Would this be considered wandering?

We took her car keys away and she has been fighting with us to get them back! It's CRAZY! She is extremely paranoid and treats me like the enemy. We thought she needed to be in assisted living but she refuses.

She has a clinical diagnosis of Mild Cognitive impairment with Amnesiac episodes. We are in the very beginning stages of getting her diagnosed. She still needs to see the neurologist-psychologist. We couldn't get an appointment with one until December.

LoLo, I don't know what the specific definition of wandering is, in terms of dementia, but I think it does reflect a lack of judgment and executive functioning (a word another poster uses which very well describes these kinds of situations.)

I'm also not sure that whether it officially constitutes "wandering" is the issue, which really is that your mother wasn't able to realize the phone was working, made an unwise decision, and didn't realize that it was unwise and unsafe.

Does she have a Medic Alert pendant? It wouldn't necessarily stop her from wandering, but it would provide a level of safety if she were to fall, especially on slippery sidewalks or pavement, or even grass.

Does she live completely alone? Are there any cameras at her doors that could be monitored remotely? What stage is her dementia?

yes, we have been trying to get her into assisted living and she has fought it every step of the way.

So even though she remembers walking to my Sisters house the fact that she didn't think to get dressed or even put walking shoes on constitutes wandering?

I think so. Time to evaluate options and protection for your mother. Is she living alone?