Ethical issues around telecare: the views of people with intellectual disabilities and people with dementia

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to ascertain the views of people with intellectual disabilities (PWID) and people with dementia (PWD) on the ethical issues around assistive technology and telecare (AT&T). Design/methodology/approach - Two focus groups were convened twice to discuss and validate the topic areas/results of a Delphi study on the ethical issues around telecare. The focus groups comprised five PWID and five PWD, respectively. Findings - Participants' ratings indicated that they felt there were important ethical issues around seven areas related to AT&T: motivation for telecare, risk, assessment and review, consent, privacy, social isolation and equipment installation. Research limitations/implications - This is an exploratory study with relatively few participants so the results cannot be generalised. Originality/value - People receiving AT&T have strong opinions on the related ethical issues and it is important that these views are heard. This study provides that opportunity.