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Centre for Policy on Ageing | |
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Big brother is watching you
— the ethical implications of electronic surveillance measures in the elderly with dementia and in adults with learning difficulties | | Author(s) | S Welsh, A Hassiotis, G O'Mahoney |
| Journal title | Aging & Mental Health, vol 7, no 5, September 2003 |
| Pages | pp 372-375 |
| Source | http://www.tandfonline.com |
| Keywords | Dementia ; Cognitive impairment ; Alarm systems ; Social ethics. |
| Annotation | Electronic surveillance technologies are now becoming widely available to health care professionals who have had the opportunity to consider the ethical and moral ramifications. Electronic tagging and tracking devices may be seen as a way of creating a more secure environment for vulnerable individuals, such as older people with dementia or those with learning disabilities. However, the proponents of surveillance devices have met with considerable resistance and opposition from those who perceive it as contrary to human dignity and freedom, with its connotations of criminal surveillance. There is also increased opportunity for abuse, for example the withdrawal of staff and financial resources from the care of people with complex needs. Implementing these technologies therefore has ethical implications for human rights and civil liberties. Optional alternatives to long-term and/or restrictive care, in the context of practical difficulties involved in caring for those who represent a risk to themselves from wandering, demands rigorous exploration of pragmatic questions of morality, with reference to risk versus benefit strategies. (RH). |
| Accession Number | CPA-031007234 A |
| Classmark | EA: E4: OV: TQ |
Data © Centre for Policy on Ageing |
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| ...from the Ageinfo database published by Centre for Policy on Ageing. |
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