the program by contacting the county Office on Aging at (732) 431-7450.