Help Solve The Mystery Of Missing Items

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First, I want to thank everyone who provided feedback when I asked for solutions to the problem of missing items in nursing homes. I learned a few new tricks, and I hope my readers will, too.

These are helpful suggestions that you shared:

Glasses

• Many facilities take a close-up photo of each resident’s glasses upon admission. When a pair of glasses is found, they easily identify the owner through the picture.

• You can also make a photocopy of the glasses. Write the resident’s name along with the manufacturer’s information printed on the bow. Place all the residents’ sheets in a binder. Then you simply flip through the binder if you ever find any unclaimed eyeglasses.

• Some facilities engrave the resident’s name or identification number on the bow of the glasses. However, this can easily wear off. Caregivers need to check frequently to assure the markings remain readable.

• Eyeglass chains are helpful for residents who remove their glasses, then set them down and forget where they put them. Many are attractive and resemble jewelry.

 

Dentures

• Dental labs can easily engrave a resident’s name into their denture.

• For residents who repeatedly lose or break their dentures, some facilities only provide the dentures to the resident at meals. Here staff can monitor residents more closely. Of course, a dental exam is important in this situation. You want to assure that a physical problem isn’t causing a resident to remove their denture repeatedly.

 

Hearing Aids

• Some facilities use special clips that allow you to attach a hearing aid to a resident’s glasses or clothing.

• I was pleasantly surprised to learn that a couple of apps were recently developed to allow you to track your hearing aid if it’s lost. Check with your audiologist for more information.

• There’s usually a very tiny registration number imprinted on a hearing aid by the manufacturer. If you find a hearing aid and can’t identify the owner, you can often contact an audiology center and they can trace the number to its owner.

 

  Clothing

• Some nursing homes request that families label all clothing upon admission. Others do this for the resident when they arrive. Techniques include ink, iron-on, press-on, or labels sewn onto the garment.

• Fabric markers usually work better than traditional permanent markers. The ink lasts longer through harsh laundry conditions. You can also purchase markers with silver, gold, or white ink to use on dark garments such as socks. It’s important to use the resident’s full name as many residents have similar names.

• Did you know that it’s considered a dignity issue if visitors can see a resident’s name on their clothing? Sometimes family members write a name in a visible place (such as the side of a sock) thinking it helps prevent the item from getting lost. What they don’t realize is that this can lead to a survey deficiency for the nursing home.

 

Other thoughts

Policies regarding missing items vary from one facility to another. Most nursing homes include information on admission showing that they are not responsible for missing items. They also ask that residents not bring expensive or fragile belongings to the nursing home. Some encourage residents to carry insurance for expensive items. Generally, the facility pays for replacement when a staff member damages something belonging to a resident.

Many nursing homes use clear plastic bags as liners in wastebaskets. This way, it’s easier for staff to take a quick look and assure nothing inappropriate was thrown away.

Facilities often fill out a personal belongings inventory upon admission. However, many note that this is difficult to maintain. Family members often take items home, or bring in new items, without letting staff know.

Finally, a couple of readers mentioned hearing about handheld scanners that help in the search for missing items. However, none of the facilities I contacted use them. I would love to know if any of you have experience with these devices.

I know many of you have other excellent ideas. Please add your thoughts in the comment section or feel free to contact me by email: nursinghomevolunteer@gmail.com.

I’ll continue to update this post as new suggestions roll in. Thank you again for your help in solving this common and often frustrating problem!