As I browse news sites on the internet and social media site
it seems that there is a story almost on a daily basis about a missing child. This is not surprising as the National Crime Information
Center statistics in 2014 show there were
466,949 entries for missing children under the age of 18. Needless
to say these statistics are very disturbing. Additionally, I find the following statistics
just as disturbing;
- Roughly half of children with an ASD attempt to elope from a safe environment, a rate nearly four times higher than their unaffected siblings.
- Two in three parents of elopers reported their missing children had a “close call” with a traffic injury.
- 32% of parents reported a “close call” with a possible drowning.
- Half of families with elopers report they had never received advice or guidance about elopement from a professional.
Helpful Resources
http://www.lojack.com/People-at-Risk - The SafetyNet by LoJack
System is a radio frequency based system designed to aid in locating missing
persons who suffer from a cognitive disorder such as alzheimer’s or autism and
who are at risk of wandering and becoming lost.
http://www.projectlifesaver.org/- Project Lifesaver provides protection and safety to even more individuals who wander due to Autism, Down syndrome, Alzheimer’s, dementia, or other cognitive conditions.
http://www.mypreciouskid.com/products/wearable-id-products.html - My Precious Kid has created Wearable ID products for your family. Wearing a physical ID everyday will help keep your kids safer.
http://tattooswithapurpose.com/ - Temporary tattoos are removable tattoos that go on the skin with water and can last up to 7 days.
http://www.medicalert.org/- First
responders and medical professionals are trained to recognize MedicAlert IDs
and call a 24/7 Emergency Response Center.
http://autismservicedogsofamerica.com/- The service dog’s calming presence can minimize and often eliminate emotional outbursts, enabling the child to more fully participate in community and family activities.
22 comments:
I thought this article was very interesting. I am a father and are always worried of the possibility of my child getting lost by accident, wandering off at the mall etc. The article gives a few methods in locating or having someone identify your child, with maybe a specific locating device that they can wear. I think it is a good idea and if can prevent it ever from occurring, then its something all parents should consider.
Having read the post discussing the troubling stats surrounding childhood eloping, I believe that tech can play a vital role in keeping our children safe. Mainly, there are new apps that parents can use that track their child using GPS. Additionally, the links posted below the article are creative ways to keep kids close to home where they are safe and cared for. Losing a child is the second worst feeling a parent can experience next to their child dying, it is important that we educate each other on better practices aimed at keeping our children safe.
I strongly agree with using a assistive device on a child with a disability,exspecially with a child that wanders,not only for the safety of the child ,but also for parents to ease their mind on not worrying about their child.
I have students in my classroom that have a GPS strapped on them.Also it makes the parents feel better that their child is not with them and they can make sure their child is where they are suppose to be.
Shauna Desouza.
Very important article. I think all can learn from this article. and with the additional links as resources makes it even more relevant to the topic. I think it is very important that everyone reads this article and also the link to find ways as to how to best support our children in which ever way needed. I will definitely read more from these links when time allows me.
I think that when way we can solve such issues is by Dr. or Professionals giving parents the knowledge about assistive technology for their wandering child. It can be implemented as a law for Dr. and Professional to inform parents about devices that can help in such cases. I think that such awareness will prevent many of such cases.
By reading the title I was wondering why we are reading about missing, wondering kids. Also statistics draws a troubling picture for these kids and their families.
Well, there is something that should be there to track and find these children. Here comes technology. Technological advances really facilitated in finding missing persons; kids with autism, cognitive disorder etc.
The SafetyNet, Project Lifesaver, Wearable ID, Medical alert Id are examples of systems and devices that help find and identify lost or missing kids.
Boris Balan
These statistics are super scary. And to think you wrote this 4 years ago when technology was not as prevalent as it is now. I can only imagine what the statistics are now. It is disheartening because disability or not, the internet is not the safest place for anyone. So especially when a child has a disability we need to make sure we are educating our children, students etc about the advantages and disadvantages of technology.
When I think of Assistive Technology I think of hearing aids, computers, or assistive touch, audio and visual technologies. This article surprised me when discussing the various forms of AT that can help assist people with ASD or other disabilities from getting lost or staying safe in public areas. The statistics were quite alarming and I hope that people become more aware of these technologies and use them if they deem necessary. I was particularly intrigued by the Tattoos with Purpose, a simple temporary tattoo can be used to identify a person - amazing!
I think having tracking devices for people with autism and other cognitive disabilities is a great idea. I think it could also be useful for people without cognitive disabilities if they get lost and their phone dies
This is a very educating article! I had no idea before reading this, that any of these resources were out there. The statistics provided are quite concerning and I can only hope that the numbers have decreased since 2015 but unfortunately, I am not hopeful on that. The helpful resources provides great tools and assistance for parents who have children with disabilities who tend to wander off. With all the technology that have been invented thus far, it would behoove parents to learn more about what is out there and if any of the assistance out there would work best for their child.
