LA County Board of Supervisors to study tracking devices

I went to the LA County Board of Supervisors meeting today at the invitation of Janice Hahn.  She co-sponsored the following motion:

Recommendation as submitted by Supervisors Hahn and Barger: Establish the Bringing Our Loved Ones Home Task Force, led by the Director of Workforce Development, Aging and Community Services, in coordination with the Chief Executive Officer, the Sheriff, the Director of Public Social Services, as well as the Office of Public Guardian, the Commission on Disabilities, the Los Angeles County Commission on Local Governmental Services, the Commission on Aging, the Countywide Criminal Justice Services Coordination Committee, and the Alzheimer’s Greater Los Angeles, to explore the feasibility of establishing a voluntary Countywide program that can keep track of adults and children and expedite the recovery of  those individuals who wander away from their families and caregivers, and explore the best available devices to be implemented, provide guidance and a timeline for comprehensive training, estimate the cost of such a program, and report back to the Board within 60 days with their findings. (17-1008)

I was invited to speak to this topic and said this:

My name is Kirk Moody and I am here to endorse Supervisor Hahn's motion to study the use of tracking devices for people who may wander from their caregivers, and the associated training necessary for emergency personnel.

Unfortunately, I have personal experience with the need for such devices.  My wife, Nancy Paulikas, suffers from severe early-onset Alzheimer's disease.  Nancy wandered from a family outing last October 15th and we have yet to find any trace of her. Despite enormous efforts by literally hundreds of volunteers and the police, as well as broad media coverage, we have ye to find single credible clue as to Nancy's whereabouts.

At the time she wandered, Nancy was wearing a Medi-Alert bracelet - the sister bracelet to this one that I am wearing now. These are one of the most common current tools to help find wanderers.  Unfortunately, they contain no active tracking mechanism.  They simply have instructions for contacting the caregiver if someone should see the person and read the bracelet.  It is not uncommon for the patient to remove the bracelets.

My frustration in finding my wife is a situation that promises to repeat with increasing frequency as the overall population ages and Alzheimer's disease, other forms of dementia, and conditions such as autism become more prevalent.

Please consider Supervisor Hahn's motion as a critical step in helping solve this problem.

The motion passed and they are going to get a report back in 60 days.

What we are up to right now

We have several activities going on right now, and I'll try to summarize them here.

1. Adopt a Hospital - we have a list of the largest hospitals in the area and the ones closest to LACMA.  Instead of calling them often (with emphasis on the ER), we are asking "adopters" to work with a single hospital from that list, and hopefully establish a connection with someone who has the breadth to be a point of contact going forward.  This allows us to just call the hospital once every other week or so to make sure they are aware that Nancy is still missing and that we are still looking for her.
2. Daily calls.  At the moment, we do not have a list of additional places to call.  This will probably change in the next week or so based on some large database work going on.
3. Facility visits.  Despite all of the calling we have done, it is somewhat disappointing to actually visit facilities that we have called in the past and they claim they have not seen the flyer or heard about Nancy.  So, we have people visiting care facilities to drop off flyers and get them to post them where the nurses congregate (nurses all work at more than one place). 
4. Working from the "top down".  We are still working with the Medi-Cal office to discover instances of facilities applying for Medi-Cal reimbursement for people that fit Nancy's demographic but do not have a valid SSN.  In addition, we are looking into how we can get someone to review all of the forms that are filled out when a hospital holds someone for evaluation (these are called 5150s ... the Public Guardians office tells us they have reviewed all of the 5150s they have received with no matches, but there are other batches of 5150s, and we are trying to get someone to look at those).

As always, if you would like to participate in any of these activities, please send an email to NancyIsMissing@Gmail.com and let us know your interest and availability.

Very Nice Letter From Sarah Dalhover of Vista Pacifica Center

As many of you have experienced when calling or visiting a facility in search of Nancy, there are people who just don't seem to want to be bothered.  You also get kind people who are willing and able to help.  And then you get superstars, like Sarah Dalhover from the Vista Pacifica Center in Riverside.

Ms. Dalhover sent me the following letter which just made my day.

