CES, Digital Health & Silvers Summit

I received a message today from Boomer Authority and wanted to share this – GrandCare will be exhibiting in the Aging Technology Alliance Booth (AgeTek Pavilion) at CES!!! Charlie Hillman & Laura Mitchell from GrandCare Systems will also be speaking during the Digital Health and Silvers Summit. Hope to see you all there!

WEBINAR ── “Emerging Trends in Technology for an Aging Population: An Advance Look at the Silvers Summit and Digital Health Summit” | Organized by: International Mature Marketing Network and Boomer Authority™ Association

Moderated by Lori Bitter, President, Continuum Crew, join industry Thought Leaders Susan Ayers Walker, Silvers Summit and Jill Gilbert, Digital Health Summit ── who are on technologies cutting edge ── and hear them share their views on the latest trends in technology for an aging population. Find details here. Register here.

Date: October 26, 2010 | Time: 1:00 PM (CDT)

Silvers Summit and Exhibition (January 6-9, 2011 at Las Vegas NV) ── “The digital life of this generation changes the rules about how we age” is the theme of the 2011 Silvers Summit, which is held in conjunction with the Consumer Electronics Show. The Silvers Summit will showcase the products and services that keep boomers engaged, entertained and connected. Silvers Summit will assemble companies, distributors, journalists, research firms, think tanks, to demonstrate the products and services that will help mature consumers maintain their high quality of life. The Conference takes place on Jan 8, 2011. Contact: Susan Ayers Walker at walker@smartsilvers.com.

Digital Health Summit and Exhibition (January 6-9, 2011 at Las Vegas) ── The Digital Health Summit is an important new conference and exhibition at the 2011 International Consumer Electronics Show. The Summit focuses on the emerging market of consumer-based digital health and wellness devices, related applications and services – – with a special focus on technologies for an aging population! Contact: Jill Gilbert jill.gilbert@me.com.

Visit Boomer Authority™ at: http://boomerauthority.ning.com/?xg_source=msg_mes_network

GrandCare in Custom Retailer Magazine

One Voice
Maureen Jenson J
Riding the Silver Tsunami
May 2010

Everywhere you look, the greying baby boomer generation is in the news. Many years ago, I covered a feature on the home of the future—this was a home that would have digital sensors to monitor your movements and alert family members if something was amiss. It was single level or had wheelchair or scooter access. It was remote-controllable, so at the push of a button, you could call security, control your temperature, lighting, audio/video and drapes; in short, 15 years ago, the home of the future would give you peace of mind as you aged, eliminating the necessity of a retirement or assisted living home.

Well it’s finally here; and it’s aligning into place so that the custom integrator can own this market. But you had better hurry. Said GrandCare’s Laura Mitchell, director of business relations, “Some estimates project that by the year 2020, the health-monitoring market will reach $20 billion. A lot of boomers aren’t going to settle for what they had to offer their parents. They want to age at home, and are very particular about their needs.” If that last part sounds like about 90 percent of your customer base, then it’s time to consider getting into this very special customer service area right now, ahead of the curve.

We at CustomRetailer know, that “The Curve” has sped up. Today’s successful company has to do its due diligence quickly and move ahead at a much more rapid rate than their predecessors. Read about how best to succeed in this burgeoning market on page 26….

