Recommendations for a simple fall-detecting watch for an elderly parent please

A wrist alarm that looks like a Fitbit gets worn; a pendant that screams 'old and frail' ends up in a drawer, so your watch instinct is right for him. Whatever you pick, check it's TSA-accredited and that it reaches a monitored careline with real people, not just a family number that might be at work when he goes down. Before buying retail, it's worth ringing adult social care for a Telecare or falls assessment: they arrange the same kit, often cheaper than Age UK's £20-odd a month, sometimes free after a means test. One honest flag with MS, the auto-detection can miss a slow slide down a wall rather than a hard fall, so the manual button matters too. Has he had a needs assessment yet, or would framing it as peace of mind for you rather than him be the easier way in?

@twitchwitch No. The your stride watch is splash proof but not shower proof no. Okay for washing up but they don’t recommend full immersion in water. We’ve just upgraded Mums and she’s really pleased with the look of the newer model. She would not wear it otherwise. It also gives us a GPS location for her, step count, blood pressure and heart rate . You can be notified if they’re inactive should you wish (less than 100 steps by a daily time of your choice). We’re really pleased with it and Mum feels very reassured by it.

@Havealovelyday Can the Your Stride be worn in the shower? We’re looking into something for my Mum but she wants something that doesn’t look too much like an ‘old persons’ alarm. She’d like it to tell the time & I’d like it to be showerproof.

This is worth considering. My DM didn't use her one twice in emergencies,now we are looking at her going into a home.

Then I’m sorry but they may well have not been safe to be home alone. These buttons are a safety tool not a guarantee that they will help in all scenarios. They are certainly not a replacement for people actively checking in on someone.

Nothing will ever be fool proof! If fool proof is what you’re looking for then you need someone there full time. If someone lowers themselves to the floor or slowly slips then no the fall detection won’t be triggered. But if they can control the fall themselves then they may well be able to press the button!
In terms of who calls the emergency services - the call center do. If a button is pressed or the fall detection triggered and the call centre cannot get through to your relative to check they are ok they will call the emergency contacts. If still there is no response then they will call the emergency services.

No ambulance for dm until she was found on the floor where she had been overnight and was found by a neighbour.

One big issue that everyone is overlooking is that the very old get confused. They can also get infections that mean their cognitive ability slows up markedly. So, when you or I would press that button, they don’t. They simply forget and go into survival mode. You don’t get the phone call and there is no ambulance called. When dm was ok, she understood perfectly about the button. When she needed to activate it (twice), she didn’t. So both times it really did not help. Other people might stay “with it” and it works, but there’s no guarantee your elderly relative will do what’s needed. Confusion can actually be very very harmful.

Sorry I missed you have already got Alexa. My Fil is the same - can't be doing with anything new or complicated, but he has learned that ALL he has to do is say Alexa, and ask for what he wants. Its changed his life a lot.🌺

Not a watch for falls as such but Alexa is great instead of a watch for knowing the time. My Fil cannot cope with fiddly buttons or peering at a watch face, so we got him an Alexa, and he can just say Alexa what's the time, or Alexa play music, etc. etc. i believe it can be set up to do a lot of things including making phone calls. So as long as your DF's voice reached it (he could have more than one in different rooms) it could be safe for him to just say Alexa, ring X Y or Z if he was in any trouble. Does your DF wear a pendant?

https://www.yourstride.com/fall-alarm/?utm_source=Google&utm_medium=PPC&utm_campaign=Falls&utm_term=FallAlarmWatch&gad_source=1&gad_campaignid=21160942764&gclid=CjwKCAjwu53SBhAhEiwAJzSLNvzXXtCeNgM8t2ztgTV2Pm6d-OHMiYoIw0gUjrgD5hdbicMjA0ZmOhoC-54QAvD_BwE

This was recommended to me for my mum by a friend whose mum used it. My mum likes it so has now recommended it to her friends. It's become a bit like a school craze in her village!

An ambulance is sent if the person can't can't to the centre.

I agree about th fall detector not being fool proof as my dm also slumped and it wasn't picked up.

No, they link to a hub that's like a router that's plugged in, doesn't need to be charged, status on all the time.

@notanothernamechange24 I know how they are meant to work but who gets in touch with anyone if there’s no contact made with the call centre? The fall system is fickle and didn’t work but possibly because dm slumped. It’s not foolproof.

You keep saying he needs to be able to remove it easily. The whole point of these things is they stay on all the time and aren't removed for washing etc as it's likely to be the one time they need help when they aren't wearing them as they've forgotten to put it back on.

@DownmarketSellingSunsetthe way I often approach it with reluctant clients is I suggest they just have it in the house. The one I linked comes with 2 pendants the bigger GPS one and a smaller in house one. I often suggest they put the smaller one besides the bed and the other in their coat pocket. Or even just in the house. Then just let them gradually start using it more.
I recently had one put in for a lady who was adamant she didn’t want or need it and was only agreeing to it to shut us (her family and friends) up. She now wears the pendant all the time because she has realised she feels safer with it.

@MeetMeOnTheCornermost of them you give them a list of people to contact. Usually up to 5 names and numbers in priority order. If the button is pressed or the fall alarm activated they will first try to make contact with the user to find out if they need help. They will then contact the contacts provided in order until they reach someone. If the user needs the emergency services or they fail to reach anyone they will also contact them too.

The ones I recommend and use with my own clients (I run a Homecare business) are the ones sold through age UK. There are several options that cover both in and out of the house, pendants and wrist bands.

personally I tend to recommend the pendant one which works both in the house and the community. It has a decent battery life and talks through the pendant not the base unit. It also has fall detection.

I Do not recommend using things like Apple Watches as they have a ridiculously short battery life and are too complicated for many to use

https://personalalarms.ageuk.org.uk/pages/gps-fall-detector-alarm

@DownmarketSellingSunset I got DM a pendant alarm. When she did fall she was disoriented and didn’t press it, so lay on the floor overnight. Who does a fall detection watch contact? If no-one, it’s the same issue. You have to check on them.

Have you thought about using an Alexa set up to call 999 on command or call next of kin?

You can also get a motion detector that goes on the wall and if it doesn't sense the person passing it alerts a nominated number.

The care line watch looks just like a fit bit or any other type of watch, wouldn't be any different as far as he's concerned.