The Use of Robotics in Dementia Care: An Ethical Perspective

Abstract

Dementia and other related diseases are becoming increasingly diagnosed and are placing a serious strain on the healthcare system. Robotic technology research is currently underway to provide the much needed support to patients, caregivers, and health providers. This includes examining the ethical implications of robots use in healthcare. This scoping review explores the current state of the literature regarding robotics and dementia with a special lens on ethics. More specifically, this paper strives to gain an understanding of the current ethical considerations, and propose an intervention for evaluating ethical considerations prior to implementation. This research was conducted using PRISMA guidelines, extracting data from articles. Our findings revealed that further attention to policies and guidelines that are currently in place for general use of the technology should be utilized, and applied specifically to the context where the technology will be used.