GrandCare remote support technology improves the lives of those with disabilities in the U.K.

The use of remote monitoring and remote support technology in residential settings grew exponentially during the COVID-19 pandemic. But what started as a necessity for infection control purposes, has now proven to remain beneficial in many ways. Many people have discovered that receiving the majority of their support remotely is a far more independent experience than having a live person in your home. It is also vastly less expensive.

Cognitive assists, such as medication and activity of daily living reminders that can be added to GrandCare’s touch screen, allow people with disabilities to be successfully independent and yet still receive the support they need.

Video chats allow users to communicate with family, friends and caregivers. And when face-to-face support is needed, a quick video call is a very efficient way to provide it.

“Earlier this year we invested in Grandcare, an innovative communication tool which we are piloting for three years. Six months on, it is proving invaluable in helping people with autism to live independently. It is personalized and can schedule a routine for a person, reminding them to get up, shower, have lunch or when to take their medication. It can also help them stay in touch with friends and family through video calls,” said a spokesperson from Bolton Cares.

“Our mission is to help people to live the life they want their way and technology is helping us achieve this daily.”

Sophie’s Story

Bolton Cares offers person-centered care to people with autism, complex learning and physical disabilities, older people and people with dementia.

Want to know more about GrandCare? Set up a demo with us.

 

Image courtesy of BOLTON CARES

Senior Monitoring System

Options for Senior Monitoring

Seniors today are getting connected,

but that doesn’t always mean they are using a computer or a smartphone. Connected technology is providing options for seniors to use health-monitoring devices that often fade into the background, offering security without demanding attention.

We have seen numerous products in this category coming to market lately.

For example, GrandCare Systems, www.grandcare.com, provides a combination of remote environmental sensors to watch over a loved one. We even have www.medcottage.com, a complete modular home that act as on site care facility.

Sonamba, from pomdevices, www.sonamba.com, is also providing monitoring for seniors. The Sonamba device features a 7-inch touchscreen with built-in motion and sound sensors, plus an emergency button. The device keeps track of the senior’s activity, alerting caregivers if something seems out of place. Sonamba doubles as a digital photo frame when not in active use, allowing the technology to become a natural part of the home décor.

As mentioned in the Connected World article “Meeting the Challenge” [Mar./Apr., ’11, p76], next, pomdevices hopes to build a community of devices around Sonamba, adding compatibility with other types of technology, such as blood pressure monitors. These other devices would report back to the main unit, providing even more data about the senior’s condition. To read more about Sonamba, check out the digital edition of Connected World.

The connectivity for Sonamba is provided by a cellular module from Telit Wireless Solutions, www.telit.com, in the form of the company’s GE865-QUAD M2M module. According to Telit, the GE865-QUAD is optimized for power consumption and can receive over-the-air software updates.

Making sure a health-monitoring device can always connect is important, since it could someday save a life.

“There are over 43 million caregivers in the U.S. that seek the peace of mind of knowing that their loved ones are safe and healthy,” say Ajit Pendse, the CEO of pomdevices. “With the help of Telit’s experience and support throughout the Sonamba development process, we are now able to provide seniors with a well-tested and reliable communication device to extend their ability to live independently.”

Sonamba sends text messages to caregivers about a senior’s daily activity, as well as messages composed by the seniors themselves. The device can also provide seniors with reminders to take medication, plus games and calendar events. All of these features are designed to allow seniors to live independently while also enjoying additional safety and security.

Meet Jen Kleczka, GrandCare's newest team member

Introducing Jen Kleczka: the Newest GrandCare Camper

We’d like you to meet our newest team member, Jen Kleczka. In fact, we’d like to meet her too, some day. Most of us are working from home, and have only seen our new Office Manager over Zoom. But we like her a lot, and we’re really excited to welcome her to GrandCare.

Jen’s a people person and incredibly organized. She also has a “can do” attitude, which is perfect for this job. GrandCare is in a period of rapid growth, and it’s her responsibility to keep track of pretty much everything, for everybody and in her limited spare time, do the bookkeeping. She’s been drinking from a firehose since she started and she still seems to be thirsty, which is a great fit for GrandCare.

“I love this company, and I love this job,” she said. “It’s exactly what I want to be doing at this stage of my life.”

Jen was born and raised in West Allis, but she’s been in West Bend for most of her adult life. Her children all graduated from West Bend schools. She has a breadth of experience in jobs she picked mostly to fit around her kids’ schedules when they were young, and then caring for her parents at the end of their lives. “I can do anything, as long as I’m busy,” she said. We’ve found that to be true. We’re keeping Jen very busy, and she handles everything we’ve asked her to do, and it’s been a lot.

