Assignment 8:
8.1: Ethical Issues: Identify any potential hazards in the proposed design, e.g., foreseeable misuses.
Intentional false alarms - A situation in which the patient sets the trigger for emergency services despite not having an emergency. This situation would misuse resources from emergency services.
Removing or obstructs sensors - A situation in which the patient removes their sensors freely (e.g. to avoid being monitored). This situation could risk missing vital falls/injury to the patient.
Caregiver overreliance - A situation in which caregivers become overly dependent on the system and pay less direct attention to the patient, missing other important signs of distress not related to falls.
8.2: Product Liability: Identify any potential hazards in the proposed design, e.g., changes that may occur during the useful lifetime.
Faulty battery - A situation in which the battery overheats or explodes. This can result in injury to the patient if the device is being worn at the time, or may lead to a fire if the device is charging unsupervised.Â
Unreliable connection - A situation in which the device fails to maintain a stable Wi-Fi and/or Bluetooth connection. This may prevent the emergency alert from being triggered during a fall, and pre-fall data may not be transmitted to the server.
Unresponsiveness - A situation in which the device crashes or becomes non-functional. failing to collect data or maintain a connection. This can result in a failure to detect and respond to a fall, and critical pre-fall data may be lost.
8.3: Social Impacts: Identify any potential hazards in the proposed design, e.g., disposal after the useful life has ended.
Electronic waste - If the device is not designed for easy recycling or reuse, it is likely to be discarded as regular trash. In landfills, internal components such as the battery may leak hazardous chemicals, leading to soil and water contamination. This poses significant risks not only to the environment, but human health as well.