QPS partners with Safe & Found to improve search and rescue capability.
Every family with a loved one living with dementia, autism, or another cognitive condition knows the fear – that moment you realise someone vulnerable has wandered from home.
It’s a fear that keeps many carers awake at night, and one that police across Australia respond to all too often.
When a person goes missing, time is critical. Within the first hour, the search radius expands dramatically. With every passing minute, the risk increases – from exposure to water, bushland, or busy roads, to being left without essential medication.
In these moments, having the right information at the right time can make all the difference.
That’s why Safe & Found was created.
Originally developed in Western Australia through a collaboration between MedicAlert Foundation and WA Police, Safe & Found has already helped bring hundreds of people home safely.
Its success has proven so significant that the program has now expanded to the Northern Territory and, most recently, Queensland, where it officially launched in February 2025 in partnership with Queensland Police.
QPS partners with Safe and Found
How Safe & Found Works
Safe & Found is designed to support both families and first responders. Families and carers can create an online profile for their loved one, securely storing vital information such as recent photos, medical conditions, communication methods, favourite places, and unique behavioural patterns.
This information is held by MedicAlert and made available to police the moment a missing person report is made. Instead of starting from scratch, police begin a search equipped with knowledge – knowing where to start looking, how to approach the person safely, and how to provide appropriate care once they’re found.
The system also draws on lost person behaviour – decades of research into how people with dementia and other cognitive conditions typically move and respond when lost. This insight helps guide searches to the right areas faster, ensuring the best possible use of critical time.
In many cases, Safe & Found has meant the difference between a search that takes days and one that takes less than two hours.
Why Safe & Found matters
Queensland’s geography brings unique challenges to missing person searches – from coastal suburbs and dense bushland to regional and rural communities separated by vast distances. These factors make quick, informed responses vital.
Safe & Found bridges that gap. It allows police to act immediately with accurate, detailed information, improving search outcomes and reducing risk. It also gives families something just as valuable – peace of mind.
Behind every statistic is a story of relief: a parent found safe, a partner returned home, a child reunited with their family. Each successful outcome represents not just effective policing, but a community that cared enough to prepare.
From WA to Queensland – expanding a proven success
Safe & Found’s expansion into Queensland follows its remarkable success in Western Australia, where it has already helped save hundreds of lives. Those results speak for themselves – and they’re the reason Queensland Police are now championing the program statewide.
What began as a local initiative is becoming a national network of safety, uniting police, families and communities in a shared mission: to protect the most vulnerable among us.
Safe & Found is more than a program – it’s a partnership built on preparation, compassion, and innovation.
Because when someone you love goes missing, nothing matters more than bringing them home safe.