The Issue with “Surveilling” the Elderly
A few months ago, Jean H. Peters noticed her mother would often stay bed-ridden throughout the day within her nursing home. Deciding she wanted to know further reasons as to why her mother behaved this way, she bought a camera and installed it, unbeknownst to the staff or her mother, monitoring her life in secret. Proving her suspicions correct, the staff mistreated her mother, berating her, handling her roughly and not providing her with the basic human necessities such as water and food.
Installing cameras has long been favored and encouraged by many facilities that offer childcare services; however, it becomes a heated debate when it comes to facilities for older clientele. Taking into account the health - both physical and mental - conditions of the older residents living on these assisted-living sites, installing surveillance cameras in the rooms to provide safety is a no brainer. The installation of cameras, however, has been controversial as it is prone to invade the privacy of residents, especially in the case with “granny cams,” which require no consent from the elderly being monitored.
Depending on the state, laws and regulations are already in place to lay ground rules for surveillance of senior citizens, but installing cameras still remains as a large gray area that raises ethical questions.
As of 2025, 14 states legally allow the installation of cameras within nursing homes - albeit some states require special consent from all parties (the facility, the patient and the relatives) or restrict recording at all times in an attempt to offer privacy to the patients. However, some states allow for hidden cameras, typically unconsented, to be installed to record the patient. While this may break regulations and cross ethical boundaries regarding the privacy of the elderly, some advocate the use as it is believed to protect the elderly’s health.
It may be obvious how invasive to privacy unsolicited cameras can be - unknowingly, the patient’s whole personal life can be recorded, violating laws in many states and creating opportunities for unauthorized use by third parties. Although laws vary by state, it is unethical to record someone unconsented for any given reason. Thus, it should be required to gain consent of all individuals involved within the recording, setting boundaries and rules regarding how long each recording should be and what the camera is recording to ensure legality, comfort, safety and ethics when monitoring the elderly.