When she’s not at GrandCare, her focus is on “family, family, family.” She loves to travel. Her youngest is a U.S. Marine, so whenever she can find a cheap flight, she flies to wherever he’s stationed. She’s also an avid camper. She and her husband help to manage a local campground called Timber Trail Campground during the summer. “Camping is our second family. Sometimes we stay there for the whole summer.”

We’re looking forward to the day when we can officially welcome Jen onboard with our signature employee onboarding at West Bend Tap and Tavern (conveniently located next door.) Until then, we’ll exchange many Slack messages and continue to have fruitful Zoom conversations. Welcome to the GrandCare family Jen and buckle up, it’s going to be a fun adventure!

Click here to meet the whole GrandCare team!

GrandCare - it's a gift from God

“It’s a Gift from God!”

I was so worried about my dad. He’s pretty independent at 78, but he struggles with a few health issues and a month ago he had a scary fall. He kept forgetting to take his medication and it’s dangerous for his blood pressure. I live 40 minutes away. I checked on him all the time, but he wouldn’t always hear the phone and it drove me crazy. That’s when we found GrandCare.

It’s a big touchscreen he calls his “window to us.” My kids message him and video chat right from the GrandCare app on their phones. I sent him pictures of our new house and I added some old nostalgic ones of him and my mom when they were younger. He doesn’t feel like he’s missing out on our lives, and my kids are a lot more connected with their granddad.

Dad thinks it’s phenomenal. It’s really helped with his depression. He’s smiling and laughing again. His favorite features are the weather reports and watching old shows on YouTube. And if he forgets to take his medication, the system reminds him right on the touchscreen. If he doesn’t see it, he’ll get an automated text message.

GrandCare reminds him to take his blood pressure every day, and then tracks it so I can be sure he’s doing okay. I have Dad bring the graphs with him to his doctor, too.

He’s still in his house. He’s still independent. And we all finally have some peace of mind.

My dad calls it a “gift from God.” I do too.

Looking for the perfect Father’s Day gift for your dad? For a limited time get $100 off your order.
www.grandcare.com, Discount Code: dadspecial20. Or call us 262-338-6147.

*For HIPAA and security purposes, names and identifying details in this story have been changed.

New York Times Technologies to Help Seniors during Quarantine

GrandCare featured in New York Times story on Technologies to Help Seniors during Quarantine

“Technology can help families monitor the health and safety of older people kept from their families by the coronavirus,” according to the New York Times. In a story by Susan B. Garland, GrandCare was highlighted as a tool that helps seniors stay “fiercely independent” while providing their adult children with peace of mind.

In the story, titled “Did Mom Take Her Medicine? Keeping Eyes on Elders in Quarantine,” GrandCare customer Norman Potter explained why he purchased a GrandCare for his mother. According to the story:

“In mid-March, as the coronavirus was spreading, Mr. Potter installed a platform made by GrandCare Systems in his mother’s house that she enjoys using to video chat with her grandchildren — but of equal interest to her son are its motion sensor and two vital-sign devices.”

“Because of his mother’s respiratory issues, Mr. Potter said he and his sister were not comfortable visiting unless they were first tested for the coronavirus, although two people who live nearby check on her. ‘The monitoring allows me a sense of peace that she is up and starting her day,’ he said.”

GrandCare integrates with telehealth devices, such as blood pressure monitors, weight scales, pulse oximeters, and glucometers, and wirelessly transmit the readings from the device to the GrandCare. The story explains:

“Mr. Potter can log into a portal to view the results, which are delivered via a wireless connection in his mother’s house. If either level is out of whack, Mr. Potter, who owns a home health agency, receives a text. When his mother’s oxygen levels dropped one day, Mr. Potter called to remind her to insert the nasal tube that connects to her oxygen supply device. He also is notified if a motion sensor in the hallway that leads from her bedroom to the kitchen does not detect movement after 10 a.m., her usual waking time.”

“I feel comforted knowing that they are watching over me.” – Esther McKee

Another GrandCare client, Esther McKee, has used and enjoyed her GrandCare for eight years. She especially enjoys the ease of video chatting with her children and grandchildren.

Before the pandemic, Esther McKee, 79, went to church, volunteered and visited with friends and two daughters who live nearby. Now, she said, she “would not have my sanity” without the video-chat feature on the GrandCare system she has had for eight years.

By pressing a name on the touch screen, Ms. McKee, who lives alone in a two-bedroom apartment in a 55-plus community in West Bend, Wis., can see any of her three daughters, six grandchildren and many nieces. Nearly every weekday at noon, she and a daughter who lives in Florida eat lunch together by their screens.

