A Newcastle hospital has begun a pilot scheme to electronically tag 'confused and vulnerable' patients, triggered by the death of a patient who was not found until 10 hours after his disappearance. The three-month trial on one ward of the Royal Victoria Infirmary will attach the 'discreet devices' to patients judged at risk of wandering, when they or their next of kin give consent. The tags are magnetically linked to an induction loop in the ward.