Govt plan to tag people with dementia
The Rudd Government plans to electronically monitor people with dementia and force nursing homes to report any cases of missing residents.
Minister for Ageing Justine Elliot has asked the Office of Aged Care Quality and Compliance to consult on the use of medi-tag bracelets to support the safety of residents with dementia.
Such monitoring devices are currently being researched by Alzheimer’s Australia for the Department of Health and Ageing.
The plan may also require about 3,600 providers of residential care, respite services, transitional care and flexible services to report cases of when a resident was deemed missing without explanation.
According to a report in The Australian newspaper (2 June), in NSW more than 6,500 people over the age of 65 were reported missing last year, accounting for 40% of all missing persons. A major proportion of the older group were considered to have dementia.