McKee also enjoys the peace of mind in knowing that her loved ones will know if she needs help. Her system includes motion sensors in several rooms, and door sensors on her front door and refrigerator.

“I feel comforted knowing that they are watching over me,” she said.

Read the full story.

elderly care monitoring system

GrandCare benefits all areas of elderly care

Caring for a loved one who is facing end of life is a difficult situation for all parties involved. Time or geographic constraints can sometimes prevent family members from being physically present, but modern technology is changing the way the nation looks at quality health care.

Knute Nelson, a nonprofit, Christian-based organization that specializes in senior care, has teamed up with local telecommunications providers such as Gardonville Cooperative Telephone Association (Brandon, Minn.) to offer an in-home technology solution that connects seniors and Hospice patients with their loved ones, caregivers and medical team.

Through the use of the GrandCare System, a simple touch platform enables in-home residents to view pictures, receive incoming messages, watch videos, listen to music and video chat with family. The system uses a variety of wireless activity and telehealth devices that also can alert designated caregivers by phone, email or text message if anything seems amiss.

Daphne Karpan, Knute Nelson palliative care manager, said the system has been particularly helpful and beneficial to the health-care organization’s Hospice clients, who generally have a one- to nine-month life expectancy. Being able to connect them with their loved ones at such a critical time has been a rewarding experience for all parties involved, she said.

Testing Out Telehealth Services

The GrandCare System requires an Internet connection to work. Because most of the affected patients are not existing customers, Dave Wolf, chief executive officer/general manager of Gardonville Cooperative Telephone, said that his team makes it a top priority to install the low-cost broadband connection “without a bunch of red tape.”

Karpan noted that Knute Nelson is only able to offer this service through the support of a Blandin Foundation grant. The private foundation is the state’s largest rural-based, rural-focused foundation that seeks to strengthen communities in rural Minnesota.

Karpan said hospice nurses are able to work with clients to set up Skype sessions and to upload pictures for families to share. In addition, the device can be programmed to monitor vital signs and activity. There are also sensors to alert caregivers if someone falls or needs to take their medicine.

“We have been proactively redefining the health-care paradigm over the last decade and have found great value in how technology helps to enrich the lives of our patients. With GrandCare, patients are able to become more involved in their own health care, stay living in their homes, and be connected to families and friends in meaningful ways,” said Mark Anderson, president/chief executive officer of Knute Nelson. “Partners and leaders in the field such as Dave Wolf … understand the value in delivering this technology. Making it available to their customers helps to spur economic development and vitality in our region—and, most importantly, adds significant value in the lives of our patients.”

Doing the Right Thing

Reflecting on the decision to partner with Knute Nelson on this initiative, Wolf said it was an easy decision to make despite the fact that it’s not a revenue generator. “These people are facing end-of-life,” he said. “It would require a one- to three-year triple-play package in order to break even at best. Everyone—the patient and their family members— is grateful and becomes loyal to the co-op for providing this service.

“There are 100 economic reasons not to get involved … but we have the means and the network already in place,” he said, explaining that Gardonville Cooperative Telephone is promoting the service as a low-speed data package that runs on 1 Mbps and doesn’t require those in home care or Hospice to sign a contract.

“Not everything has to be a slam-dunk,” Wolf said. “In this case, loyalty is a measurable outcome.”

 

By Tennille Shields, NTCA Senior Writer/Editor

Charlie and Gaytha Hillman, founders of GrandCare, in the West Bend Chamber of Commerce Spotlight

GrandCare Founders in the Spotlight

GrandCare’s founders, Charlie and Gaytha Hillman, were recently on the radio. They were featured in the West Bend Chamber of Commerce Business Spotlight, where they talked about the origins of GrandCare, and how it helps seniors remain living in their own homes as they age.

Founded in 2005, GrandCare is a multi-featured system that helps seniors stay socially connected with friends and family. But it also offers so much more to seniors and their caregivers and families. Charlie talked about the company’s early work with an advocate for the Alzheimer’s Association, who called GrandCare “my second brain,” it provides reminders for daily activities or appointments, as well as for taking medications and vital readings.

GrandCare also makes it easy for caregivers or loved ones to check in on seniors, even if they can’t be right there in person. GrandCare comes with built-in and customizable rule sets that can alert someone when readings, such as blood pressure or glucose, are out of range, or haven’t been taken when they should. The system can also connect with activity sensors that detect when something is amiss, e.g. not getting out of bed, or opening a door in the middle of the night. And it provides simple, one-touch video chat for communication with friends, family and healthcare providers.

Listen to the interview here. 

