O.T. - Elderly panic/emergency monitoring

[jptbay]

I have an elderly grandparent that lives alone in the Burlington area. The time has come for some kind of panic/emergency alert system.

If any of you have personal experience with this and have advise or recommendations, it would be greatly appreciated.

I live 1500 kms away from Burlington, but a family member will be visiting for a short time next week, and would like to get something in place.

Thanks, John.

 

[2ManyKMfor1Tank]

Hospital where I work uses connect care, not sure where it is based. I know for a fact it is the CHEAPEST option out there by far or they wouldn't have chosen it...
For us it is a corpse recovery button, we are currently using it in our X-Ray department in case something 'bad' happens, such as a violent patient. Funny thing is they placed the voice box outside our room - in the hallway, with the thickness of our leaded walls and steel doors, we would be yelling for our lives and the operator would never hear us. They might as well just have it dispatched straight to the coroner's office and give someone a spatula to pick up what is left.

 

[amightymouse]

As a Firefighter/EMR, I've been to a number of calls for elderly folks who have had a medical alert system. Some outcomes are good....while others are not. Lifeline is one of the service providers I recall responded for, however you should be able to find more on the internet that provide these services.

Is there any possibility that you can arrange for a neighbour to look in on your grandparent every couple of days? It's a reasonable good backup to any service system provider you hire.

 

[2ManyKMfor1Tank]

The best thing if possible is to have enough room in a family member's house for an aging loved one. I don't want to open your eyes to the darkside of healthcare and old age/retirement homes, but IMO, disclaimer here and seriously only 1 persons opinion but I would only put a parent or loved one in a home as a final resort, expecting/hoping for them to die there in a short period of time. From the things I see everyday even from highly regarded homes is not good at best.
Even with the alarms where you wear a button around your neck, there are times it can be forgotten or the person incapable of requesting help.

Edit, I believe there are systems that can somehow detect a fall, am sure the price goes up the 'safer' the system.

 

[jptbay]

Thanks for the replies.

Grandma is still quite active and enjoying her independence. She still gardens, cuts the grass, trims the hedges etc. She does concede that the day is soon coming that she will have to move in with one of us, and we are all happy to oblige.

She does have people that check in on her regularly, but she has fallen a number of times now, and we are concerned that she must be able to call for help if required.

A simple cell phone would be great but, I don't think she will embrace the technology. She still refuses to get a microwave oven.

Looking at lifecall.ca , and I will check out lifeline, and connect care.

 

[TDIFred]

I keep hearing ads for Alarm Force and their new service called Alarm Care. Anything to stop that jingle.

 

[RDA3440]

One of my clients is a manufacturer of such a line of products. I'll pm you contact details. Not a recommendation, just info for your research.

 

[brujo]

Here is another option for you to think about. Call up to 4 numbers that you program into the system.

 

[Jettadoor]

Thanks for the replies.

Grandma is still quite active and enjoying her independence. She still gardens, cuts the grass, trims the hedges etc. She does concede that the day is soon coming that she will have to move in with one of us, and we are all happy to oblige.

She does have people that check in on her regularly, but she has fallen a number of times now, and we are concerned that she must be able to call for help if required.

I say the time has come for your grandma to move in with a family member; all of you, including your grandma, seem to be in favour of this and it would be a shame if your family missed out on the opportunity to put into practice the values that you all seem to share.

When I was about 7 or 8 years old my father's mum came to live with us. I am unable to gauge the impact her presence had on me as a young boy, (I am only 60 years old and still have a lot to learn from life , ) but hindsight tells me that I learned an awful lot from her, maybe more than I learned from my parents. Having lived through two world wars in England she knew an awful lot about about frugal living and how to make the most of what she had. "Waste not, want not" was her motto.

Your grandma will understand that although she values her independence, the opportunity to transmit her experience and the values of her age to any members of the family fortunate enough to look after her, may far outweigh any notions of "independence" she may harbour.

I suggest she be adopted by a family member that has young kids, if this is possible. There will be plenty of stuff for her to do to keep her active and the kids will keep her young at heart. My grandma passed away with a duster in her hand while taking a break from helping my mum with the house-work. She was 84.

All the electronic gadgets out there are no substitute for a loving family IMHO.

 

[2ManyKMfor1Tank]

I say the time has come for your grandma to move in with a family member; all of you, including your grandma, seem to be in favour of this and it would be a shame if your family missed out on the opportunity to put into practice the values that you all seem to share.
When I was about 7 or 8 years old my father's mum came to live with us. I am unable to gauge the impact her presence had on me as a young boy, (I am only 60 years old and still have a lot to learn from life , ) but hindsight tells me that I learned an awful lot from her, maybe more than I learned from my parents. Having lived through two world wars in England she knew an awful lot about about frugal living and how to make the most of what she had. "Waste not, want not" was her motto.
Your grandma will understand that although she values her independence, the opportunity to transmit her experience and the values of her age to any members of the family fortunate enough to look after her, may far outweigh any notions of "independence" she may harbour.
I suggest she be adopted by a family member that has young kids, if this is possible. There will be plenty of stuff for her to do to keep her active and the kids will keep her young at heart. My grandma passed away with a duster in her hand while taking a break from helping my mum with the house-work. She was 84.
All the electronic gadgets out there are no substitute for a loving family IMHO.

+1 I know this is not always possible but boy, ill be glad to have my mom or dad live with me when the time comes. As an xray tech, believe me when I say that when an elderly person falls and breaks a hip they sometimes never leave the hospital. A guy in our hospital at 84 came in with pneumonia, in good spirits. I X rayed him everyday for about a week, on his second day after admission he had to use the bathroom but was barely mobile and needed help, called for a nurse with no response on the night shift. Fell out of bed and broke his upper arm was dead in a week.

 

[TheTDIWagonGuy]

Here is another option for you to think about. Call up to 4 numbers that you program into the system.

I mother has this.It is old technology though and difficult to program. But it does work.