…GrandCare: Catching the ‘Aging Tsunami’ Wave
GrandCare Systems wants to help custom integrators become aging-in-place expert advisors—just as they are lighting, home automation and home entertainment expert advisors. The company, together with distribution partner Home Controls, is aiming at the CI channel as a natural fit for its suite of health-monitoring offerings.
“There’s an ‘aging tsunami’ coming,” explains GrandCare’s Laura Mitchell, director of business relations. Some estimates project that by the year 2020, the health-monitoring market will reach $20 billion.
“A lot of boomers aren’t going to settle for what they had to offer their parents,” Mitchell says. “They want to age at home, and are very particular about their needs.” If that last part sounds like about 90 percent of your customer base, then it’s time to
consider getting into this very special customer service area right now, ahead of the curve. Mitchell says the skill sets aren’t
very different from what CIs already offer. “Our product is ‘smart’ and uses a lot of
home automation and smart sensor technology, things that CIs are used to
dealing with. It also requires a personal
touch—it’s not a set-and-forget system.
It’s easy to navigate for the caregiver once it’s set up, but it’s a little daunting for them when they have to think about how they’re going to use it. Our dealers are the ones who sit down with the families and customize the package for them. They can find out needs, set up a care plan for the
person, and from there, determine what sensor suite is right for them.” The company currently offers its interactive Trillium all-in-one solution and a set-top box version, but
the range of available sensors that can be monitored runs the gamut. “There are motion and temperature sensors, door, bed, chair, caller ID, power and telewellness items like blood pressure, weight…
And then there’s the communication component, where the communication station can be viewed on any TV or on the touchscreen, enabling the caregiver or the patient to play games on it or call up videos on demand that have been added. It’s highly customizable, and it will be different for each individual,” says Mitchell. GrandCare supports its products with full training and has a dealer Web site with downloads and chat forums. Mitchell herself founded and hosts weekly AgeTech aging and technology Webinars that are open to all, and is a vice
chair on the AgeTek Alliance board (www.agetek.org), a consortium of aging in technology industry members. She will also coordinate educational tracks at this year’s CEDIA EXPO Home Technology Pavilion, which GrandCare Systems is sponsoring.
Education is paramount, says Mitchell, since the dealer/integrator is the linchpin in guiding clients to the right combination of gear. “The client needs help,” she says. “You need to be able to question them not about what they think they need, but on
what they expect the outcome to be, in order to fully serve their needs.”

Daily News Record reports on GrandCare Technology


Article by DNR Harrisonburg, VA Paper:

Aging In Place
New Technology Helps Seniors Stay In Their Homes Longer
As published in: Daily News Record
By: Jacquelyn Walsh

According to a March 2010 article in the New York Times, the average cost of nursing home care is $200 a day, not including additional fees for specialized services such as Alzheimer’s or dementia care. That amounts to roughly $6,000 a month and $72,000 annually to keep a parent or loved one in a nursing home.

With baby boomers approaching senior citizen status, these figures can be daunting for them and their children. But with technology moving at a rapid pace, new systems are helping seniors “age in place,” or live at home longer.

Elizabeth Roach, 71, of Harrisonburg had a Grand Care System installed in her home a few months ago. Her eldest son, Michael Murdock, came across the product at a technology convention in Florida, and now sells the product as owner of Enhanced Caring, a company based out of Aurora, Colo. Murdock also owns a home automation and integration company, Enhanced Living.

“We do all the cool high tech Jetson stuff to homes,” says Murdock, whose company installs high-tech security systems, home theater systems and now Grand Care Systems throughout the country.

“When I saw the Grand Care System, I thought ‘This is what my mother needs. This is a product that can change her life,’ ” says Murdock. “I am finally involved in a product that’s going to make a difference in the last years of people’s lives, and what I’m doing now makes a difference.”

The system focuses on three functions: communication, cognitive abilities and wellness.

It centers on a computer that allows the homeowner to keep in touch with the outside world and also collects information from sensors installed around the house, reporting data to designated caretakers.

Complete with a touch-screen monitor, this “computer” is free of the hassles of logging on, remembering passwords, downloading files and deleting spam, says Roach, so that she gets the technology of a computer with a simplicity geared toward a senior’s needs.

The computer system also gathers information from pressure mats installed under Roach’s chair and bed, motion sensors on her medicine cabinet and fridge, a heat sensor on the stove and panic buttons next to her bed, the bathtub and at the bottom of the basement stairs. These sensors signal alerts that send warning e-mails to designated people, such as Roach’s children, that lets them know if she hasn’t gotten up yet or has left the stove on for several hours. The system can communicate by sending texts, e-mails and phone calls to designated children or neighbors. This is used to alert these people if anything is out of the ordinary or Roach presses one of the panic buttons, which will also call 911.

