ESCAPE Kits for Elopement Prevention in Children With Autism

NCT07225907 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: Pro00108386
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 65
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

This study will evaluate elopement prevention kits for children with autism spectrum disorder who exhibit elopement behavior such as dashing or wandering away from safe settings. Caregivers will be asked to rate how useful individual kit items are at reducing elopement, and to provide feedback about how ESCAPE kits affect their stress levels and ability to engage meaningfully in community settings. This study will also investigate how useful kit items are for various age groups in childhood and adolescence. Information will be used to guide development of a larger elopement prevention program.

Conditions

Autism Spectrum Disorder; Child Safety; Caregiver Stress

Keywords

Autism Spectrum Disorder; Elopement Behavior; Behavioral Safety Intervention

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (2)

• Number of Kit Items Still in Use at 3 Months

  Count of individual ESCAPE kit items still actively used by caregivers, reported via REDCap survey.

  3 months after kit reception

• Caregiver-Rated Usefulness of Individual Kit Items

  Caregiver ratings of each ESCAPE kit item using a 5-point Likert scale (1 = Not Useful to 5 = Extremely Useful), collected via REDCap survey 3 months post-kit distribution

  3 months after kit reception

Secondary Outcomes (1)

• Caregiver Perception of Kit Impact

  3 months after kit reception

Study Arms (1)

ESCAPE Kits Intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

Family received elopement prevention kits at no cost to them

Behavioral: Elopement Prevention Kits

Interventions

Elopement Prevention Kits BEHAVIORAL

Kits included high locks / bolts on doors (Wideskall 3" gate door latch), door/window alarm (GE 45117 Wireless Alarm with Programmable Keypad), stop sign visual aid (reusable sticker from stickergenius.com), ID tag (SmartKidsID Child ID / Medical ID shoe tag), Bluetooth tracker (BzT patch), safety harness (Dr. Meter AntiLost Link), temporary tattoos (SafetyTat), an information sheet that includes a disclaimer that kit items should be used as intended by manufacturer, that caregivers should monitor the continued proper use of kit items, and that the use of kit items is not a substitute for proper adult supervision of the child. This sheet also included other commonly-recommended EPM such inclusion of elopement accommodations in the child's individualized education plan (if applicable), informing neighbors and/or local law enforcement about the child's elopement behavior, use of safety gates at home, use of temporary tattoos, social stories, and consideration for swimming lessons.

ESCAPE Kits Intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Age: 4 Years - 11 Years
• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17)

You may qualify if:

• Caregivers of children ages 4-11 years old with a formal diagnosis of ASD (per caregiver report) who have contacted the study team expressing concerns regarding elopement behavior.

You may not qualify if:

• Participant doesn't live with the child.
• Only one child under the participant's care can receive the kit.
• Participant doesn't confirm their name, mailing address, and preferred email for kit delivery and post-intervention survey reception.

Sponsors & Collaborators

• Medical University of South Carolina: lead

Study Sites (1)

Medical University of South Carolina

Charleston, South Carolina, 29425, United States

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Autism Spectrum Disorder; Caregiver Burden

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Child Development Disorders, Pervasive; Neurodevelopmental Disorders; Mental Disorders; Stress, Psychological; Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Study Officials

• Silvia Pereira-Smith, MD

  Medical University of South Carolina

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NON RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: PREVENTION
• Intervention Model: SINGLE GROUP
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: SPONSOR

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: November 4, 2025
• First Posted: November 10, 2025
• Study Start: June 1, 2021
• Primary Completion: January 4, 2022
• Study Completion: January 4, 2022
• Last Updated: November 10, 2025

Record last verified: 2025-11

Locations

US (1)