Tag Archive for: aging technology

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.

smart technology for seniors

Smart technology for seniors? Yes, it does exist.

Proactive versus reactive care is something that unfortunately too often becomes a hindsight 20/20 revelation for some elderly patients and their families. “If only we had known…” they would say. The truth is technology these days is not just good, it’s really good.  Better than it was even just a few short years ago. The thing about technology is that it is always changing, evolving, and getting more sophisticated. That’s not to say that it is getting more complicated necessarily, in fact, in many cases the technology is actually getting easier to use. More hands free. Requiring even less for the user to do manually, with the advent of voice recognition, smart watches, and even artificially intelligent computers.

I mean, just a few years ago, it would have seemed unfathomable to think that you could talk into your phone, tablet, or computer to ask it a simple question and actually expect to get an intelligent response. Today, we can ask something as simple as “do I need an umbrella today?” and our technology device will actually give us a resonable answer related to our local weather report.

The same holds true for technology advancements in healthcare with virtual care services, and personal health/fitness monitoring devices. But did you know that there is even more advanced technology out there that is designed to help prevent hospitalizations, manage chronic conditions, and track daily activities, all to keep the elderly and disabled living independently for as long as possible in order to postpone the need for long-term care?

 

Introducing the grandCARE system. We provide a technology solution that benefits seniors, family caregivers, and professional senior care workers alike. It starts with our innovative touchscreen interface which has been carefully designed with the end-user in mind. It features large, easy-to-read icons and can be fully customized to include as few or as many menu options as desired. The platform is so intuitive to use, that no previous computer experience is required to enjoy.
The touchscreen can be use as key source of socialization, entertainment, and communication for the senior user with our integrated family Facebook photo sharing, video chatting, games, websites, news, weather and more available options.

Next, our passive activity and motion monitoring is an effective and unintrusive way to analyze patterns of behavior to become more aware when something isn’t quite right. Our sensors can detect when there is too much, too little or no motion, and alert when something out of the ordinary occurs. The alert rules can be established to send out a message by phone call, text, or email to one or multiple designated parties.

At grandCARE, we believe in not only helping seniors stay independent, but strive to enable them the ability to proactively manage their own health and wellness too. This is why we have available digital medical devices to take important health vital readings digitally using our innovative system. The data is captured on the system, and stored on our secure servers making the information accessible at anytime to a family member or professional care manager using our online based care portal. The information can be reviewed in report or chart format, and even exported as a PDF to send to a professional health care provider as well.

A recent article by Maryalene LaPonsie, featured in the U.S. News and World Report provides more support for the benefits that technology can have with seniors, families, and those in the long-term care industry.

For those who want to maximize their peace of mind, Gomez says the Cadillac of virtual long-term care is a remote-monitoring system like that offered by grandCARE.

With this system, activity sensors are placed in a senior’s home. To use grandCARE, Managed Senior Care first evaluates what a typical “good day” looks like for a senior and sets alerts accordingly. For example, if a senior typically has breakfast by 9 a.m. and the refrigerator hasn’t been opened by that time, an alert may go out to a caregiver.

As with Banner iCare, seniors using the grandCARE system are set up with a tablet. In this case, it’s an oversized tablet that can be remotely activated. If a caregiver needs to check on a senior, he or she can open Skype which will activate the camera and microphone on the tablet. At that point, the caregiver can look for the senior and call out to him or her to determine whether help is needed.

“One of the reasons we like this product is because it’s respectful of the senior,” Gomez says. “You know when people are watching. There is no secret monitoring.”

The article goes on to show how virtual care services are having an impact with both cost savings and patient outcomes:

“We save over $4,000 per patient per year and avoid hospital visits and readmissions,” Herzog says. From 2013 to 2014, Banner Health tracked the outcomes of newly enrolled Banner iCare members and compared that to claims data from the year before their enrollment. They found the program resulted in an overall 27 percent cost savings of $788 per patient per month. Hospitalizations also dropped from 11.5 per 100 patients per month in the year prior to enrollment to 6.3 per 100 patients per month six months after enrollment.

So, going back to where we started…”if only we had known.” Well, now you do.

GrandCare’s Training at CEDIA Makes the News

GrandCare has made the news again. Residential Systems, a magazine for professionals in the home technology arena, featured GrandCare’s 3-day, deep-dive training workshop, which is being offered later this month at CEDIA headquarters in Indianapolis.

