Peace of Mind for Seniors and Their Families
Starts With a Safe Home

Even though her son is thousands of miles away, Mary* still hears his voice twice a day reminding her to take her medication.  She recently moved into an independent living facility and at the request of her son, installed the Medication System by Comfort Keepers^®.    The son knows it is vital that his mother adhere to her medication regimen and with the help of the medication system, she will be reminded to take her medication twice a day by her son’s voice while he is deployed in Afghanistan. 

The safety of seniors living alone is one of the biggest concerns among adult children.  Often times, the biggest risks to seniors living alone are an unexpected accident or the inability to properly manage medications.   It is important to consider safety precautions as part of an everyday care plan -  before an emergency strikes.  Here are a few precautions that Comfort Keepers suggests families take to help seniors live safely at home alone:

First, assess the living environment for fall and safety risks. Conduct a home audit, to look for potential fall hazards or other obstructions.  Take proactive measures like removing throw rugs, adding extra handrails and shower-grab bars.  Comfort Keepers offers an easy to use home safety checklist on its InteractiveCaregiving.com website.

Second, adding safety railings and pressure mats for those at risk of wandering or falls can provide an extra measure of assurance as care needs change.

Finally, be prepared so that help is readily available if an emergency strikes. Monitoring and emergency response technologies, such as the SafetyChoice system, offer cost-effective, around-the-clock human assistance, especially when a caregiver or family member is not at home with their senior loved one.  SafetyChoice offers an around-the-clock monitoring center staffed with experienced response personnel.  

SafetyChoice helped an elderly woman in rural Mississippi who was hesitant to install the Personal Emergency Response System (PERS).

 “I was adamant about not wanting that necklace hanging around my neck and getting in my way 24 hours a day. My husband had recently passed away, which left me like so many senior adults today - living alone. My children would not back down. I had to live with one of them or accept the fact that I was going to have to get a SafetyChoice PERS. Put in those terms, the decision was clear.”

Several months went by and she wore the necklace to keep everyone happy, “but I was making it just fine on my own,” she told Comfort Keepers. “One day I walked across the street to my mailbox. I live in the country where you rarely see a car pass by. I turned to walk back down my driveway when it happened. I tripped, fell and busted my head on the asphalt of the road. There I was bleeding, unable to get up and lying halfway in the road. What do I do now? I remembered the button. I pushed it. Within 15 minutes the paramedics came to my rescue out in the rural part of the country. The doctor said I could have laid there and bled to death, but thanks to SafetyChoice I am alive and telling my story. Never again will I complain. I will wear my necklace with pride and confidence knowing I am protected. It saved my life.”

The ultimate goal of Comfort Keepers is to help clients achieve their number one wish – to live independently in the comfort of home, wherever that may be.  Committed to helping clients achieve this, we designed our unique system of caring for seniors around fostering independent living as long as possible.  As leaders in our industry, we know in order to make this happen, safety must come first.