Health alert devices (health issues, more expensive, price, how to)
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We have just lost Mom and Dad is now alone and steadfastly says he is staying in the family home alone, as he is 90 with health issues i'm thinking of getting him one of The "help i've fallen and cant get up" units. what do i need to know before buying one, ?
Is $25 per month a ballpark charge?
are some better than others?
Where do i buy one of these units.?
Prices can really vary on personal emergency response systems (prices in my area vary from $110 one-time fee, to $25-$75/month + installation fees; some have contracts and some do not), and of the many I have looked into, the quality is really the same. Some offer extra perks, but essentially the important thing is that the person wearing it can summon help. You also want to know how to test the machine; the lesser expensive ones might have a button to press monthly to test it; the more expensive ones may be set up to self-test.
Your local area agency on aging (AAA) may be able to give you a list of providers in your area. You can find contact information for your AAA here: Find AAA's and SUAs
More like $40-50 monthly....they are worth it, if they will wear it and know to use it...otherwise, they could still lie there, without pushing the button!
My Uncle fell...didn't know HOW to get up....he wasn't hurt, so he could have gotten up, but he did not know how...that's what's scary. Had he had a button, I doubt he'd have know how to push it. He laid for 2 days until he was found...87 years old...took 3 months to get back his strength.....
Life Alert is the one with the famous advertising. But there are many others. Many of them use the same "central monitoring" service, with local billing services.
These units are provided by security companies. Call around - best are locally owned companies.
One gizmo is a "car remote key fob" looking wireless "panic button". You can carry that button around the house - wear it as a necklace. And press the button to summon help if needed.
Another is an "inactivity notification". A home can have motion sensors say in a hallway or kitchen. As a person lives in the house, those motion sensors are activated from time to time. IF THERE IS NO ACTIVITY in the house when there should be (person did not go into kitchen this morning), then the alarm system can notify someone to come check on things.
They can even rig up a speaker so an operator can ask if everything is ok.
As for what happens when a button is pressed or there is no activity in the house when there should be, that is entirely up to you and the alarm company. It can sound a siren outside the house, call the police or paramedics, call several different people on a call list - call a neighbor - whatever.
These same types of systems are used for silent alarms - person being robbed - they can summon help. These things can be set up any way you wish - some people have things like basement water levels being monitored for flooding - whatever.
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