Roach also logs on to the computer every morning and does a series of exercises that range from tic-tac-toe to trivia meant to strengthen cognitive functioning. With a scale and blood pressure monitor connected to the system, Roach weighs herself and checks her blood pressure each morning. The numbers are sent to the computer and tracked, showing any fluctuations and making the daily data available should the family wish to send it to a doctor.

“My mom is in pretty good health but she is getting older, so what we did was I got her a weight scale and blood pressure monitor and she checks it every day,” says Murdock. “We can take that information to the doctor and we can set up a rule [in the computer system] to alert someone when something isn’t normal. We don’t want to be intrusive on their lives and we don’t want to invade their privacy,” says Murdock.

With the information gathered from the sensors, Murdock can tell how long his mother sleeps each night and how long she sits in her favorite chair, most likely crocheting. These are not things he checks on constantly though, says Murdock, but uses to gauge patterns in her daily habits, and is alerted when something is wrong.

Roach was skeptical at first and worried about an invasion of her privacy, she says, but once installed, it became routine for her to use the system.

“Because there’s no cameras involved in it and people get into a normal routine of using it, it does not invade their privacy,” says Murdock. “It’s not like I check everything every day. I just find out when there’s something out of the [norm].”

The system costs about $8,000 to install and requires a monthly fee of about $75, more or less depending on what features you choose, says Murdock.

“As I get older I find that I want to stay home more. That’s why I retired,” says Roach. “I have very close relationships with family members; however, independence is important to me. With this system, I feel like I can be independent and know my family is a touch screen away.”

Because Roach lives alone with only one out of her four children nearby, it’s important to help the siblings communicate, says Murdock, a Spotswood High School graduate. “I miss being home and it has helped me as much as it has helped my mom — it gave me another avenue to communicate with her.”

In addition to the safety features, the system also offers more typical computer features. With the photo feature of the system, Roach’s children can upload photos of trips they’ve taken and Roach’s grandkids directly to her computer screen.

“I believe that the general reason behind it all, the core feeling, is that people want to age in place, no one wants to go to a facility,” says Murdock, who says he got the system mainly for communication and the brain exercises.

These systems are not only for those seniors in their last years of their life, Murdock said. It’s important for seniors to begin using the system early on so it becomes second nature for them.

For Roach and Murdock, the new technology has been a blessing for the whole family.

“We’ve distributed the responsibility of caring for my mother to all four children and we’re thousands of miles apart. It’s absolutely changed our lives,” says Murdock. “She feels more connected than ever, and that’s priceless to me.”

Roach and Murdock were featured in a July article of The New York Times, and will be featured on a Discovery Channel special about baby boomers and aging in place in November.

See here for more GrandCare Screen Shots:

VideoCalling for Seniors – Serge Kogan speaks

WHEN: Thursday October 14th, 2pm EDT (1p CT).
WHERE: http://my.dimdim.com/grandcare
WHAT: Videocalling for Seniors, How can families and senior living communities help
WHO: Serge Kogan, Co-founder of g2gConnect
WHY: Video chats and Skype are enabling adult children, grandchildren, and aging parents to stay closer and see each other more often than ever before. While the younger generations have no problem communicating this way – the older generation needs a little help. Serge Kogan will discuss what he learned from meeting with over 400 seniors during the first half of 2010, and suggest ways in which families and senior living communities can help.

Topic Description: Serge Kogan discusses how communities and loved ones can communicate with the older generation using video technology.

About Serge Kogan:
Serge Kogan is the co-founder of g2gConnect – a visual communications services provider focusing on bringing seniors and families closer to one another. He is a sought-after speaker at senior centers and senior living communities in the Greater Boston area, where he has introduced and assisted over 500 seniors and boomers take advantage of video calling technologies such as Skype. He is an experienced market development executive with over 25 years high-value solution sales to global companies in the electronics, telecommunications, semiconductors and financial services industries, as well as to government institutions in the US and Latin America. Serge held sales management, marketing and product development roles at iSuppli, Interleaf, Digital Equipment and Eastman Kodak. He graduated in Engineering from Cornell University, and received his MBA from the University of Rochester.

