Elderly Couple With Dementia Use Morse Code To Break Out Of Tennessee Assisted Living Facility

May 05, 2021 by apost team

On March 2, 2020, an elderly couple escaped from the Elmcroft of Lebanon assisted living facility in Lebanon, Tennessee. Amazingly, they were able to use morse code to identify the door’s pin number and then escaped off the premises. The couple was found 30 minutes later by a stranger and returned safely to the facility.

The husband and wife were not named, but they both suffer from Alzheimer's disease and dementia. The staffers were curious how the man was able to decipher the keypads on the doors. The husband told the facility staff that he had received military training in the past and that he used to use morse code for his job. 

Every number on the keypad has a corresponding tone, so all he needed to do was pay close attention and he could figure it out. He listened carefully anytime a staff member used a door until he had finally cracked the codes, and then the two made their escape.The staff have since changed all of the door codes to avoid any future breakouts. 

As a result of the incident, the Elmcroft of Lebanon was fined $2,000 for potentially risking the patients’ safety. The facility released a statement claiming that the safety of their residents is of the utmost importance to them and that they had cooperated fully with local authorities. The assisted living center has agreed to schedule more time for the residents to go on walks outside of the facility to try and curb the desire for any other escape attempts. 

According to the Tennessean, a statement was released by Elmcroft of Lebanon that said:

“The safety of our residents is the top priority at our senior living community. We are thankful both residents were returned to the community safely. We reported the situation to the state and their family immediately after it happened and fully cooperated with the state during its review."

It sounds like they learned a valuable lesson about the abilities of their residents.

Contrary to popular vernacular, the terms dementia and Alzheimer’s are not interchangeable. Dementia is a term used to describe symptoms such as loss of memory, reasoning or other thinking skills. Alzheimer's is a type of degenerative brain disease that accounts for 60 to 80% of dementia cases, as reported by the Alzheimer’s Association. More than six million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s disease.

The association also explains that the disease can develop due to a number of different environmental factors, as well as age and genetics. Prevention is a complicated subject because those who develop the disease due to genetic factors are less likely to be able to prevent it, while other factors like environment have potential to be changed and prevented.

According to the Alzheimer's Association, wandering away from home or loved ones is very common for people with dementia. 6 in 10 people living with some form of dementia will wander at least once, according to the organization. It happens because the person with the disease can no longer recognize faces or surroundings, so they try to leave the unfamiliar situation.

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Another term for this wandering phenomenon is “elopement.” This does not mean the same thing as running off to get married without your family’s knowledge. According to Crisis Prevention, “Elopement is widely defined as a dependent resident leaving a facility without observation or knowledge of departure and under circumstances that place the resident’s health, safety, or welfare at risk.” 

The main concern with elopement and wandering is that the patient will either not be recovered, or will be injured while they are away from their necessary care. The situation with the elderly couple who escaped using morse code had a happy ending thanks to the diligence of a stranger who happened to be nearby and noticed the pair walking alone. 

The term “wandering” may be misleading as it implies the patient doesn’t know where they are going, this is typically not the case as the majority of people with dementia walk about because they are trying to get “home.” Or, what they can remember was their home before the disease took their memories. It is a very tragic and difficult situation to be confronted with.

One way to help dementia patients stay safe is to help them take walks so they don’t feel trapped inside, like Elmcroft of Lebanon agreed to do for their wandering patient. Door locks are also very important, although they must be changed frequently as the elderly couple from the story showed. Trying to limit the risk of elopement is key, as well as having a protocol in place in case a patient does go missing. 

Were you impressed by the man’s ability to crack the door codes? Did this story touch your heart? Let us know your thoughts and be sure to pass this on to your loved ones.