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Dementia Patient Died Alone After Repeated Escapes
4 Jun
Summary
- Woman with dementia died outside after escaping care home 12 times.
- Social Development failed to move her to a safer home for a year.
- Seniors advocate calls death preventable due to departmental inaction.
A preventable tragedy unfolded for Alice, a woman with advanced dementia, who died after escaping her special care home for the twelfth time and spending the night outdoors. The New Brunswick seniors advocate, Kelly Lamrock, reported that Social Development had acknowledged Alice's need for relocation a year prior but failed to act. Her repeated escapes, some resulting in her being found disoriented on roadsides, triggered multiple incident reports over the year.
Despite these warnings and a physician's recommendation for higher protection, Alice remained in the same facility without additional support. The department initiated an assessment only after the second incident, eventually recommending relocation six months later. However, Alice continued to wait in the original home, eventually succumbing to the elements. Lamrock emphasized that this outcome was not inevitable and points to systemic failures in addressing seniors' safety.
