The Delicate Issue of Taking Away an Older Adult's Smartphone

With smartphones and other digital devices becoming increasingly difficult to use as aging users struggle with cognitive impairment, experts are exploring the thorny issue of when to relieve them of access, reports Kaiser Health News . "Deciding whether to block their access to their bank accounts, stocks, and other online resources may present the same ethical dilemmas as taking away their car keys," suggests Optum's Robert Zorowitz. Some doctors are working to accommodate this trend, with Johns Hopkins Medicine Professor Halima Amjad asking senior customers if they use a computer or smartphone, and are forgetting passwords or getting locked out of accounts. "If there's a notable change in how someone is using technology, we would proceed with a more in-depth cognitive evaluation," she notes. Meanwhile, Neelum Aggarwal at Rush University's Alzheimer's Disease Center observes that older adults are highlighting problems with technology as a "non-threatening way to talk about trouble with thinking." She adds, "The anxiety associated with 'Oh, my God, I have to use this and I don't know how' totally sets people back and undoes any gains that technology might offer." Penn Medicine's Cynthia Clyburn recommends that if safety becomes an issue, family members should counsel the person against giving out their Social Security or credit card information — or failing that, spend time together at the computer to monitor what is happening.