Remember those words from the 1990’s? Life Alert® made those words and a commercial quite the buzz during that decade. The medical alert industry was invented more than 40 years ago by Philips Lifeline and has become an expanding focus for seniors or individuals that have concerns about potential falls or a desire to maintain their independence. What are medical alert systems? Medical alarms, alert systems, or sometimes called Personal Emergency Response Systems (PERS) are designed to signal the presence of a hazard requiring urgent attention and to summon emergency medical personnel. The typical systems have a wireless pendant or transmitter that can be activated in the event of an emergency. When the PERS is activated, a signal is transmitted to a monitoring company’s call center. An individual will attempt to communicate with the individual wearing the pendant to determine their situation and if necessary involve emergency personnel or contact other programmed numbers. If emergency personnel are required they will be dispatched to the site where the alarm was activated. Many elderly people with a fall risk and/or people with disabilities that live alone commonly use or require Personal Emergency Response Systems(PERS). There are several providers and price points associated with PERS:
- Companies that provide for seniors in their homes, like PeopleCare Health Services.
- Hospital programs.
- Full service companies that provide installation, ongoing education, and periodic testing programs.(PeopleCare Health Services provides this level of services with support from Philips Lifeline)
Medical alert systems/PERS consist of the following:
- Waterproof emergency wireless transmitter that can be worn either on the wrist or around the neck as a pendant. There are mixed reviews on whether the wrist or pendant is superior. For fall detection, which is the primary purpose of PERS, the pendant is superior to the wrist device and normally recommended by a referral source.
- Base station in the home that can either have a landline or cell connection. This communicator has a very sensitive microphone and loud speaker.
- There two main types of transmitters – in-home and mobile. Only a few companies offer both. Please feel free to reach out to PeopleCare Health Services for a detailed description and discussion on which device would be best for your situation.
The market had begun to change slightly in 2010 with the introduction of a term coined as PERS 2.0. These newer devices offered benefits that traditional medical alert systems didn’t include:
- Automatic Fall Detection. Fall detection without the need of a “panic button” which is often inaccessible when unconscious.
- User Compliance Tracking. Detection when the device is not worn – alerting caregivers of the heightened risk or to provide gentle reminders to seniors that which to wear, but forget.
- Caregiver Notifications. Adult children and other authorized caregivers can receive notifications with text and email message to alert loved ones if the person wearing the device is ok.
- Private Caregiving websites are created for each user to monitor vital signs and activity levels.
Traditional PERS systems tend to be less expensive and offer independence to seniors that want to save money. PERS 2.0 products offer all of these same benefits in addition to added features for a slightly higher price. PERS 2.0 products have become very popular for seniors and adult children that want to support the independence of their parents, but insure their safety.
As an independent senior or disabled adult you don’t want anything to get in the way of your independence. Over 7 million people have counted on Philips Lifeline for safety and confidence in their home. There are multiple in-home and on-the-go solutions offered by Philips and installed by PeopleCare Health Services. The AutoAlert can automatically call for help if it detects a fall, even when you can’t push the button yourself. The AutoAlert feature detects more than 95% of true falls and minimized false alarms.
Please reach out to a PeopleCare Health Services office for pricing and additional information about PERS and how we can support you or a family member in the home. Keeping them safe and independent in the home is our #1 motivation.
“I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” is a registered trademark of Life Alert Emergency Response Inc.
