This is such a beautiful time of the year. So many changes begin to occur. Not only have the leaves turned into beautiful autumn colors but we are preparing for the upcoming holidays. Sometimes it feels as though we just finished storing away the decorations, and here we are again, pulling out some of the old trimmings and reminiscing. Some are outdated, their colors have faded, or we have moved to a new location and the decorations are no longer suitable for our new home.

Just as we make changes to our homes for the holidays, it is critical that you report any changes in your primary and additional contact information to the Alzheimer’s Association Safe Return^® program. The following is a story that dramatically illustrates this point:

During the last few months there has been an increase in the number of persons found as a result of being enrolled in Safe Return. However, there was one incident where a lack of updated information proved to be a serious problem.

Recently, a Good Samaritan called to report that he found Mrs. J, age 77, lying on the ground. She was unresponsive and wearing a Safe Return bracelet. The Good Samaritan was able to provide us with her Safe Return identification number. When an enrolled person is reported found, the first person to be called is the primary contact. If he/she is not available we then proceed down the list of additional contacts. In this case, as we attempted to contact Mrs. J’s primary caregiver, there was a recording stating that the telephone number we dialed had been changed. We proceeded to call the cell phone number which was on the form and received this response: "the number you have dialed is not accepting calls." As we continued to reach out to additional contacts, we found that their information had also changed.

As a result of not having current contact information, Mrs. J was taken to a local hospital, where she remained until a caregiver was finally located. Mrs. J’s home telephone number was called repeatedly in the hope that someone would pick up her telephone.

It took over 48 hours before a family member was in the apartment and answered the telephone. Her family had to wait two agonizing days before they we able to reunite with their mother – and Mrs. J. had to spend two days in the hospital unnecessarily.

I am sharing this experience to urge you to contact us if you have moved or changed your telephone numbers. Equally important, inform us of temporary contact information when you plan a vacation or business trip. Current, accurate contact information is so crucial in the return of a missing or found person.

So, as we take time to prepare for the holidays, please take this opportunity to update your Safe Return enrollment information. To update or add to your list of primary contact/caregivers, please contact me at 646-744-2918, 1-888-572-8566, or by e-mail at esantiago@alznyc.org. Thank you.

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