Older people with dementia could be tagged to help their
families feel “safe and secure” about their whereabouts, science
minister Malcolm Wicks has suggested.
Wicks told the
House of Commons science and technology committee this week
that although the government had to be careful not to take a “Big
Brother” approach, satellite technology could have useful
applications given an ageing population.
Wicks said: “How can we get the balance right so that these
people have the freedom to live their lives, to go out in the
community and go shopping?”
Helga Pile, UNISON national officer for social care argued that
tagging would be a “waste of money” and called for investment in
quality home care services instead.
“Human contact and warmth is vital for people suffering with
Alzheimer's in particular and a familiar face will do more to help
the elderly than any tagging device,” she said. “Over two-thirds of
councils only provide home care workers to people with critical
needs. Since 1992 the number of households receiving homecare has
fallen from 528,500 to 354,500. This leaves many elderly people
without the support they need to live independently, with dignity
and security in their own homes.”
Kate Jopling, senior policy manager at
charity Help the
Aged said: “Clearly at first glance these proposals may
smack of the Big Brother state, but we shouldn’t dismiss the
potential of new technologies to afford dignity and opportunity to
vulnerable older people.
“The key issue would of course be the involvement and consent of
the individual, and their family and carers, to ensure that the
technology means better care - not just care that’s cheaper or more
convenient.”
Neil Hunt, chief executive of
the Alzheimer’s
Society, said: “Electronic tagging can certainly help people
with dementia achieve greater independence and dignity, and reduce
the concern and worry that carers may have about the person they
care for. But we need to strike a balance between the benefits to
an individual and the ethics of electronic tagging.”