RFI - I have fallen and I cant get up gadgets

[mmc45414]

So, both of our mothers are in their eighties and live alone, and my MIL lives in an (IMO) very unrealistically isolated situation.

The obvious one is www.lifealerthelp.com but it just seems sketchy, the www site does not seem to have much detail, just a phone number that I am for damn sure, not gonna call until I do some research. So P-F does seem to have a whole lotta knowledge, including medical people and fire and rescue people and LE and computer and communication geeks, in addition to just people who have no specific expertise but have a depth of experience.

MIL lives in a remote suburb, but does not have what I consider to be reliable broadband, but does have a traditional telephone land line. My mother lives in nice suburb with solid infrastructure, including reliable broadband, including a VOIP phone. They both have cell phone plans through one of ours, so something cellular would be a great option.

Just trying to avoid sifting through all of the bogus stuff myself, what does the hive have to say about this kind of stuff?

Thanks in advance!

[SiriusBlunder]

No direct personal experience, but I have a close friend that did a lot of research and picked https://www.alert-1.com/. Said it worked well for the 2 years his mom had it. Detected one fall and answered quickly when she had a medical emergency.

[willie]

Why not ask the supreme geezer organization, the AARP? Despite their anti-gun stance, this group would be a logical place to start. Another source of information would be the ambulance service or EMS group who responds to such calls. Assisted living facilities have social workers or recreational directors or others who have heard all the bitching and moaning about those serving the aged. Go there. Every state has a department addressing problems unique to the elderly. I once worked for an outfit that had such. If you are fortunate enough to have them answer the phone and not blow you off, you may find answers to your query.

Logic dictates that the person who falls must have a button to push. Why not give Grandpa a Dick Tracey watch that's also a cell phone? Or make Uncle Joe hang a cell phone on his belt?

[ranger]

We used LIFEALERT for my 90+ year old father living alone after my mom passed. Functional but sleazy. Once you sign a service contract it is hard to cancel - we had to get multiple documents "proving" my father was in assisted living to stop the bills.

[rob_s]

We are looking for something similar. MIL had a fall a couple of weeks ago, hit her head, woke up almost bleeding out, and has now been back to the hospital 2x since.

If this comparison is correct it looks like life alert is $70/month? If so, no wonder they don’t publish their rates on their own site.
https://www.alert-1.com/pricing/compare-medical-alert-systems/205

Do they all require a land line?

[mmc45414]

Another source of information would be the ambulance service or EMS group who responds to such calls.
Logic dictates that the person who falls must have a button to push. Why not give Grandpa a Dick Tracey watch that's also a cell phone? Or make Uncle Joe hang a cell phone on his belt?
Good idea, there is a county organization that is supposed to do elderly outreach and advocacy.
Problem with the phone is she tremors so badly under normal circumstances there is low probability she could manage a phone call after doing a face plant.


We used LIFEALERT for my 90+ year old father living alone after my mom passed. Functional but sleazy. Once you sign a service contract it is hard to cancel - we had to get multiple documents "proving" my father was in assisted living to stop the bills.
And that is the vibe I got (from the sensational TV ads and evasive pricing on the www) and this is exactly the kind of heads up I was looking for.


Do they all require a land line?
The www.alert-1.com DMWINCLE posted look to have several options that do not, including some that work outside the home.

[Dog Guy]

We chose Life Alert for my folks. I called the local EMS authority dispatchers and asked them how the different services did. They thought that Life Alert consistently had the best information to pass on and did the best job of getting help expeditiously. During my fire service career, I handled contact with Life Alert several times after arriving on scene and always got good information. My folks have pushed the button twice. One was a legit life saver and they did the job correctly. We haven't had to deal with canceling or changing anything yet.

[willie]

Not related to the original question is this advice. Medicare pays for nursing home costs. State governments administer these programs which vary slightly by state. If families take certain legal steps, the Medicare recipient can get a free ride, and the family will not lose the estate to state government to defray costs. But if these certain legal steps are not taken, then the recipient's estate is lost. Before my parents reached this point, I sought out a well known attorney in my community. He screwed the paperwork. I lost my families' savings, house, and land. A good friend lost her parents' estate through attorney negligence. I suggest that others not risk losing estates. I suggest that when you do pay an attorney to protect an estate, that you seek out a second attorney to check the first one's work. In my case I used the retired judge who had been chancery court judge overseeing such in my county. He was too damn old old. This fine man was senile. If you would think twice about using an 80 year old brain surgeon, then think twice about using an 80 year old lawyer.