Nice Article in MBDigs

Jeanne Fratello has a nice write up in DIGMB ...
http://www.digmb.com/2017/02/10/134967/search-continues-for-missing-alzheimers-patient

Thanks Again To Supervisor Janice Hahn's Office

I received a call from Mark Baucum at Janice Hahn's office.  They  have been very active in spreading the word about Nancy throughout the LA County Government offices.  They have distributed it to hospitals, Skilled Nursing Facilities, nearby county offices, and fire and police departments.

They also arranged for LA Channel 36 to cover the story and I was interviewed last week.  I don't yet have the information on when that will air, but will post it as soon as I find out.

Presence at Women's March in LA - thanks Chris Miller!

Chris Miller went to the Women's March in LA last Saturday.  He took flyers and a large poster with him and got several connections.  Notably, Joe Bray-Ali - a candidate for LA City Council took a picture and said he'd put it on his FaceBook page, as did Kevin De Leon - the president of the CA State Senate.  Also, the organizers of the Women's March took a picture and also said they would post it.  Thanks Chris!

Link to concise video of Nancy's story from the episode of The Doctors...

One of the team created an edited version of Nancy's story based on the episode of The Doctors that highlighted her plight.  A link to this version is below.

LINK to edited version of Nancy's story from The Doctors

Please Post on NextDoor a Suggestion to Take Flyers to the Protest Tomorrow

A friend in Palos Verdes posted this on her NextDoor:

Would anyone going to the March be willing to print out and post our "Nancy's Missing" Poster in Downtown LA close LACMA where she was lost? Your group may mobilize many people by your efforts. Just print out her Missing Poster from the blog http://nancyismissing.blogspot.com/, hand it out, post it, and your kind actions just might bring Nancy home to her husband and family. Thank you!

This seems like a great idea, so please copy this post to your local NextDoor.

At Least One System is Working

I was awakened early in the morning last Thursday by the Manhattan Beach Police.  They had some photographs they had received from the Emergency Room at Kaiser on Sunset and Vermont.  The Jane Doe in the photos was not Nancy, but it does show that some of our hard work in calling and visiting hospitals has paid off.

County Supervisor Janice Hahn and Police Renewing Call to Help Find Nancy

County Supervisor Janice Hahn is quoted in this article calling for the public's help in finding Nancy...

THANK YOU SUPERVISOR HAHN! 

LINK to article here

National Media Exposure Today! Very nice piece on Nancy's plight on the show "The Doctors"

Here is the most recent report on our friend Nancy Paulikas, who went missing on 15 October. The nationally syndicated series "The Doctors" did a very nice job on this and we hope that it brings her plight to a broader audience and helps to bring her home soon...

Below is the link to the story.

Link to story on Nancy by the show "The Doctors"

More media exposure for our search for Nancy: a segment of the television show "The Doctors" will feature her on Monday!

This week a crew from the national TV show "The Doctors" taped with Kirk at his home.   A link to their website is below.

The piece will cover the loss of, and search for Nancy as an example of the many challenges faced by those with Alzheimer's and their families.  

This is very good news as it pushes information about Nancy out beyond the LA area which is where our heaviest coverage has been, to date.

It will air at 11:00 AM Pacific Time, on Monday, 9 January 2017.

Click here to find the station and time for your local viewing:
 Link to find out when The Doctors airs, near you...

Please spread the word!

Link to Website for The Doctors TV show 

Let's Find Nancy for the New Year

With the year quickly coming to an end, my level of helplessness and frustration remains high as we still haven't had any clues that have led us to even the suggestion of a trail in the search for Nancy.  Despite our lack of success at this point, I am forever indebted to each and every one of you who have devoted your time, energy, talents and prayers to our efforts.  In those moments when I am not consumed by thoughts of "what should I do next," I am overwhelmed by the kindness and commitment of both treasured old friends and the many wonderful strangers who have become invaluable new friends.  There simply are no words that can adequately convey the gratitude that Nancy's parents and I feel.

As we enter 2017, we will continue to devise new strategies to continue to shake up the system in our ongoing effort to bring Nancy home.   A major new effort we will be undertaking after the 1st of the year will involve visits to a large number of skilled nursing and residential care facilities in Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura Counties.  If any of you have an interest in assisting with those calls, please let me know of your interest and availability.  We are also exploring other avenues of keeping the search alive and will be posting that information on an ongoing basis.

