More than 5 million Americans are currently living with Alzheimer’s disease, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. Researchers estimate that nearly 70 percent of people with Alzheimer’s exhibit wandering behavior or aimless movement. One innovation to reduce the burden for those that have wandering behavior is global positioning system (GPS) shoes.
In a new study, Tony Yang, associate professor in the Department of Health Administration an and Policy, and Charles G. Kels of the American Medical Association’s Division of Legislative Council and the U.S. Air Force Reserve’s Judge Advocate General’s Corps, examine the ethical, legal, and policy considerations of using GPS shoes for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease. The study is published in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society.
“The use of GPS technology to monitor individuals with Alzheimer’s disease is a growing trend,” Yang said. “We wanted to examine the ethical, legal, and policy considerations that must be taken into account when using this type of technology to track individuals as it relates to loss of privacy, consent, and the transfer of personal data to third parties.”
Ethical considerations when using tracking devices, such as GPS shoes, include autonomy, privacy, dignity, consent, peach of mind, and patient safety. The legal aspect of using GPS shoes and other tracking devices focuses mostly on privacy issues and whether the data shared with third parties is no longer protected by the Fourth Amendment.
“Further evaluation and analysis is necessary to compare the effect of wandering incidents with and without tracking devices,” Yang said. “This analysis will provide needed, relevant information to policymakers to produce solutions to protect patients and their caregivers, and possibly reduce the disease’s burden.”