We just moved MIL into an ALF and I started the process to cancel her medical alert necklace she'd had in her apartment prior to going to AL. The facility has a couple of corded call buttons in her room/bathroom, and I can pay for her to have a medic alert necklace that calls them directly. That's what I planned to do.
It occurred to me yesterday that I could also just keep the medic alert box and necklace she currently has and set the facility phone number as the first place to call if the button is pressed, then us, then 911. This way, I'll at least have a record in her online account that a call was made to them, and if they don't answer at all for some reason, then we would get a call and know to check in with them ourselves.
This also might confuse her. I could see her thinking she could press the button on the medic alert box when she wanted someone from staff to come up and help her with something. At the facility, you press the in-room button/cord for any need, whether it's mundane or an emergency (not a great plan if you ask me, how do they know if they need to rush because you're having a heart attack, or if you just want a snack?).
Anyone used a medic alert in AL, and did you use the in-house system that only calls them, or an outside one like I'm talking about? Which is better?
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So, since I live alone, I brought the emergency notification I had paid for in my home.
I had a chance to test it for, it turned out, for a not-too-serious injury. MY system worked well. However, at 4 AM there was no one at the reception desk and the paramedics were unable to get in! The facility's assigned employees were unreachable as they were on their "lunch break"... somewhere. Luckily, I was not disabled and was able to let the paramedics in myself.
I say this to advise that you might not want to cancel your own emergency service too quickly. Many of the employees, esp. overnight ones, have little training and sometimes little sense of urgency. What you pay for an outside service is expensive, but it may be worth your piece of mind.
Do question the facility closely about their policies and how they are enforced. The facility where I live finally offered an "around the neck pendent", which I (among others) forget to wear consistently. A much better choice is a waterproof button that is worn like a wristwatch. These are also available and sometimes come at a minimal cost.
Don't ever hesitate to question personnel or even directors (politely...you don't want enemies there).
She is still very compromised, and one thing she does is push the call button up to 100xs in an hour. She doesn't realize she's doing it, but she does wonder why nobody checks on her. (They do, she doesn't remember anything longer than about 10 minutes out).
I didn't KNOW all this and when I went to visit her last week, she kept pushing that call button. It was making ME crazy--so I walked down to the central Nurses desk and asked why Ms K's calls were being ignored. They said "Oh, we had to disconnect her. She had us running off our feet for nothing." Ah. So they put a watch type device on her wrist and that lets them know if she goes wandering or falls.
I know her family worries that she might be being neglected,, but while I was there, 2 cna's popped their heads in to talk to her. She was NOT neglected!
I think most facilities would go crazy if everyone had a call button AND a fall pendant.
Fall pendants are great if you can keep your LO wearing one. MIL has thrown away 4 of them, as she thinks they MAKE her fall. Her kids decided to quit trying to have her wear one, she just refused. She'll fall, she hasn't gone a month without falling for several years.
Make sure you have a good discussion with admin before committing. There's always staff turnover so there's always the risk that "someone" didn't get informed of the alert situation. They may not allow it due to liability issues.