Ethical Considerations in Electronic Monitoring of the Cognitively Impaired

This article reviews the ethical issues raised by electronic monitoring of cognitively impaired persons, with the goal of transcending a narrow focus on decisional capacity in favor of a patient-centered framework that is applicable and adjustable at different stages of cognitive decline. Balancing the ethical principles of beneficence and respect in treating cognitively impaired persons goes beyond the necessary step of evaluating decision-making capacity to include partnering with families, caretakers, and cognitively impaired individuals who wander in a collaborative coalition of care. An approach emphasizing the individual needs of patients and caretakers is best suited to finding solutions that implement tracking technologies in ways that both protect and empower the cognitively impaired.

Source: Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine - March 7, 2017 Category: Primary Care Authors: Yang, Y. T., Kels, C. G. Tags: Ethics Feature Source Type: research