[ranger]

1) There is a difference between "Assisted Living" and "Nursing Homes" - difference around Atlanta is $6000+ per month vs $12000 per month
2) I do not think MEDICARE pays for either long term - only short term
3) MEDICAID may pay once your funds are down to nothing
4) The VA offers Aid and Assistance (about $18k per year?) but there is now a means test - if you are a wartime vet you may be eligible for Aid and Assistance

[GJM]

I used to know a lot about this area, but it was years ago. Not sure about now, but this was the gold standard:

https://www.lifeline.philips.com/

[LOKNLOD]

Would something like an Apple watch work? "Hey Siri, Call mmc45414..."

I think the newer ones can even work without the phone being in range. On cellular so poor broadband may not impact it.

Or, as much as I hate it, this might be a good candidate for some Amazon Echo dots around the house. "Alexa, call 911". That might only be viable for the one with good internet.

[fatdog]

For my 96 yo Motherinlaw we got the ADT equivalent of life alert (I think this is Mobilehelp equipment) since she never leaves home without one of us. It has worked fine for 3 years, we test monthly, we had one real usage when she took a fall during the day while we were at work and they did their job well. It is just a pendant and a wrist band however, not the fall detection type units.

I am starting to explore devices for my recently widowed Mother, who is quite active and away from home a lot in addition to being alone at home, so I am interested to see what others have found for that scenario.

Found an interesting article (https://www.theseniorlist.com/best-medical-alert-systems-2019/?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIhPLQ2eGO5AIVkh6tBh3clw7KEAAYASA AEgJ5c_D_BwE&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=TSLPPCRT&utm_term=Medical-Alert-Systems&utm_content=tslppc&ef_id=XIcWbwAABKktxxi5:20190819105026:s)

[GJM]

Would something like an Apple watch work? "Hey Siri, Call mmc45414..."

I think the newer ones can even work without the phone being in range. On cellular so poor broadband may not impact it.

Or, as much as I hate it, this might be a good candidate for some Amazon Echo dots around the house. "Alexa, call 911". That might only be viable for the one with good internet.

It would work if the person is lucid, and the watch is on. An issue is a fall during the night when the watch is being charged.

[Chance]

The Apple Watch Series 4 has fall detection built into it. Haven't read anything about it other than that it exists, however.

From Apple documentation (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208944):



If Apple Watch Series 4 detects a hard fall while you're wearing your watch, it taps you on the wrist, sounds an alarm, and displays an alert. You can choose to contact emergency services or dismiss the alert by pressing the Digital Crown, tapping Close in the upper-left corner, or tapping "I'm OK."

If your Apple Watch detects that you're moving, it waits for you to respond to the alert and won't automatically call emergency services. If your watch detects that you have been immobile for about a minute, it will make the call automatically. After the call ends, your watch sends a message to your emergency contacts with your location letting them know that your watch detected a hard fall and dialed emergency services. Your watch gets your emergency contacts from your Medical ID.

[rob_s]

Would something like an Apple watch work? "Hey Siri, Call mmc45414..."

I think the newer ones can even work without the phone being in range. On cellular so poor broadband may not impact it.

Or, as much as I hate it, this might be a good candidate for some Amazon Echo dots around the house. "Alexa, call 911". That might only be viable for the one with good internet.

IMO, and based on my own usage of such devices, none of these type tech gadgets are ready for primetime, particularly with the older set. Fall detection or not.

[gtae07]

The Apple Watch Series 4 has fall detection built into it. Haven't read anything about it other than that it exists, however.

From Apple documentation (https://support.apple.com/en-us/HT208944):

Interesting... I wonder though how it would handle something like the seizures my wife used to have pre-surgery. And I wonder if she would have cleared the notification while in that weird post-ictal state where she seemed responsive but wasn't really all there.

[willie]

1) There is a difference between "Assisted Living" and "Nursing Homes" - difference around Atlanta is $6000+ per month vs $12000 per month
2) I do not think MEDICARE pays for either long term - only short term
3) MEDICAID may pay once your funds are down to nothing
4) The VA offers Aid and Assistance (about $18k per year?) but there is now a means test - if you are a wartime vet you may be eligible for Aid and Assistance

I used the term Medicare when I should have said Medicaid. When families take appropriate steps, the person in question becomes a Medicaid recipient and from that point on Medicaid pays the bill. That was my mother's case and also the cases of many elderly friends and relatives. A vast amount of Social Security money pays the expenses. State governments pay a significant amount. I lost respect for the nursing home industry when my mother became a patient. Later I performed security for a giant facility, and after that I inspected them. Fraud abounds.

To clarify, let me add this. Those not seeking attorney assistance to meet relevant guidelines must pay down to nothing. In my family's instance, the Willie estate was surrendered. Same thing as paying down to nothing.