Your Advice Requested: Keeping Track of "Elopers" with Autism
Wednesday October 10, 2007
It's not unusual for kids on the autism spectrum to suddenly, without warning, bolt out the door. Our son did this for several years, though he never ran far. Other parents, though, are forced to dead-bolt doors and put up high fences just to keep their children with autism safe.
Over the years, a number of companies have made good use of GPS technology to create bracelets, anklets and other high-tech jewelry for people who wander. This allows parents (or police) to track the individual to their precise location.
This works well so long as the person being tracked will tolerate the bracelet. But many people with autism find jewelry of any sort to be uncomfortable. And most find ways to remove the GPS tracker.
Is there a better choice? Share your experiences, thoughts and advice - here or on the Autism.About.Com forum!
Comments
We use the Care Track system which is a braclet that has a radio transmitter in it. but the biggest help has been a Black Lab named harry. Harry is a Four Paws for Ability Autism support dog. Noah has a harness and Harry has a harness and they go every where together including school (Noah is in the third grade at a public school.) We use to be in constant fear for Noah as he had been found by neighboors and police wandering down the road 4 or 5 times starting at 18 months old. We have keyless EXIT systems on every exterior door and a peritmeter fence that is covered on both sides. But nothing stopped him until the dog.
KElley
Hi -
We also used a watch with a handheld receiver that vibrated when the child was out of the “zone”. I found this to be a little embarrassing and did not work indoors.
My best experience by far is Verizon Wireless’s Chaperone Service. I bought a family share plan. My phone is a Razor and my son’s has a GPS chip in it. I put it in his pocket whenever we go anywhere. If he goes anywhere outside of the range I set, my phone rings. Right from my cell phone I can track and get the exact location of where my child is.
This has given me a piece of mind I have not had for years!
Jeannine
just wandering if anyone out there reads this i am interested in checking in the system that u guys r talking about. someone could tell me where i could get ahold of one or check into it that would be very nice. my son when he does get out of the yard he flees and fast running
thanks mary
The ion Kids device is perfect for this issue. If the person in question cannot stand the watch (my daughter actually got it off once. She is probably like lots of people with Autism in her craftiness. Houndini-like) you can use it on the key chain add-on. This is what we do most of the time and just hook it to a belt loop in the back of her clothes. The device is still attached to her, but not as confining as wearing the watch.
http://autismparents.net/?p=6
i understand what ur saying but what i want to know is where a person could buy that kind of tracking equipment for autistic kids
mary
Sad story in the news today related to this issue, I hope they find him soon … http://autismparents.net/teen-with-autism-vanishes-on-wilderness-hike/
Mary, you can purchase the Ion Kids device here … http://www.ion-kids.com/affiliate/index.php?fuseaction=home.click&aff_unique=124
Hi,
In my experience this is such a serious issue. A few months ago, tragically, a six year old with autism in my area escaped while under his mother’s supervision and was found dead a short while later because he fell and drowned in a nearby river. The mother wasn’t to blame. Certain children with autism are escape artists, and fast to top it off. I’m not telling this story to scare anyone. It’s just that for some reason I have found that in dealing with this stress of autism, other people who don’t deal with it do not seem to understand how dangerous it is. I know that my son was attending a special needs daycare before this tragedy, and I would find out later that my son had escaped from the building. They wouldn’t even tell me about it. Despite this poor quality care, others seemed to act like I couldn’t expect any better care and that this wasn’t a big issue. Now, I pay out of pocket much more money for a babysitter to stay at home with him and for the main responsibility to be to keep him from escaping. Also, we are a part of a program called Project LifeSaver through our local Sheriff’s department. Many states have this program and it is often advertised for the elderly with alzheimer’s, but it is definitely for children with autism. In addition, there are some child locators for sale that work like a car key finder. They are definitely not perfect, but maybe worth having. One beeps if it falls off of the child’s clothing that it is attached to. I found one on amazon sold by first start. Again, nothing can replace the supervision, but this can definitely help in an emergency. Another idea is purchasing the new baby monitors that have a camera. Camera’s really aren’t as expensive now, and it is definitely worth it to have some extra surveillance to keep your child alive. I haven’t purchased a camera yet, but I think I will in the near future, and I have priced them. I know in dealing with all that we do, our minds can only handle so much, and watching children with autism who have this behavior really ends up taking more than one person. I just wish we all had more support from the community. I just know that before Project LifeSaver, when I called 911 when my son was missing for a horrifying fifteen minutes one night, the 911 operator and the police just didn’t get it.
Don’t forget to get the school involved. Here’s a good introduction to addressing elopement, written by a special education attorney who has experience with several children with elopement issues. The only thing he doesn’t mention is putting elopement in the IEP.
http://specialedlaw.blogs.com/home/2005/11/on_october_14_2.h tml
He recommends:
1) A written plan on how to deal with elopement, with assigned roles for the staff, prevention (for example visuals for the child) and “fire drills” for dealing with a crisis that comes up despite prevention.
2) Risk analysis — what aspects of the schedule and surroundings increase the risk of elopement? ie transitions between rooms, located near a busy street, etc.
3) Equipment — teachers and other staff must be able to communicate with each other quickly in a crisis. Walkie-talkies are essential.
4) Functional Behavior Assessment and Behavior Intervention Plan — this is the most important step. Why does the child elope and what can you do to teach him to stay put and get his needs met in a safer, more appropriate way?
Sorry, but my experience is that if you keep a close eye on your autistic child, escapism of the kind described here does not happen.
Autistics kids are not like non-autistic kids. One has to make allowances. It is that simple.
Tom; you have to be realistic. Sometimes moms and dads have to go to the bathroom or answer the phone or do simple things like that. We kept our door latched high. You don’t know how quick and how crafty our child can be when she wants.
I’m a mom of four children from 17 to 2, and my 6 year old has Autism and he is an eloper. The older he gets the smarter he gets and when summer gets close, his attempts of escaping the house to go to the pool become greater and sometimes successful. I have went through all the recommended things to keep him safe and I’m currently looking into the ion tracker system. The project Life saver is not available here. To the guy who thinks if you watch your child better, it won’t happen, you couldn’t be more wrong. Maybe your child isn’t as aggressive in trying to elope, but others are. My child is always looking for a way out this time of year. We parents need support from the community, not criticism or judgement. The truth is, every child is different and until you actually walk in that parents shoes, you have no clue what it is like for that home. The last thing we need is someone judging us, our life is hard enough. To the rest of the parents, I feel for you and pray for all of you, because I know what it is like and I hope to make a difference someday.