The training is a comprehensive, three-day connected health and aging technology training, especially valuable for custom home integrators interested in the growing aging technology market. It’s a deep dive that includes a mix of instructor-led sessions, roundtable discussions, and hands-on labs, “to help home technology professionals understand key aspects of technology implementation in the growing aging and disability market.”

The training will be held at CEDIA’s headquarters in Indianapolis, July 25 – 27,

“This training is an excellent opportunity for home technology professionals to learn more about the emerging home health market and how those offerings could be incorporated into their business plan,” said Luke Amos, CEDIA senior director of learning.

The bootcamp-style training will be hands-on, and will include installation and implementation of an actual system and peripherals, including Bluetooth health devices, integrated HIPAA-compliant video chat, and activity of daily living monitoring. The training also includes strategies for breaking into the market, a comprehensive sales and marketing session focused on sales strategies, effective online marketing campaigns, the competitive landscape, healthcare reform, long-term care opportunities, and how to brand your company as the “go-to” in the aging and health technology space.

“We are enthusiastic about working together again with CEDIA and its members,” said Charlie Hillman, CEO of GrandCare Systems. “This training goes beyond a typical technical product training and educates on the extensive and fragmented healthcare, aging, and senior housing landscape.”

The event is co-hosted by GrandCare and CEDIA, and will include special guest speakers Michele Ahlman, CEO of ClearSounds Communications on hearing loss in the aging population and Jeff Hill, CEO of MyGait on easy senior computing solutions.

“This training goes beyond a typical technical product training and educates on the extensive and fragmented healthcare, aging, and senior housing landscape.”—Charlie Hillman, CEO of GrandCare Systems

Learn more or register online.
Or contact GrandCare at info@grandcare.com, or (262) 338-6147.

See the complete text of the Residential Systems article here.

 

GrandCare Announces Distribution Shift, Launches New and Improved Reseller Program  

LivHOME CareMonitorApril 11, 2016 West Bend, WI–GrandCare is launching a new network of professional dealers, expanding services and offerings in Spring 2016.

GrandCare Systems introduced today an all new distribution and reseller program, using educated and innovative dealers throughout the United States, Canada and in the UK. The company has begun training and certifying custom integrators, dealers, installers, care communities, and other senior-oriented organizations who wish to cater to the rising aging and disabled population. GrandCare will host various two-day intensive education and training sessions to address the various market verticals, clinical information on healthcare needs and chronic conditions, the competitive industry landscape and evolution, regulatory and security compliance, accessibility, as well as complementary products and services to co-sell.

Participants will learn to successfully sell, customize, implement and install GrandCare, while offering additional value-added, revenue-generating services. The training will encompass GrandCare’s eleven years of industry knowledge, teaching tried and true sales and marketing strategies that are geared towards the aging and healthcare market.  

“We always knew the dealer channel was a great idea, but it just took the market a while to catch on,” laughed GrandCare founder Charlie Hillman. “We spent over a decade improving the GrandCare experience, ensuring we have the most reliable and comprehensive technology out there. With this population, you don’t get second chances so it’s critical that the technology actually works.”

As baby boomers retire in increasing numbers, the market for technology that assists seniors to remain in their homes is growing. In response to this increased demand, GrandCare is opening up additional distribution channels.

The next training will be held April 12 – 14 in the GrandCare heartland of Wisconsin. Additional trainings are being scheduled this summer. For more information on registration and dealer requirements, email: info@grandcare.com.

About GrandCare:

GrandCare is designed to reduce healthcare costs and improve outcomes by enabling designated family members, caregivers and healthcare professionals to remotely care for an individual in a residence, regardless of geographic location. The heart of GrandCare is a large touchscreen in the residence, which provides the individual with social communications, instructions, reminders and medication prompts.  Optional telehealth & activity sensors wirelessly report information and can send alerts if something is amiss. No computer skills are needed for the resident.  For more information, visit: www.grandcare.com, call 262-­338-6147, or contact info@grandcare.com.

GrandCare is a Featured Product in Senior Home Safety Article

Many seniors ask themselves, “Can I live alone safely?” The answer is a resounding “yes” according to GrandCare Systems. This good news is made clear in a recent article by Brittany Kovalick of Beltone.

Just before mentioning GrandCare, the article explains:

For seniors with health concerns, home-monitoring services can give you and your family greater peace of mind. Home monitoring services install wireless sensors in key areas of your home — such as the bathroom, bedroom and kitchen. Sensors can track your normal patterns of behavior. If they identify unusual patterns of behavior — your refrigerator door didn’t open — family or friends can be alerted. One service offers daily reports on movement in the house that caretakers or children can track on a web page or mobile phone.

