LONDON - THE Alzheimer's Society charity has backed government proposals to issue dementia sufferers with tracking devices, so long as patients agree.

Concerns have been raised about the ethics of tagging dementia patients to stop them wandering off and the charity itself has in the past worried about the obtrusive nature of some of the tracking devices.

Now, however, trackers can be carried in a wallet or even fitted in a mobile phone.

'But they must never be seen as an alternative to good quality care,' he told BBC Radio. 'Because it is emotive, we are very keen that those with dementia are given the opportunity of helping to make the decision themselves.'

Early diagnosis, therefore, was essential, he added.

In April, Science Minister Malcolm Wicks backed the tracking scheme, saying patients would have the freedom to go out in their communities without carers suffering the anxiety that persistent wandering can cause now.

However Dr Richard Nicholson, editor of the Bulletin of Medical Ethics, believes the scheme has potential pitfalls.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: 'The problem with this is that you could see second-class care - using it as a way of making life easier for carers rather than as a way of making life safer or more pleasant for the person with Alzheimer's.'

He said the scheme was 'not something that ought to go ahead without parliamentary debate'.

There are currently 700,000 people living in the UK with some form of dementia, about half of them with Alzheimer's. This is predicted to reach 1.7 million by 2051. -- REUTERS