GPS Tracking Devices Rein in Wanderers

Baby boomers, you’ve spent a lifetime trying to make your mark in the world. Now prepare to get lost in the crowd.

The first of the post-World War II born “boomers” are now entering their retirement years. It seems the generation that grew up with television Westerns, the British Invasion, arcade games and the Vietnam War might soon run a risk of developing early-onset Alzheimer’s disease.

Forgetting where you set the car keys is considered an absent-minded blunder and an everyday occurrence. Unfortunately, if projections are true, being clueless as to your surroundings and how you got there might also soon be common.

GPS Tracking Products Increasingly Focus on ‘Wanderers’

Every minute someone in the United States is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease, the most extreme form of memory loss, or dementia. That fact comes from the nonprofit Alzheimer’s Association, which also shares that more than 5 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s; and by 2010, there will be an estimated half million new cases each year.

Alzheimer’s is characterized by short-term memory loss, an inability to retain new information, poor judgment and often limited motor function. Wandering is a key symptom of Alzheimer’s. With severe damage in the brain, the patient gets disoriented and might not even remember the name of the street that he or she lives on.

There is no cure for Alzheimer’s disease, although much research is being done in the area of pharmaceuticals. Several drugs seem to slow its progression.

In the meantime, one of the main applications of GPS tracking systems is to monitor people who, either do not want their whereabouts known, or often lose their way.

More GPS tracking products are being designed specifically with the dementia patient in mind. GPS tracking technology has advanced tremendously, even in the last few years. There are dozens of GPS tracking models being sold commercially that are either worn on the body or discreetly sewn into an article of clothing. Some intriguing ones are in development.

Most of the units utilize real-time GPS tracking technology. The device’s location is tracked by GPS satellite. The caregiver has the ability to “find” the patient’s location on a personal computer. Some devices monitor constantly and some only trip on to track location when someone directs it to.

 Often these electronic devices have a function called geo-fencing, where the caregiver establishes a virtual boundary on a map. If the patient goes beyond that limit, the caregiver is sent an automatic email or text message alerting them to the “incident.”

Some examples of GPS products for Alzheimer’s patients:

• A GPS technology designer and a shoe manufacturer are working on a prototype GPS tracking device imbedded in a pair of shoes.
• Several GPS tracking device manufacturers are advertising real-time GPS tracking units in bracelets, watches and neck pendants.
• A British company is marketing a tracking device that can be sewn into an article of clothing.

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