GrandCare provides all these services, and we also offer a wide set of features that positively impact all areas of a senior citizen’s life. From games and video chatting to weather updates to pictures and messages from family, all on a large intuitive GrandCare touchscreen, GrandCare is a complete solution for the needs of your elder. Zero computer or technical expertise is necessary. In fact, most of GrandCare’s customers don’t even relate the GrandCare experience to using a tablet or a computer, it’s just that easy.

To find out more, please contact GrandCare at info@grandcare.com or call us at (262) 338-6147.

Charlie Hillman Recruited for Technology in Aging Expertise for Aging 2.0 Event

Charlie Hillman, founder and CEO of GrandCare Systems, has been selected to join a high-powered group of aging industry innovators for a Digital Aging roundtable in March. Hillman and three other industry veterans will share everything they’ve learned through the years in the recently intersecting senior housing and technology industry. The forum will also include Pete Celano, Director of Consumer Health Initiatives at the MedStar Institute for Innovation; Myron Kowal, President and CEO of RCare; and John Rydzewski, General Manager of Technology Solutions at Direct Supply.

Hosted by Aging 2.0 and sponsored by RCare, the roundtable will be moderated by aging and technology expert Laura Mitchell of Laura Mitchell Consulting. Hillman and his fellow panelists will share stories, experiences, successes, mistakes and advice for getting ahead in the aging industry.

The roundtable event is being held in conjunction with the LeadingAge Peak Summit in Washington, DC, a unique conference that brings together the highest-level executives and business leaders in the aging and technology industry. The conference fosters education, strategic thinking, and networking. The Fireside Chat event is scheduled on the Sunday just before the conference.

This reservation-only Fireside Chat is an event you won’t want to miss!

For Reservations:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/aging20-washington-dc-digital-aging-successful-technology-implementation-in-senior-care-tickets-22199669810

Fireside Chat Schedule

Where: Stone’s Throw Restaurant, Marriott Wardmann Hotel

When: 7:00-8:30pm, Sunday March 13th

7-7:30pm Networking/Registration

7:30-7:35pm Welcome & Introduction to Aging 2.0

7:35-7:45pm Opening Remarks by Myron Kowal, CEO of RCare

7:45-8:15pm Roundtable Panel Discussion, moderated by Laura Mitchell of Laura Mitchell Consulting

Panelists: Pete Celano (MedStar), Myron (RCare), Charlie (GrandCare),  John Rydzewski  (Direct Supply)

8:15-8:30pm Networking Cocktail Reception

General Admission from Feb 26 at 5pm –  March 9th at 5pm

Last Minutes tickets available after March 9th, until 6pm on March 13th

To find out more about what GrandCare is up to, visit us on the web at grandcare.com. Ask us about our discounted pricing for senior care providers at sales@grandcare.com today!

GrandCare Showcased at Innovative LeadingAge MN Conference

GrandCare, the industry leader in comprehensive eldercare technology, will be featured at the LeadingAge Minnesota conference in St. Paul tomorrow, February 10. The mission of LeadingAge Minnesota is an important one: ensuring that “older adults in every community live with dignity, meaning, and purpose.” GrandCare will be at the conference in booth 257 to help deliver on that mission.

How? By introducing new and innovative functionality like the Emergency Broadcast Alert System and enhanced community features like event calendars, meal schedule and digital signage. GrandCare founder and CEO Charlie Hillman commented, “GrandCare is delighted to reinforce our partnership with LeadingAge of MN and be on display at this innovative event. Together we are reinventing the care delivery model to be more proactive, predictive and cost-effective.”

To find out more about what GrandCare is up to, visit us on the web at grandcare.com. Ask us about our discounted pricing for senior care providers at sales@grandcare.com today!

GrandCare Targeted as Must Have Comprehensive Tool According to Writer, Christine Halaba

Through the years, different generations found ways to help their elders cope with aging and its effects. The efforts of recent generations led to fruitful solutions such as the birth of home health care in Chicago and other parts of America. This allowed seniors to receive the health care services that they need in the comfort of their own homes. Aside from this, today’s generation has another weapon in its arsenal – technology.