Wow, those statistics are truly scary. What is even more scary is the fact that there are parents out there who could benefit from this assistive technology, but are just not aware of it. It is sad that they may not even know of these statistics until their child becomes one of them. Looking at the helpful resources, I am shocked to have never heard of some, such as the tattoos with purpose. Social media is such a huge platform that these resources should be made viral on them. For instance, I have seen many service dog videos on Facebook, where in the video the dog is calming the child right before an emotional outburst. More viral videos of these resources could save a child's life.
As a new parent, this stats make me upset and sad. It is just terrible. parent neeeeedd to keep a close eye on their children, not saying they are not. Children with special needs especially. Thank you for providing additional resources to support.
Melissa
EDSN650
Summer2019
i strongly agree with this article and feel that children with disability should have some kind of device that is tag to their clothing just in case they get lost. i have 3 children of my own when we are going to big places i have an walkie talkie that i give out to my children just in case they get lost.
Liana EDSN 650
Technology is a great tool when a child goes missing. There are multiple ways to get the message out and now the internet helps parents alert locals, media, friends and family. There are multiple organizations that assist parents when their child has a disorder that may cause them to flee. First we must make sure parents have gotten in touch with authorities. When you have a child that is a runner, it is best to alert your local police department. This allows the police to have a record of the child if they come upon that child in public. The cite you linked helped bring up an idea to have the child wear an identifier. Although I would not use a tattoo a necklace or bracelet such as an army tag may be a great accessory to your child's wardrobe. With technological advances there are many ways we can make sure we have our child's location. This is a great benefit in today's society. This technology helps parents have the peace of mind that their children are safe. Great article!
I found this article to be very thoughtful and helpful, especially to people who have relatives with disabilities or even people who work in this field. This is information that is very useful and could save lives. To know that there were 466,949 entries of missing children only 5 years ago is terrifying. Just to know that there are these disturbing statistics, for example, "2 in 3 parents of elopers reported their missing children had a "close call" with a traffic injury." This kind of information is so vexing, I believe one way to solve part of this ongoing challenge is to hold seminars on how to keep a relative or child with disabilities safe and what precautions could be put in place to prevent such events occurring, thus lowering the statistics on missing children.
EDSN 650
Kourtney
I think we are very fortunate to live in an era where technology is so advanced as to help parents or caregivers locate eloping children. Children with disabilities and elders with dementia or Alzheimer's are more prone to that and having these options handy makes a difference. I am sure that technology will continue to expand and evolve finding more ways to help not only the less fortunate but all humanity. I really like the wearable ID or the medical ID. Temporary tattoos are helpful, as well. I never thought of that.
Gladjola Murati EDSN 650
I think this article is very informative. Parents should know what to do or who to contact if their child goes missing. As a mother of three, this information provided is invaluable and I thank you Prof. Gutnicki, for shedding some light on this disturbing statistic. I learned so much from this article!
I thought this article was very interesting. I have never thought of using assistive technology for all students with disabilities in a way to keep them safe.This was very informative and definitely something all should look into doing.
Heather EDSN 650
I work as a paraprofessional and it is always important to count your students and always make sure that no one is missing. It is important to not be on your phones because it does cause a distraction and this happens often within D75 schools where some students have left and gone missing. Some parents have gotten a gps device that they put on their child in order to always track them just in case something like this happens. It is hard for parents that have children with special needs to feel comfortable in unknown places where their child can go missing. Overall I think that these statistics are very frightening and more should be done to decrease these numbers.
I am working at District 75 with students with special needs. I can see how many of them have attempted to run away every single day. As a teacher or paraprofessional having our students safe is the main goal. parents leave their child at the school surely that their son or daughter will be in a safety place. For that reason I completely agree that students can use these kind of devices.
Thank you for this article
AlejaB
650/S19
This article raises awareness about a very important issue. The statistics stated in the article about the number of children that get missing demonstrate that something must be done to help them and their parents in preventing similar situation from happening again. I think that providing the child with an ID, and a phone number or address, offers an opportunity to help this child in case when he/she get lost. Also, a very helpful way might be to provide the child with a tracking device, in his/her phone or not, so the parents would be able to track the child's location and be able to know where the child might be at any time during the day.
Having a grandparent that suffers from Alzheimer's, I know what it feels like to be worried about a loved one wandering off and getting lost. When he was still living at home, there were multiple times where he would leave the house in the middle of the night and we were lucky enough to find him unharmed. During this time, my family and I looked into resources like these and they were very helpful through our struggling time.
Jennifer Falcone
EDSN 650
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