Special Senate Committee on Aging – Bill to increase low-cost housing for seniors

Legislation Moves Forward to Increase Low-Cost Housing Options for Senior Citizens

Legislation Moves Forward to Increase Low-Cost Housing Options for Senior Citizens
Banking subcommittee approves bill from Sen. Kohl, Chair, Special Committee on Aging, other Democrats

Oct. 4, 2010 – A program of Housing and Urban Development, Section 202 Supportive Housing for the Elderly, is headed for expansion and improvement, according to an announcement from the office of U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI), chairman of the Special Committee on Aging.

The Senate Banking Subcommittee on Housing, Transportation, and Community Development last week approved Kohl’s legislation, S.118.

The Section 202 program provides capital grants to non-profit community organizations for the development of supportive housing and provision of rental assistance exclusively for low-income seniors.

“Through such housing and supportive services, the program allows low-income seniors to remain safely in their homes,” according to the news release.

This bill attempts to address the affordable senior housing shortage by:

● Making it easier for owners to refinance Section 202 developments, which may be in need of rehabilitation;

● Providing greater flexibility to owners to transform unmarketable studio apartments into rentable one-bedroom units;

● Establishing a new project-based rental assistance program for seniors at risk of losing rental housing due to rent increases after refinancing;

● Making it easier for owners to make health and supportive services available to residents through service-enriched housing; and

● Creating a national clearinghouse of senior housing facilities to ease the search for seniors and their families.

“Over one-third of the Section 202 population is considered disabled enough to be at risk for being put in a nursing home,” Senator Kohl said.

“Access to these types of services saves both seniors and the government money because they reduce the need for costly nursing home stays. And ultimately they allow aging Americans to stay right where they want to be – in their own home.”

If passed by the full Senate, S.118 would promote the construction of new senior housing facilities, as well as preserve and improve upon existing facilities. Under current law, these processes are time-consuming and bureaucratic, often requiring waivers and special permission from HUD.

There are over 300,000 seniors living in 6,000 Section 202 developments across the country, with ten seniors vying for each housing unit that becomes available. It is expected that approximately 730,000 additional senior housing units will be needed by 2020 in order to address the housing needs of low-income seniors. At this point the program is not expected to meet the future demand.

This legislation has been endorsed by the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging, America Association of Service Coordinators, Alliance for Retired Americans, National Council on Aging, National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, Elderly Housing Development and Operations Corporation, Association of Jewish Family & Children’s Agencies, Catholic Charities, Lutheran Services in America, National Affordable Housing Management Association, National Church Residences, National Housing Trust, National Low Income Housing Coalition, Stewards of Affordable Housing for the Future, United Jewish Communities, and Volunteers of America.

Cosponsors of S.118 included by Senators Chuck Schumer (D-NY), Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Bob Casey (D-PA), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Bill Nelson (D-FL), Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Mary Landrieu (D-LA), Carl Levin (D-MI), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), and Jeff Merkley (D-OR).

http://ow.ly/2SncH 10 Things We Learned

http://ow.ly/2SncH 10 Things We Learned at CEDIA! Home Health Tech Still Up for Grabs…waiting for dealers to “get it.” CE PRO Reports

Thurs Oct 7, 2p ET, Holistic Approach to Aging in Place, Founder of GrandCare speaks

WHEN: Thursday Oct 7, 2pm EDT (1p CT).
WHERE: http://my.dimdim.com/grandcare
WHAT: A Holistic Approach To Aging in Place
WHO: Charlie Hillman, founder of GrandCare speaks
WHY: We need to work together to build this new aging & technology category! Remember, the Aging Tsunami will float ALL boats!Calls created & hosted by GrandCare Systems (since 2008). Sponsored by various industry participants

Topic Description: Charlie Hillman from GrandCare Systems, discusses the holistic approach to aging in place, and why this is not your ordinary sale.