Please know how very much you and your efforts are appreciated and accept our best wishes for a New Year that provides health and happiness for you and your families and finding Nancy for ours.

Kirk

Weekly Update - and How You Can Help (Again)

Last week we finished up calling all the hospitals, Skilled Nursing Facilities (Nursing Homes) and the residential care facilities for which we received returned mail.  Thanks to Peg and her team for that!  (Over 1300 entries in the call log ... probably many more phone calls than that).

This week we'll concentrate on physically visiting some facilities.

As we have asked before, please share Nancy's information with anyone you know who may come in contact with hospitals, nursing homes or residential care facilities.  We have to push the word (and her picture!) out there (thanks Tavia for sharing your friend's efforts!)

It is also about time to "refresh" getting the word out.  So please

1. Share on FaceBook, 
2. Tweet "Missing Alzheimer's patient in LA. Missing for over 2 months.  NancyIsMissing.BlogSpot.com  #NancyIsMissing"
3. Post on NextDoor in your neighborhood.
4. Tell someone else you haven't told before!

Another week, and still looking for Nancy... Please help look in residential care facilities for her!

Another week, and still looking for Nancy. 

Last week we sent out five thousand flyers to all the residential care facilities recognized by CA's Dept of Social Services in Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura counties.   This is part of our “bottom-up” strategy of finding Nancy if she has made it into the care system without being identified: We’re seeking her from the individual facilities.   Thanks, again, to all those who stamped and stuffed envelopes.

Got back 120 of these as undeliverable and are still culling them and following up.

Also bought a marketing list of all the MDs and RNs, in a 20 mile radius of the point from where Nancy went missing emailed flyers with Nancy photo, description, reward info, and tip line phone number.  Kudos to brother Rex Moody for identifying this opportunity.

And have been in contact with California’s Medi-Cal Data Analysts to look for women matching Nancy’s description that have applied for coverage from any source.  The time-delay from initial billing to showing up in data is remarkably long, but we are seeking help to find Nancy via this “top-down” strategy.

And, another “thank you” to Megan Barnes of the Daily Breeze newspaper for a very nice follow-up article on our continuing efforts to find Nancy!  This article is available at by clicking the following link: 

Link to Daily Breeze Update Article

And Megan's piece is also in The Beach Reporter this week...  Again, huge thanks, Megan!

Link to The Beach Reporter Update Article

We continue to believe that Nancy is still out there, receiving care in the “system” and hope that someone will recognize her from the flyer and call the tip line at: 310-567-6594

Update: Mass-mailing of flyers to residential care facilities in 3 counties...

We sent out 5,000 flyers on Tuesday to all of the Elder Residential Care facilities recognized by CA's Dept of Social Services in Los Angeles, Orange, and Ventura counties. Thanks to all who helped stamp and stuff the envelopes.

We're still hoping that Nancy is somehow lost in one of these facilities and that someone either working there or coming in contact there will recognize her and call us.

PLEASE CONTINUE TO SPREAD THE WORD TO EVERYONE YOU KNOW THAT MIGHT BE IN CARE FACILITIES!

And continuing kudos to Peg Griffith and her team of callers: They continue their follow-up calls to a large number of area hospitals on a regular basis. You are amazing...

The coming week: You Can Help Us Find Nancy

At this time, one of our strongest theories is that Nancy is in a care facility, but that she is in there under the wrong name.  

This could have happened because of her very limited verbal skills and probable lack of identification.

We’ve heard a number of accounts of Missing Persons who get into a care system and are later found. After weeks, months, or even years, they “pop-out."

YOU CAN HELP US FIND NANCY BY USING YOUR PERSONAL CONTACTS AND SOCIAL NETWORKS TO:

Contact anyone you know that works in or visits nursing homes, skilled nursing facilities, or "board and care".  Give them copies of the “Nancy is Still Missing” flyer. (Link to the flyer, just below) 

Ask them to look for Nancy and post the flyer for others to see.

