Police Recruits and Missing Elderlies
Policing is a career that at times requires a great deal of creativity to get the job done. New recruits have to learn this quickly as once you are out on the road, you are often your own boss. This doesn’t mean that you can’t tap into a large number of available resources. There are lots of tools police have access to both within the organization and outside of it.
Scenario:
Wendy had been working as an officer for about 8 months at a busy downtown division. One late afternoon she received a call to attend to a disoriented older lady who was walking on a busy road in heavy traffic. When she arrived, she encountered an older woman who did not speak English carrying a purse with almost $4000 in it. The woman was confused, had no identification and seemed like she needed help. Wendy wasn’t certain what language she did speak, but was guessing an Eastern European one.
The only information Wendy had, and she wasn’t positive about, was that the woman might be referring to herself as Maritza Kanchaka when Wendy pointed at her.
Wendy placed the lady in the police vehicle and contacted the dispatcher to see if anyone had been reported missing matching the woman’s description. No one had. A number of other calls had been coming in and every other officer was tied up on important matters. The road sergeant was busy with a major robbery that had occurred earlier in the day. Wendy was essentially on her own to figure out what to do with this lady. What are some of the steps that you think Wendy could take?
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Nice to know the lady is safe being in cruiser, for the time being.
-observe vital signs/body language closely
-hand lady a paper and pen; hoping she can write something that will help.
-look for bracelets/necklaces indicating medical conditions, along with prescription drugs (female searching female is OK…I think)
-radio in asking if anyone can translate/understand Romania/ Eastern European(googled that name); is there a mobile nurse in area?
-contact local women’s shelter to confirm a room/bed is available (if needed) give description of lady.
-hand lady map of area; hoping she’ll point something out.
-since Officers including road Sergeant are busy; radio in wanting to speak to Staff Sergeant, or Officer on duty in order to formulate your next move.
-WAIT!
All those things are a great way to try to find out where this lady has come from.
While waiting, I would check to see if there is a residence for the elderly or a nursing home of some kind within a few blocks of the area she was found. While doing that, pay attention to pedestrians on the street to see if family members/friends are looking for a lost person. Stay within a reasonable radius of where she was found as there is a good chance she isn’t too far from home.
Comfort and make the women at ease and she may recall what she was doing, where she has come from or someone that she could call.
As she had $4000.00 on her. Ask to see her withdrawl slip and ID the bank she was at. If the slip is recent, go to the bank and speak with teller who helped her out. Involve bank mgr to get proper id.
Hi guys, this is the first time I place a reply, so I hope it doesn’t sound too rediculous.
I work at a hospital with a lot of elderly people. I always hear that simply they are just not wanted at home anymore. In my opinion, this lady just left home running away from all her troubles. Also, the comments mentioned that the woman did not have any ID on her which leads me to believe that the $4000 are her life savings which she took with her just in case she needed to find a place to stay. Since she is disoriented and there has not been any reports of missing people matching her description, I think Wendy should just ask a Sergeant for permission to drive her to a hospital as I know this is the best place to care for her instead of a shelter. Since all other units are tied up, I think Wendy is definetly needed in the street; thus leave the woman in hospital care and follow up with hospital staff everytime she can.
My reponse If I had been in Wendy’s place. Ask tons of questions, even though she may not understand theres a possibility you’ll get some answeres. Check to see if the elder woman has any marks on her body, such as bruises, cuts/scraps also is she carrys any medical alert bracelets.Most importantly to take notes. Take down her description interms of age, name (If possible) hieght, weight as well as clothing material as she may be lost or a runaway. Try to be calm If still not 100% sure how to continue on your own, advice to wait for any backup (If neccessary).
I think I would be taking her to the nearest hospital, and quickly. Do not assume she is just senile. There could be a medical reason for her to be disoriented.
You do not want her to get worse or die on your watch without trying everything in your power to keep her safe.
As well, when a family member notices that she is missing, they will check the local hospitals first. If she is at the hospital, even under Jane Doe, a description from the family over the phone should get her identified when she is being looked for.
Even nursing homes will check hospitals for a missing resident.
I believe all of these responses are good ideas, but I especially agree with Gerry, assuming that there is a withdrawal slip; she may have trashed it.