A group of researchers in the United Kingdom contend that many of those with early stage Alzheimer’s disease are safe to drive providing they are closely monitored.
According to Dr. Desmond O’Neill, who co-wrote the analysis published in the June 20th edition of the British Medical journal, the clinical evidence led them to a conclusion that “…with frequent assessment of driving skills, the risk of accidents among older people with dementias was acceptably low for up to three years after diagnosis.” (Driving and Alzheimer’s)
Want to know more about whether someone with Alzheimer’s should be driving or not? Check out this ‘Practical Guide to Alzheimer’s, Dementia, and Driving’ created by The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc, the MIT Age Lab, and Connecticut Community Care, Inc.
Further reading:
Alzheimer’s: When to stop driving
This becomes such a complex question and varies with each case. In our family, we had this situation come up and had to make the decision ourselves, even though the Motor Vehicle Dept. issued a license to the parents who suffered from severe forgetfulness and impaired judgment. In one case, an accident occured before Mother stopped driving. (Fortunately no one was seriously injured.) In the other, the car was “disabled” and for some reason couldn’t be repaired. In this case, Dad did seem relieved when family members offered to do the driving for him.