I’ve been interested in the PERS (personal emergency response system) offerings for quite some time, because families routinely ask me about these. The classic PERS device is a pendant device with a button to push, and often I see older adults in assisted-living facilities wearing these. (Do facilities offer residents a discount on these? Are facilities getting a commission? Or does it help facility staff do their work? I’ve never known.)
Residential facilities aside, in my work PERS devices come up especially for vulnerable older adults who live alone. I know many seniors who have fallen, fractured something or otherwise been injured, and have not been found for hours or even days. Needless to say, lying injured on the floor is often disastrous for health, and such falls often prompt a permanent relocation to a more supportive — and generally more expensive — living situation.
So I certainly understand why people are drawn to PERS devices, assuming an older adult is willing to wear it — but many forget or don’t want to. A PERS also has to activate when an emergency occurs, either by automatically detecting a fall or problem, or because the user triggers it.
Should we be using PERS devices that require users to call for help? Studies generally find that most older adults do not trigger their call system after a fall. Here’s a quote (emphases added by me) from this very interesting study of older adults and falls: [Read more…] about Still Waiting on A Personal Emergency Response System to Recommend