We are living in a digital world, so it’s no surprise that several outstanding individuals found ways to create devices that are meant to aid the older portion of the population with their needs. These genius innovations are meant to assist aging adults – with the help of their caregivers – as they face the challenges of aging. If you are looking to equip your loved ones with necessary items to help ease the obstacles of growing old, check the gadgets below:

Medical Alert System

Several difficulties arise as people grow older and one of these is problems with mobility or balance. Older people are likely to fall down and injure themselves. In case this happens to your loved one, how will she be able to ask for help? Medical alert system, or Personal Emergency Response System (PERS), allows your loved one to contact you or her caregiver in case of an emergency.

Thanks to constant innovations, the PERS gadgets available in the market today are wireless and more mobile. You won’t have to worry anymore whenever your aging parents are out of your sight because they now have a means to contact you. At the same time, your parents will be at ease about moving around freely because they know that you are only a click away.

Automatic Pill Dispensers

Sometimes, people decide to hire home care because their loved one is becoming forgetful. This is especially problematic when your loved one has to take different medications for their ailments every day. With all those medicines, it might be difficult for her to remember which one to take at what time.

Good thing electronic pill dispensers are now available in the market. Electronic pill dispensers doesn’t only dispense pills, you can also set them to remind your loved one what medicine to take at what time. Not only that – this gadget can also alert you when your stock is running low! An automatic pill dispenser will allow your loved one to easily get her medicine and reduce the risk of forgetting when to drink them.

Pre-Programmed Phones

Most people rely on smartphones to stay connected with their friends and families anywhere. Despite this, older adults tend to shy away from phones. It can be difficult to convince your elders to use mobile phones because they sometimes find it too complex. That’s why the arrival of senior-friendly phones in the market is such good news.

Mobile phones are a good way to be in contact with your loved one especially if they are out visiting their friends or just strolling around the mall. Plus, it has other applications that can entertain your loved one like music and games. Just make sure that before you give the phone, your number, any of your immediate family member, and your caregiver’s are already pre-programmed in the phone directory.

GrandCare Systems

The three devices stated above are just some of the gadgets that your loved ones should possess at all to help them cope with the effects of aging. Although if you want, there is one tool that can deliver all the benefits of the said three gadgets and more! The GrandCare Systems is an advantageous device that allows your parents to contact their family and friends, view medication reminders, and access information. Basically, it combines the advantages of many separate devices into one tool!

Despite its many uses, your parents don’t have to be tech savvy in order to use GrandCare. In addition, you can access the care portal using any device and leave notes and reminders or just check on your parents. GrandCare is your parents’ all in one tool for communication and information.

Today’s generation is using technology wisely to create devices that will aid the older population as they deal with the effects of aging. Just remember that these tools are not meant to fully replace caregivers, rather, to help them assist an aging person. Before you buy any of the gadgets listed above, remember to discuss it with your loved ones first. Including them in the decision-making process – especially one that involves them – is a must.

Author Bio

Christine Halaba is a Communications degree holder and a freelance writer from the Philippines. Her contributions as a writer can be seen in different blogs for home care, advertising, and health and wellness. Her hobbies include leisure and traveling.  

Preventing Senior Isolation

Green Bank, West Virginia, is arguably the most isolated place in the nation. A large telescope designed to monitor for signals from the universe requires a 13,000 square mile “quiet zone”, encompassing much of West Virginia and even stretching as far north as the Maryland border. In this “quiet zone”, residents live with no cellular telephone service, no Internet, no radio, and until recently, no microwaves. For the most part, the residents of this community are completely isolated. They have very limited means of communicating with the outside world. Today, seniors living outside of Green Bank, West Virginia are also feeling cut off and lonely. But why?

One could argue that our current population is the most connected it has ever been. People walking around with cell phones, tablets, connected wearables, bluetooth head pieces, and smartwatches are more connected than ever.  The difficulty is that technologies that support better communication are often complicated, daunting and rarely designed for the 65+ population in mind.

It could be a difficult leap for someone who has witnessed the rise and fall of the typewriter, for example, to be expected to set up and operate a laptop computer or figure out how to place a video call. “Technophobia” may be running rampant in senior housing, leaving loved ones with limited means for contact. It does not seem right that in this “connected world” we live in that one whole gaping generation is left in the cold, alone and lonely.  

