My mom is recovering from a stroke. She is sharp as a tack, mobile, can drive, cook, clean and cares for my dad who has memory issues. She is the reason they can remain in their home. I worry about her falling and my dad not knowing or realizing it. We are thinking that an alert that she could carry in a pocket or wear around her neck would address this concern and would like to hear from this community what your experience has been. They are on a tight budget.
If this is for in the home a system like Alexa or other would work she can say "Alexa call Spymama" and you will be called.
She could also say "call 911".
She could also carry her cell phone and she could call you or 911. (I say that but every time I head down to my basement and I realize I don't have my phone.. if I fell no telling when someone would find me)
That is all great and will work if she is conscious. But the same can be said for any of the "Alert" products she has to be conscious to press a button.
You could set up cameras in her home and you could monitor and check in once in a while.
Again great if you want to hover and works only in the home, not out at the store.
There is no "perfect" system.
I am sure others will chime in with systems that they have used and the pros and cons.
You could check AARP or Consumers Research and see if there are reviews on products. (Both probably available at your library.)
I went with Bay Medical, which was highly rated by AARP. I paid 3 months at a time for $9.99 month, with no upfront fees. Now that mom has passed I have to return the base unit or be charged $299. But it’s the same system - you give them a list of people to call, or they will call 911 etc. It’s more for automatic fall detection or gps monitoring.
The other companies charge you for the equipment upfront and you don’t have to return it, but they don’t allow you to give it away. The family of my mom’s late best friend offered me theirs and the company (LifeLine I think) said she would still have to pay the full amount.
https://www.bayalarmmedical.com/pricing/#
You could check with your local Senior Center and see if they have any ideas.
With her new Medicare Advantage plan she gets a device and the subscription free. I think many plans have that. Also as others have mentioned the VA provides them
However, they both have the same design effect. The person has to wear them. My mom will not wear them, even when we try to explain its not only for her benefit, but ours, as if we call and she is not available we do not have to worry as much she has falled on the floor helpless
So, when I moved her into my home I ended up buying a product on Amazon that called my cell when she pushed the button. If she needed me, she simply pushed the button and could speak to me through the receiver. It allowed you to add multiple cell phone numbers in case I was not available.
It helped me be flexible but know she could get me if she needed me.
I think it was about $30 per month. No upfront fees.
My mom had occasion to use her once and chose not to. She wasn’t hurt so she just waited, knowing my brother would be by. She had the option which made us all feel better. She said she knew she wasn’t hurt.
DH aunt never used hers to summon help either but accidentally set it off several times. Since she also had cameras I could check as soon as I was notified to see what was going on.
I would see her laughing with a couple of EMS or firemen. I would call them and make sure all was well.
After her dementia advanced and she had daily aides I left it in place so they could use it to call for help if needed.
I knew a couple of women who used it like a burglar alarm. One kept the base next to her bed and would press the large button on the base which would call the dispatcher. A loud recording would come on and let the would be intruder know help was on the way.
I also knew one neighbor who credited hers with saving her life. She was on blood thinners, she realized she was in trouble and activated hers. Early the next morning her daughter saw a call on her phone advising that her mom was in the hospital 80 miles away. Mom was fine and daughter was amazed all this happened without her assistance.
Having a medi alert is like many of the things we do trying to keep our loved ones safer at home, not a fail safe solution, nothing is, but another layer of assistance to give them a helping hand when needed. If they never need it, that’s fabulous.