Life & Social Skills

Life & Social Skills

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Safety and Emergency Planning for Adults Who Are More Impacted

Safety and Emergency Planning for Adults Who Are More Impacted

We know parents and family members of adults who are more impacted have many different safety concerns. Here we discuss a range of different issues and tips for you to consider.

It can be helpful to notify your police department that you have an autistic adult in your home. Call your police department and ask if they have any identification programs for vulnerable residents such as autistic people. If they do, take time to go down to the precinct, if possible with your loved one, and register them. If they don’t have a formal way to register, ask if you can bring your loved one to meet with a police officer. Tour the police station to make them more comfortable with what an officer might look like if they are approached.

Create a simple self-disclosure card that your loved one always carries with them when they are out in the community. The card should share their disability and your contact information in case they ever wander off or if they are stopped by a police officer. This Emergency Contact Form from Able2Learn may be a useful template.

Find out if your state or local Bureau of Motor Vehicles or developmental disabilities agency offers an option to register your vehicle as having a person with a communication disability. In Ohio it’s called the Communication Disability Law and people register through Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities (OOD). This is the link to find out more about the Ohio program.

You can also post a sign or decal near your front door indicating that an autistic person lives in your home and on the passenger side car door where your loved one sits.

Planning for the Future

It is important to help your loved one develop as many skills as possible, such as basic safety, hygiene and self-advocacy skills. This will allow them to live in the least restrictive housing possible, be able to express their preferences, and help prevent victimization.

None of us like to think about a time when we are no longer here, but it's important to gradually plan for our loved one's safety and security for that time. You'll find useful information and resources in these law and finance, housing, and self-advocacy articles in the Milestones Autism Planning (MAP) Tool. The Milestones free autism Helpdesk is here to support you and connect you with information and resources.

Give your loved one regular, meaningful and enjoyable time out in the community where they can learn and practice skills. Depending on your situation, you may also consider having a trusted caregiver come to your home a few hours a week. This provides your loved one with experience being with different people and you can monitor any safety concerns.

Safety at Home

Make sure your loved one knows how to use kitchen appliances like the microwave properly, and which appliances they’re allowed to use without you there. Are they clear on what is safe to put in the microwave? You can safety proof appliances like your stove that you do not want them to use. You may want to use child safety locks on cabinets that have breakables or chemicals.

Organizations like the Cuyahoga County Board of Developmental Disabilities (CCBDD) in Ohio have incredible resources to give you ideas and information. The CCBDD has a smart home apartment set up that you can go into or visit virtually and see safety items and modified kitchen and other home items, such as a microwave and stove with safety features.

Another resource is the Innovative Independent Living Project from Linking Employment, Abilities and Potential (LEAP). This pilot project explored how technology and other support in homes could increase levels of safety and independence for people with developmental disabilities.

Identification

Make sure your loved one knows their phone number, address and your first and last name. If they can’t reliably communicate this information, whenever you go out your loved one needs to have some form of ID, a laminated card or an electronic device that has your information on it. This way if you somehow get separated or they wander off someone can help. It is important to have a state ID which they will need when traveling or whenever a photo ID is required. You can add that they are autisic and any other comments on the back of their state ID.

Be sure you have a recent photo of your loved one on your phone that you update regularly just in case you need it. If you go to an out of the ordinary, large crowded place, you could take a photo of them right there so you have what they’re wearing and how they look in that setting.

Create a safety plan at home in the event someone like their caregiver or a family member gets sick and your autistic loved one is there - do they call 911, get a neighbor?

Planning in Case of an Emergency

Make an emergency safety and medical plan for when your home isn’t safe or you need care because of natural disasters, unhealthy relationships, or other crises. If your loved one is still in school your IEP team can help to come up with your “What If” Plan in addition to your private providers and disability agency representative.

This might include a plan to get prescribed medication for more than 30 days or designate a safe place to go if your home isn’t safe. Here’s an example of a checklist when creating an emergency plan for individuals with disabilities.

This should include what to do in different types of emergencies, for example if you live in an area with hurricanes or earthquakes, or with heavy winter weather. Practice what to do if there is a fire, to stay low and leave your home quickly. Make sure they know to go to a designated agreed upon location outside your house and then to call 911 if you are not with them.

This emergency plan template from Easterseals provides ideas for what to include, such as diagnoses, medications, contact information for family, therapists and doctors.

Strategies to Avoid Being Targeted as a Victim

It’s important for your loved one to know how to state their preferences.

While we want our loved ones to learn and do the things we want them to, it is important for them to know it is OK to say no to something that they do not want to do or that is uncomfortable. Especially for autistic young adults, we want to be careful to not inadvertently imply they must say yes or be too compliant, putting them at risk for victimization or bullying.

Discuss the concept that their body is their own and about body safety and private touching. That no one has the right to touch your body without your permission. As part of that, let your loved one know it is OK to say no to a hug or kiss, including to a relative, just to be polite about it. Share how a doctor, nurse or therapist might touch you and what is appropriate. You may want to use a social story to help teach these concepts which you may get help from a therapist, counselor or psychologist to develop.

Learning that masturbation is a natural part of sexuality but should be done in the right place (in private) is important to avoid a situation that puts your loved one at risk. We will be adding articles about sexuality and dating to the MAP Tool later in 2022.