Enter GrandCare Systems, a company created in 2005 to combat senior isolation and help keep families connected and provide “peace of mind”.  The GrandCare System was designed to be self maintaining and require ZERO technical know-how from the loved one. It simply works and seamlessly connects them to one touch video chat with family, friends and even healthcare providers. Pictures automatically populate the large GrandCare touchscreen from various family facebook photo albums. Family can login to the care portal from any mobile device or computer and send messages, reminders, schedule appointments, add to dos and check in to see if mom needs anything.  

Is your loved one lonely or isolated?  That’s not right. Let GrandCare help. Contact us.

grandCARE receives 9.7 out of 10 on the Senior List Product Review

Product Review: grandCARE

The Senior List (read the entire review here)

GrandCare Systems
9.7 out of 10

I get really excited about new technologies, systems, and emerging companies.  Especially if they’re built with the goal of making peoples lives more livable.   GrandCARE Systems is one of those companies that’s easy to get behind!  GrandCARE Systems is a communication tool, care management asset and activity-sensor-hub all wrapped up in an easy-to-use touchscreen device.

Connectivity Tools For Seniors

The grandCARE System offers connectivity for seniors.  It keeps them connected to family members, caregivers, and healthcare providers alike.  Family members are able to share photos, videos, and messages through the care portal (which can be accessed through any device with an internet connection).  Caregivers can set up activity reminders and medication prompts.  Medication reminders take on a whole new look with photos of pills and dosing information.

Healthcare providers are able to set up sensors around the home that can detect motion, establish sleep patterns and even send an alert if the refrigerator door has not been opened in the morning.  The system also supports telehealth devices such as blood pressure monitors, scales, pulse oximeters, glucometers, and thermometers.   All of this can be done while monitoring and engaging even the most technology-averse seniors.GrandCare Systems offers connectivity to seniors

GrandCARE allows every person involved with the senior to contribute in their own way.  It allows people to feel more integrated into their loved ones lives. — Daphne Karpan, Home Care RN

Thegrandcare systems communication tool grandCARE touch screen interface is very easy for the front end-user, presumably an older adult that may not be familiar with computers or modern tech.  It’s also easy for family, caregivers and providers who are connected on the back-end.  Monitoring seniors at home can make a great deal of sense.  GrandCARE just makes it easier!  Personally, I can also see this system being a welcome addition to any long distance family member situation.  Family members can easily send photos, videos and personal notes to share.

We reviewed a competitor of grandCARE in the past called Video Care.  Even though Video Care isn’t around anymore, their users have been incorporated into the grandCARE system.

 VideoCare used different hardware than grandCARE but we invested in testing our software to the point we can simply send VideoCare customers a USB drive that installs GrandCare on their current VideoCare touch PC.   It has made a number of people happy and we are proud to almost seamlessly migrate clients and their caregivers from VideoCare to grandCARE with almost no interruption in service. — Jerry Furness, COO of grandCARE

GrandCare Systems Monitor

GrandCARE Systems (grandCARE) recently released MediKall, which is a HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) compliant video chat for providers to talk to clients and patients about medical conditions.  HIPPA compliance means your medical and personal information is protected/safe. GrandCARE can be used with a wired or wi-fi internet connection, so it’s a very flexible solution.

Buying a grandCARE System

Cost is $699 for the system and requires a $49 monthly subscription.  There are no additional charges for use of health devices, sensors, or alerts.  Some users are able to access this system through their home care, home health, hospice, or senior care living facility at a reduced cost.  Ask your provider if they have grandCARE connected into their network.  If you’re interested in the grandCARE System for a family member or a friend, by being a member of The Senior List community, you can receive 10% off of the purchase price.  Tell them you read about it here!

GrandCare Systems

$699 + $49 monthly

GrandCare Systems
9.7

Easy of Use 9.5/10

Scalability 9.8/10

Access from Anywhere 9.9/10

Accessible from Multiple Devices 9.9/10

Pros

  • – Can be used in any setting
  • – Socialization
  • – Activity Monitoring
  • – Telehealth Recording
  • – Medication Management

About Amie

Mom, Business Owner, and Blogger. Expert on senior-care issues, particularly senior housing solutions. Loves a good challenge and tough obstacle courses. Co-founder of The Senior List and The Senior Resource Network.

Comments

    • Thanks Amie. I did speak to the director of product development at GrandCare today to determine if my grandmother’s dementia would prevent her from using this. The interface is completely customizable so that we are able to remove all but video conference button. If she is still unable to understand how to use the unit, it can be controlled remotely so that we can launch the video conference and also control sound remotely and my grandmother would not need to do anything.