ABSTRACT
Problems of ‘wandering’ outside the home are widely acknowledged to be a source of fear and anxiety for many people living with cognitive impairment and their carers. A potential technological solution involves the person wearing a GPS tracking device that alerts relevant carers when the device leaves a pre-defined geographical area. The use of electronic tagging in dementia care has been explored for over 20 years, during which a large body of literature has emerged to inform policy, practice and technology development. However, the uptake and use of GPS tracking in routine care practice remains low. Much of the research within the field has been technology focused, underpinned by biomedical notions of wandering as a problem to be managed. Drawing on ethnographic case vignettes, this chapter highlights a need to study and develop such technology within the wider socio-material context. Using our empirically derived ARCHIE standards for assisted-living solutions, we offer recommendations and future directions to co-evolve solutions for safe wandering that align with what matters to people, and that are achievable and sustainable in practice.