Safety Strategies for Leaving Your Loved One Alone

If you leave your loved one alone, what does that look like? Here are some tips to prepare them and set up your home to help them succeed and stay safe.

Have an agreed upon plan for what food they can prepare while they are alone. You could have food organized in your pantry or a cabinet with pictures for them to easily find.

You can use pictures with symbols like a big red x on anything you don’t want them to touch like the stove.

Plan for what your loved one should do in case of an emergency. Call you on your cell phone and if they can’t reach you, call one or two people you name who know they are your back ups? When would they need to call 911?

If someone calls, should they answer their phone? If the caller asks if a family member is home, what do they say? This may be different if you have a household phone or it is their cell phone. If they will be answering the phone, teach them how to recognize spam phone calls.

Be clear with rules and safety with them such as

  • Do not leave the house while I am gone.
  • Do not use or touch the stove.
  • Do not put foil in the microwave.
  • Do not walk near the front door or windows (if your loved one would be easy to see by someone outside or at the front door).
  • Do not come to or open the front door even if someone comes to the door.
  • Never let someone come into the house unless it is someone I told you to let in which I will let you know by _________________. (Use a way that is very clear for your loved one to understand who and how to know. For example having the trusted person text to let your loved one know that they are there and that your young adult should come to the door.)

Using a social story with photos that you could have on a ring that they can flip through could be very helpful. The Milestones Visual Supports Tool Kit provides tips and information, and the Milestones free autism Helpdesk is here for you as well.

Steps you could take before trying it the first time:

  • Consider setting up video in your home with remote monitoring and a video doorbell. Potential useful products include Google Nest. You could place Google Home near your kitchen to test for smoke. Make sure you have reliable smoke and carbon monoxide alarms.
  • Set up chimes on your windows and doors.
  • Get to know your neighborhood and go with your loved one to meet your neighbors. That way if something happens they know your loved one and the neighbors know them over time.

Not everyone has back up like a family and friends support system, and money to afford video cameras and other equipment. Costs may be covered as part of your loved one’s safety plan. Check with your state or local developmental disabilities agency to see if a waiver or other financial support may be used to help pay for it. The Milestones Helpdesk can help guide you.

Testing Them at First

When you first leave your loved one alone test them to make sure that they’re really following safety rules

  • Walk down the street like you’ve left the house then quietly come back and knock on the door to test that your loved one won’t open it.
  • Make sure they don’t stand near a window where someone can see them from outside.
  • Teach them to call police or 911 and when it’s appropriate to do that.

Start with leaving them alone a very short amount of time and gradually increase it based on how they did.

Each time, before you leave your loved one alone write down what time you will be back. Be careful what you tell them. If you say you are going out for one hour, they may take it literally to mean one hour and worry if you’re not back by then.

Safety Out in the Community

Plan what to do if they get lost in a store or out in the community using a social story or picture chart if helpful. Agree on where your loved one should go if they get lost. You might say meet at the “safety spot”. Is it at the front of the store? Near the customer service desk?

Make it clear who they can leave with, who your loved one’s safe people are. Depending on their needs, a social story or visual with pictures of safe people can be helpful. Mix in photos of some strangers to test that your loved one understands. Include their physical therapist and others who can spend time with them and who can touch them (be clear on what is appropriate touching for that role).

Use it to explain layers of safety: “These are safe people in this setting. Your physical therapist sees you in their physical therapy (P.T.) center or your home but is not allowed to pick you up and take you anywhere. Who is allowed to pick you up at school or work?” Make sure they understand getting in the right car with the right safe person.

If they haven’t yet, continue to work on helping your loved one learn how to cross the street safely. Watch them cross the street independently a few times in different situations to make sure they fully understand what to be careful of. The Organization for Autism Research Guide to Safety includes helpful tips for teaching skills like this.

Wandering and Solutions

Depending on their developmental stage, your loved one may still be at risk for wandering. You may worry that they may wander from home or away from you when you are out. A useful free resource is the Big Red Safety Box from The National Autism Association. This toolkit is designed to educate, raise awareness and provide simple tools that can assist you in preventing, and responding to, wandering-related emergencies.

NAA’s Big Red Safety Box includes identification materials like a bracelet or shoe ID, helpful documents for emergency planning, wandering prevention tools including door and window alarms, visuals for your home and more. You can also put up a sign on all doors from the inside to tell your loved one - “STOP. Do not leave the house without Mom/Dad/sibling/guardian.” Or “Tell Mom/Dad/sibling, I want to go out.”

Pool and Water Safety

  • Teach your loved one how to swim. If traditional swimming lessons aren’t right for them, explore adaptive swimming lessons designed for people with special needs. Call our Helpdesk for recommendations.
  • If you have a pool at your house, it needs a locked fence, pool alarm and pool cover.
  • Discuss water safety and be clear about your rules about water. Depending on their level of functioning and ability to swim and understand water safety, you may not want them to go to water without you or whoever else you choose. A social story with photos that explains safety can be useful. Autistic people may think literally so don’t assume they apply one situation to another or that they will truly understand safety when intrigued by the water.
  • Ensure you have a chime or alarm activated on each door of your house.

Additional Resources:

How Do I Protect My Wandering Loved One?

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