What Can You Do if a Parent with Dementia Gets Out of the Facility and is Injured or Dies?

 Posted on July 30, 2026 in Wandering and Elopement

People with dementia are not always aware of their surroundings, which can be especially dangerous for older people who are more susceptible to injury. To avoid serious accidents, one would expect a nursing home to have safeguards in place to prevent wandering. Unfortunately, not all nursing homes live up to this basic standard. If your loved one has been injured after eloping from a facility, be sure to contact an Addison, IL nursing home injury attorney.

At Schwartz Injury Law, we have secured millions in total payments for injured clients, including injuries involving residents with dementia. When you reach out to us, your intake will be handled by a real attorney, so you can rest assured your concerns will be taken seriously from the start.

How Do Elopement Accidents Happen?

Elopement accidents usually happen because of a breakdown in supervision or security. A facility may fail to keep track of which residents are prone to wandering. Staff may be understaffed, distracted, or poorly trained to recognize the signs that a resident is at risk of leaving.

Doors and exits that are not properly secured can also allow a confused resident to wander outside without anyone noticing. Some facilities fail to install door alarms or motion sensors, even when a resident has a documented history of wandering. Communication failures between shifts can also play a role, especially when new staff are not told about a resident’s risk level.

What Kinds of Injuries Happen When a Resident With Dementia Leaves a Nursing Home?

When a nursing home resident with dementia wanders away from the facility, this is called elopement and the results can be serious. It often happens when staff fail to watch a resident closely enough, or when a facility does not have the right safety measures in place.

Head injuries are common in these cases. A confused resident may fall on uneven ground, trip over an object, or walk into traffic. A fall can cause a concussion or a more severe brain injury. Back injuries also happen often. A resident may fall down stairs, slip on a wet surface, or land hard on pavement. These injuries can cause lasting pain and reduced mobility.

Exposure to weather is another major danger. A resident who wanders outside during cold weather can suffer from hypothermia. In hot weather, dehydration and heatstroke are real risks. Some residents have been found many hours after they left the facility, and by then, their condition has often worsened.

Do Nursing Homes in Illinois Have a Duty to Prevent Elopement Accidents?

Illinois nursing homes have a legal duty to protect residents from foreseeable harm, including elopement. This duty comes from state law, as well as general standards of care that apply to any facility housing vulnerable adults.

The Illinois Nursing Home Care Act sets standards for how residents must be treated and protected. Under this law, a facility must provide adequate supervision, especially for residents who have dementia or other conditions that increase their risk of wandering. Facilities are expected to have door alarms, secure exits, staff training, and monitoring systems in place to prevent a resident from leaving unnoticed.

When a nursing home fails to meet these standards, and a resident is injured as a result, the facility may be held liable. A nursing home abuse and neglect lawyer can review the facility’s records, staffing levels, and safety systems to determine whether the nursing home met its legal obligations.

Can I Seek Payment for My Parent’s Medical Bills After an Eloping Accident in 2026?

If your parent was injured after leaving a nursing home without staff noticing, you may be able to recover payment for the resulting medical bills. This can include emergency room visits, hospital stays, surgery, physical therapy, and any ongoing treatment your parent needs because of the injury.

To recover these costs, you will need to show that the nursing home failed to provide proper supervision or safety measures, and that this failure led to your parent’s injury. Medical records, incident reports, and staffing schedules can help build this case.

Our firm can also help you understand what other losses may be included in your claim, beyond just medical bills. This might include the cost of moving your parent to a new facility, or other expenses tied directly to the accident.

What Are Non-Economic Damages in a Nursing Home Eloping Accident?

Non-economic damages cover losses that are more difficult to quantify in a dollar amount. These damages account for the pain and suffering your parent experienced because of the accident.

This can include physical pain, emotional distress, and the fear or confusion your parent may have felt while lost or exposed to danger. It can also include a loss of dignity, especially if the accident caused a lasting injury or a decline in your parent’s quality of life. Because these losses do not come with receipts, they can be harder to calculate.

What Makes a Wrongful Death Claim Different From an Elopement Injury Claim?

An elopement injury claim is filed when a resident survives the accident but suffers harm, such as a fall injury or exposure to bad weather. A wrongful death claim is different because it is filed after a resident has died as a result of the elopement.

In a wrongful death case, the surviving family members can seek payment for funeral and burial costs, loss of companionship, and the emotional toll of losing a loved one. The person filing the claim is usually a family member and must be the representative of the deceased resident’s estate.

Both types of claims require proof that the nursing home failed in its duty to protect the resident. However, the damages available, and who can file the claim, differ between the two.

Contact a DuPage County, IL Nursing Home Injury Lawyer

If your parent has suffered an injury after wandering away from a nursing home, you do not have to face this alone. Contact our Addison, Illinois elopement injury attorney or call 312-535-4625 to discuss what happened and learn about your legal options.