GrandCare Featured on Into Tomorrow with Dave Graveline

GrandCare CEO Laura Mitchell was recently a guest on Into Tomorrow, a radio show that has been featuring innovative technology for 23 years. Laura talked with host Dave Graveline about some of GrandCare’s key features, including touchscreen-based remote monitoring, video chat, and socialization for seniors and individuals with disabilities.

Listen to the boradcast:

GrandCare featured on The Morning Blend

GrandCare is Making Headlines

GrandCare CEO Laura Mitchell featured on the Chamber Local Business SpotlightGrandCare has been making the news!

1. Today, we were featured on The Morning Blend on TMJ4.

2. Last week, GrandCare CEO Laura Mitchell was interviewed for the Chamber Local Business Spotlight feature on 101.3 FM.

3. GrandCare was singled out as having the “most experience and most robust platform” in an article in Home Health Care News by senior care expert, Bill Thomas. You may recognize him as the founder of the Eden Alternative, ChangeAging keynote speaker, TED Talk speaker (multiple times) and the founder of the Green House Model. His methods were described in detail in the book Being Mortal.

4. GrandCare’s CEO Laura Mitchell was profiled in a blog by industry analyst Laurie Orlov, Founder of Aging In Place Technology Watch.

Technology For Seniors

Does it Work? Yep. And Now We Can Prove It.

 

We have always believed that technology could keep seniors safe, healthy, and connected. This belief is why we do what we do at GrandCare. But can we prove it really is effective for clinical situations? Well that’s an easy answer. Yes. And we have the data to back it up. GrandCare does help the senior and disabled population to stay healthier, while bringing down the cost of care.

In recent case studies, the clients used GrandCare in conjunction with 24/7 case management services. GrandCare automatically recorded patient vitals, reminded patients when to take vitals or medications, passively monitored activity patterns, and triggered rule-based alerts to notify caregivers if something seemed amiss. Caregivers could preventatively address situations, often with simple and inexpensive remedies. These included everything from phone calls, HIPAA-compliant video chats, med changes or, if needed, clinical care. Many clients eligible for nursing home care were able to remain at home.

Overall, the results were remarkable. Patients were healthier, ER visits and hospital readmissions dropped, and senior satisfaction was much higher.

Hospital Readmission Studies

  • One Georgia study used GrandCare technology in conjunction with case management services and found hospital readmissions reduced by 51% from pre-pilot rates.
  • Another study with older adults eligible for nursing home care utilized GrandCare’s passive technology to monitor ADLs and IADLs and found fewer acute hospitalizations, ER visits, LTC days, and SNF admissions.
  • Maryland participants in a GrandCare program saw a 58% reduction in acute care admission rates, for a savings of $372,672.
  • These Maryland participants also experienced a reduction in the all-cause 30-day readmission rate to 4.5% (compared to the 15.95% state average), for a savings of $25,880. The cost to deliver this technology-enabled care was only $6,600.

Emergency Department Utilization

  • One initiative using GrandCare Technology to manage patients with high emergency department utilization achieved a 75% reduction in ER visits.
  • In a passive technology pilot with nursing home eligible patients at risk of falls and living alone, utilization of ER, long-term care and SNFs were all reduced by at least 10%.

Improved Self-Management

  • A patient population using GrandCare Technology demonstrated 88% adherence to their medical device and medication reminder treatment regimen.
  • Participants using GrandCare reported a willingness to become more engaged and felt an increased awareness in self health.

Improved Satisfaction

  • Participants in the Maryland study reported high levels of patient satisfaction.
  • For patients in the Georgia group, 93% reported satisfaction with services.
  • In a pilot of 22 patients using GrandCare, 100% of respondents agreed with the statement, “I have no difficulty telling others about the benefits of the system.”

Chronic Disease Management

  • Patients using GrandCare with Uncontrolled Diabetes demonstrated improvements, with A1C (blood glucose) values at or below their baseline.
  • In those patients managing Congestive Heart Failure (CHF) with the combination of GrandCare telehealth monitoring and care coaching, 96.5% of them maintained or improved their baseline NYHA classification score.
  • For patients managing Hypertension with GrandCare, care coaching, a BP cuff and telehealth tools, 84% were able to maintain or improve their JNC-7 classification score.

Cost-Effectiveness

  • One study found that the initial investment in technology was recouped in 1-3 years due to reduced costs of care.
  • The total savings in reduced acute admissions was $372,672 for patients using GrandCare with RPM and care management, while the cost to administer this technology-enabled care was $64,500. Leaving the total cost savings at $308,172.

GrandCare facilitates better care, better outcomes, lower costs, while improving patient satisfaction. We always knew that was true. And now we can prove it.