Examples of people that might regularly visit a care facility include:

• family and friends of patients
• podiatrists
• barbers
• hairdressers
• manicurists
• massage therapists
• visiting nurses
• doctors
• hospice workers
• dentists
• physical therapists

Our callers are contacting many of these care facilities, but there are several thousand, and you can't be sure that our flyers get put up

   Links to the most recent flyers are here:  

            English Version: Nancy is Missing Flyer: English Version
            Spanish Version: Nancy is Missing Flyer: Spanish Version

      Click on the link, and then download the PDF of the flyer to your computer.

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Real world example of a loved one with dementia lost in the system who was found

My sister-in-law walked away from her home in the La Brea/Melrose area in 1999. She was unable to communicate. We hired a retired FBI agent. He searched area nursing homes to no avail.  He circulated the reward posters to the area nursing homes and 3 days later she was found. A podiatrist's assistant claimed the reward. She did foot care on patients in nursing homes and recognized her.

My sister-in-law had been picked up on the street by an employee, taken to the home, given a new ID including name and SS# to collect medical reimbursement. When reported to LAPD they were aware it is a common practice.

If you know other examples of a person lost in the system being found, please share since that information could be a useful way to find Nancy.

A really nice story in the LA Times today, by Steve Lopez... THANK YOU STEVE!

Hoping that this helps get the word out to look for Nancy and bring her home to Kirk...

Click here to read the story: Link to the LA Times story by Steve Lopez

Click here for the video from the story: Link to a video from the LA Times Article of 30 Nov

Thanksgiving, very difficult time...

Each of us felt the absence of Nancy around our Thanksgiving tables yesterday...  The empty seat and the hollow in our hearts.  None more deeply than Kirk and Nancy's parents, George and Joan.

Our best guess now is that Nancy is "in the system" here in LA County, based on the experiences of LAPD Missing Persons Detective Mercado.  Nancy could have been admitted to some care facility under an incorrect name as early as the same day as she went missing.  People reportedly "pop-out" of these facilities months or even years later when they are identified, according to Det. Mercado.

So we're continuing to:

• contact every hospital to find the facilities into which they might place a person like Nancy and contact them to see if they had any admissions matching Nancy during a specific date window
• find every facility in LA county that provides such care and contact them (thousands)
• work "top down" the LA County to find if they have taken on any indigent patients in the time window

We're also still actively tracking tips: Any credible tip is investigated to see if it is Nancy.  HUGE contributions from our team of  Tip Trackers.

So, we wish you all a Happy Thanksgiving and ask you to continue to support our efforts with your time, your phone calls, and your prayers.

Together we'll bring Nancy home...

Below is a link to photos and videos from our "Light Up LA for Nancy" vigil at LACMA on Thu 17 Nov

LINK to photos and videos from our "Light Up Los Angeles for Nancy" Vigil at LACMA

Nancy the person - from a former co-worker

I met Nancy the day I started working at ITG in 1993. Actually, I met Nancy the week before the day I started working at ITG. Someone saw fit to invite me to the monthly lunch meeting for ITG's entire Los Angeles office. "All" 16 of them. It would be my first introduction into the very serious world of financial-industry software development. And the topic was… homebrewing. That's right, brewing and bottling your own beer at home. The presenter was Nancy.   

It took about 2 minutes to realize Nancy was incredibly bright. The detail at which she could describe the brewing process - the whys behind the whats and hows - was remarkable. She sounded like a professional brewer slash chemistry professor. But I think she liked to talk more about the failed attempts than the successes. Every success was a good batch of beer. But every failure was a funny story.

Along the way, Nancy was promoted to head of software development for ITG, a title she held for a few years before retiring early at age 40. That group of 16 software technologists exploded to over 200 during her time at the firm. No one worked harder or was more disciplined than Nancy. She owed the firm and her co-workers her best every single day, and she never let us down. As a leader she wanted to connect with everyone on the ever-expanding team. She took up the challenge of memorizing everyone's name and face so she was never unprepared in a meeting or hallway conversation.

THIS is what I think of when I think of Nancy and early-onset Alzheimer’s. At her peak, Nancy had the sharpest brain in the room. She had an ability to educate and entertain with her depth of knowledge, life experiences and storytelling ability. Alzheimer’s has taken a lot of that away, but Nancy is still strong in spirit. She’s not a quitter. Neither are her friends and family.