Some say that dementia is a terrible disease that robs people of sense of person-hood and identity. Perhaps it does, but it is not an excuse to ignore the people with dementia when designing wearable technology that assists them and their loved ones. In-fact, it is imperative to consider both usability of the assistive technologies and tjeir cultural and aesthetic impact on the wearers.
I met C.A. in the garden where her daughter was having tea with friends. She was laughing and showing her beautiful jewellery to us, but she did not speak and looked confused. Less than a year ago, she was lecturing, now she was regularly found leaving the house and forgetting where and who she is. A wrist device was given to C.A. to comfort her in panic and confusion. It looked like a man's electronic watch from 1980es with a screen, five buttons, only few of them identified, and a chunky battery. It is not surprise that the only function that was useful by the time the manual was read and understood was the GPS coordinates through which C.A. daughter could trace her mother's whereabouts and help her. But despite not remembering her own name, C.A. still remembered that she did not like ugly things and refused to wear the gadget.
The necklace was based on the style and colours that C.A. liked and was designed to disguise the gadgetry, giving an access for charging the battery. As of end of 2014 she still wears it...