About Charlie Hillman:
Charlie Hillman has spent most of his career as an entrepreneur involved with disruptive technologies. His latest, GrandCare Systems, is designed to allow the aged to live longer at home with greater security and less social isolation. Using a combination of Smart Home technologies, ADL monitoring, Internet communications, and Tele-Wellness features, the system is intended to support an entire network of caregivers.
Mr. Hillman is a professional engineer with a BS from MIT and a Masters in Engineering from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He is a commissioner of CAST (Center for Aging Technologies) and a frequent speaker at national and international conferences.

Computers Important to Home Health Tech – by Electronic House Magazine

Using technology to care for an aging loved one is simpler than you might think. Sometimes it just takes a PC.

With healthcare costs spiraling out of control, a number of forward-thinking electronics manufacturers are developing solutions that enable a person’s health and wellness to be monitored and managed electronically from the comfort of their homes.

But as a few key industry experts pointed out at a recent educational session at the Custom Electronic Design and Installation Association Expo (CEDIA) in Atlanta, often it’s the simple technologies, like a basic computer and Internet access, that can make the biggest impact in a aging or disabled person’s life.

“You can monitor the heck out of mom and dad, but if they aren’t engaged and enjoying life what’s the point,” said Jack York, CEO of It’s Never Too Late (www.in2l.com), a Centennial, Colo.–based organization that customizes computer systems for senior care centers across the U.S.

Often, the computers are designed with built-in touchscreens, adaptive devices for those with physical or cognitive difficulties and picture-based interfaces for launching applications. As York, explained, a computer with Internet access help an aging loved-on connect friends, family and their community; exercise their mind; and find real purpose in their lives. “Socialization is the real Trojan horse of the home health technology industry,” added fellow panelist Charlie Hillman, CEO of GrandCare Systems (www.grandcaresystems.com).

As reported by myoptumhealth.com, the top uses of the Internet by people 73 and older are online searches, including news, product research and financial information; email and phone sharing with friends and family; research on health and medical topics.

Realizing the importance of technology to the age-in-place population, a number of home systems installers have spun off home health tech divisions from their core installation businesses. Eric Crawford, president of Home Theater & Automation, Meridian, Idaho, for example, uses the security sensors and control processors from his current portfolio of Control4 products to create his own monitoring systems.

Paul Ebaugh of CyberNet Solutions, Commerce Township, Mich., has taken a slightly different approach. After seven years of installing sophisticated audio/video, automation and security systems into clients’ homes, Ebaugh launched a new division within his company to cater exclusively to the age-in-place market. Called Elderwatch, the company’s core product is the Grand Care System. “It has all the tools necessary for health and wellness—things that standard automation systems can’t really do,” he says. When necessary, though, Ebaugh can always pull from his old bag of CyberNet products, combining the Grand Care System with video surveillance, security and automation devices.

AV Forums Discusses Future Home Health

http://ow.ly/2OjHu Dave Pedigo of CEDIA discusses & demonstrates blood pressure & weight readings on the GrandCare System.

GrandCare Listed as TOP 10 Products at CEDIA!

According to CE PRO’s Top 10 List of Must See Products at CEDIA: http://www.cepro.com/slideshow/image/7215/

GrandCare Systems HomeBase System
With healthcare costs spiraling out of control, technology has come to the rescue. A number of companies are developing digital healthcare monitoring systems that allow users to remotely communicate with caregivers. One company that’s leading the charge is GrandCare Systems. Its new GC HomeBase system offers a portal for communication that’s non-invasive and requires no computer experience. Instead, users touch icons on a touchpanel to open email correspondence, pictures, music and reminders. A video chat feature lets users talk face to face with their doctors and family members.[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fD0qdEZd1PM]