Assistive technology for people with dementia: Ethical considerations

Abstract

Assistive technology (AT) for people with dementia is in general used to improve the quality of life and prolong independent living in the community as long as possible by (a) compensating for memory impairment and disorientation, (b) helping to ensure safety which is oriented to protecting persons to remain at home safely, and (c) improving emotional status and decreasing behavioral problem which are oriented to manage psychological and behavioral problems. The AT use for people with dementia, especially those AT used for safety such as monitoring/tracking devices, raises various ethical issues related to the values of autonomy, personal dignity, privacy, and personhood. The decisions regarding the use of AT devices and implementing their uses thus have to follow a systematic examinations of various ethical issues from the perspectives of the person with dementia, family caregivers, and professional providers in order to ensure that the autonomy, privacy, and personhood are upheld at the same time achieving the highest level of safety and comfort possible for the person with dementia with the AT use.