Throughout ThisCaringHome, you can learn about various individual smart devices that can increase the person’s safety. Some devices require a caregiver to be living in the household. For example, fall monitors for the bed or chair can help reduce falls by sending you an alert when the person is getting up from a bed or chair and you are in another room. And door monitors can help reduce wandering by sending you an alert when the person is near to or opens an outside door.
Other smart products work automatically to prevent injuries and building damage. For example, you can install products that automatically turn the stove or faucets off when the person forgets. And you can also get affordable range hood fire extinguishers that automatically dispense if there’s a stovetop fire.
There are also smart products to help people live on their own in the early stages. For example, there are reminder systems that hook up to a person’s phone and offer verbal reminders – in your voice – to remind them to take medicines or go to a doctor’s appointment. If they don’t respond to the message, you automatically get a telephone alert.
And finally, there are devices that can detect extreme changes in room temperature and send you an alert if the home is too hot or too cold.
Remote Monitoring
Today’s smart technology allows you to monitor the activity of a loved one who’s living alone so you can check in on them from a remote location and offer support as needed.
Here’s how they work. Discreet wireless sensors are placed around the home in key locations like the bedroom, kitchen, medication areas, and bathroom. These sensors keep track of your loved one’s normal routines and can send you or another designated caregiver alerts regarding unusual situations.
For example, depending on the system, you can receive alerts if the person
- Opens the outside door at 5:00 am instead of their usual 10:00 am time
- Gets out of bed at night and doesn’t return
These sensors do not emit alarms, flashing lights, or even send any radiation into the room. These sensors just pick up the heat or motion of the human body.
These smart systems can be very helpful for the right person who is still safe to live on their own but needs daily monitoring and some back-up support to do so. It helps to identify problems as they occur so you can intervene before they become full-blown crises.
