A dear friend of mine lived a very independent life in her own home at the young age of 75. She still walked several miles each week, did all her own lawn care, and ate the healthiest of diets. When she collapsed in her bathroom from a stroke, it came out of the blue, and no one expected it, least of all her. Sadly, she lay in that bathroom for three days before someone finally came to check on her. She passed away about six months later, without ever fully recovering from that experience. Because of that, I am a strong proponent of any older person who lives on their own wearing some type of alert jewelry that is continuously monitored. This is not the same as the MedicAlert bracelet I wrote about yesterday – http://budurl.com/ElderlySafetyWear . This is similar to a monitoring company for your home burglar alarm.
The alert jewelry, usually a pendant or a wristwatch, can notify the monitoring site (which operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week), if the wearer has fallen or is otherwise not responding . Some plans monitor smoke alarms, carbon monoxide gas alarms, and even notify the client when they need a battery change. If the monitoring site is notified that a client is down on the floor and/or not responding , they will try to contact them directly, and then they will send emergency personnel to their house. [5/1/09 - I discovered that I had misunderstood one aspect of how these work. It is necessary for the button to be pushed. The jewelry is still a great asset in the case of a collapse as the wearer might not have a phone with them or nearby. But they would need to be able to push the button. If anyone knows of a product that does not require anything to be done to notify rescue workers, please let us know. And all you inventors out there, that seems like a great product to create! 
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I encouraged another friend to get LifeAlert’s necklace several years ago and she loves it. She has fallen twice and they have gotten her help in an extremely speedy manner!
LifeAlert.com has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau, as of 1/31/09. You can find their site, along with several articles of interest to seniors, at http://budurl.com/LifeAlert . Their service can also include a button to push by the wearer to call 911 directly. For an elderly person, that would be much easier than using a cell phone, which many of them are not comfortable with. I noticed they also have a 50+ option for those in my age range who live alone. I almost always have a mom, grandkid, and/or cell phone with me so I’m ok for now, but for someone who is alone a lot, that could be very useful!
LifeStation.com is a BBB (Better Business Bureau) Accredited business, as of 1/31/09. It was recommended by one of my readers, Igor. You can find their site and an article, “11 Crucial Tips You Need to Know When Choosing a Medical Alert System,” at http://budurl.com/LifeStation . I love their slogan, “You’re Never Home Alone.” That sums it up quite nicely.
If you have an older relative who is living alone, one of these options would be an excellent way to give them an extra measure of security and might even allow them to live in the comfort of their own home much longer.
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Good post – there are a lot of good providers out there, including the ones mentioned here. Each has a different fee/equipment/contract structure so it pays to shop around. My company did exhaustive research on this if you are interested.
Hi Bryan, Thanks for writing. I checked out your company and was pleased to see it is another great looking provider, complete with an A grade from Better Business Bureau! Thanks for letting us know about it.
Love this Post! More things need to be done…..
Hi Mitch. Thanks. Great idea at your site as well! Thank you