Does anyone have a recommendation for the medical devices that the elderly use when they live at home alone? Like those silly old commercials of "Help me I've falling and I can't get up!" My mom lives alone and should have one of these and I'm not sure where to look. Thanks in advance.
Does your mom have Medicare? My grandmother has an alert necklace, and she got hers through Medicare.
M.:
I would talk with my mom's doctor to see what they recommend for her and her situation.
In some cases, her insurance may cover the device as well. I did a google search and came up with a lot of "hits"...I found this - but do NOT know the validity of the site.
http://www.medicalalertcomparison.com/?source=gdn
My neighbor has Lifeline. She lives alone and refuses to be a "burden" to anyone...urgh!! She's had to use it twice and so far....so good.
We got one of these for my mom through a home health agency. If you call all the local medical supply places they might carry the device and they might have their own program too.
You can order them online too. They work through the land phone line so she'll have to have that service too. They also have a life line that you can order through them.
We get a land line for just a couple of dollars per month. It's for low income families though. If she is on SSDI or any other form of assistance then she will automatically qualify for that low income phone line. Then she may also qualify for a low income help device too. It's worth calling her phone supplier for this information.
I just went thru this with my mom and we used Alert 1. They were fantastic and it was very easy to use. It was the company her hospice recommended. They have the pendant or the watch/bracelet button.
Just google it. There are many companies. Prices generally in the same range.my aunts was like $35 a month several years ago.
Google it - ADT has it as do most of the home security (alarm) companies. BUT be sure to read the reviews. Some of them are pretty hard to deal with. I know when we were looking for my mom, I read some horror stories on line. Such as, had to sign a five year contract; elderly person passed away and the family was still obligated to pay for the life of the contract! So, do your homework before picking a company.
My mom had one of these but never wore the pendent. There were a few times that she had fallen and since she wasn't wearing it - it was no help. They make them in bracelets (that look like watches) and necklaces. There are a number of companies some are better than other, some have arrangements that work better with your mom's situation. My mom's was more than 10 years old by the time she passed away and we had issue with cordless phones - but I would think the newer ones would work with that.
It's all about what will work with your mom -which machines is the easiest for your mom to use, has the best button array (fewest or largest, etc.)
Good luck - most elderly moms refuse to use it!
