Researchers in Ontario have developed an app to find missing people with dementia

It was recently reported that researchers from the University of Waterloo in Ontario have developed an app that helps in finding missing people with dementia.

Indeed, the mobile app called Community ASAP aims to locate people with dementia through an innovative alert system. The device then asks volunteer community members to watch out for those who have been reported missing. In order to test the app, the researchers have engaged with people living with dementia and their care partners, as well as police services and rescue organizations, and finally health and social service providers across Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia.

The device was developed to address a lack of available tools that would send an alert for missing older adults and people living with dementia in Canada. The app then allows people to sign up to receive the alerts on their phones and choose the ones that are closer to their current location. It is often reported that people with dementia that go missing are found one kilometer or less from where they were last seen.

The researchers are currently working with governments and organizations to coordinate a system that works across the country and transfer the app to a company that can work in other regions across Canada.

 

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