Tag Archive for: GrandCare Systems

GrandCare Systems listed by AARP blogger as a top technology must have

GrandCare is honored to be listed by AARP blogger, Sally Abrahms as one of the top 9 technology must haves.

9 Need-to-Know Technologies for Caregivers

“Can you say the Jetsons? Increasingly, family caregivers are getting a helping hand through high-tech products and services.

Bone up on these trends:

GPS safety technology provides the location of the wearer: devices can be used on the wrist, as a clip-on, or on a pendant. Some cars and smart phones have them – enabling you to speak or touch your desired destination – and see or hear turn-by-turn instructions.

With some devices, the caregiver sets the parameters of where the recipient can be – sometimes referred to as ‘geo-fencing’. If the person goes outside those areas, the caregiver is alerted via phone, text, or email. At any time, the caregiver can log on to a website and track the location of the elder

Personal emergency response systems, known as PERS, also contain GPS technology. It’s the Medic Alert model—if in trouble, the wearer can press a button and be connected with a call center that can dispatch help and notify caregivers. Many PERS devices only work at home, but a few allow the wearer to get help wherever they are—on the golf course, in the car, around the block.

Other safety technology includes wireless sensors around the house (in the bathroom, on the bed, door, or refrigerator, for example) that that let caregivers know if there is activity out of the ordinary i.e. not leaving the bathroom. A fall, perhaps?”

…

GrandCare, on the market since 2006, is a fully-featured care management platform designed to solve the healthcare crisis and aging boom. 

The GrandCare solution is the most comprehensive system available today, combining 6 technologies into ONE system with extensive remote caregiving capabilities.

Read the whole article HERE

“PERS – More Than a Button & a Box”?! May 3rd

Join GrandCare Systems Thursday, May 3rd
for the Aging & Technology Webinar.

“PERS – More Than a Button & a Box”?!
With guest speaker Bill Lyon

PERS should be both a reactive and a proactive service solution. PERS anticipates that living independently has ever-changing challenges, with many that may be easily managed by a consumer in combination with her family, her friends and her neighbors.

It is about taking control; it is about managing one’s lifestyle to maximize independence; it is about family connectivity continuously and not the PERS of the 80s that concentrated on those most at-risk and ignored the rest. It’s about broadly engaging the majority population while serving the chronic care consumer . . . this is the Care-Anywhere PERS services in the second decade of the 21st century.

Our Speaker

Bill Lyon is Director, Product & Business Development at LifeStation (a Top 5 M’Health Services Company).  As the President at Visonic Americas & VP Corporate Strategic Business Development, for 10 years prior to LifeStation, accomplishments included worldwide business development for their PERS brand family, with a concentration on the successful launch in the Americas.  His 7 years at LifeLine, as the VP Sales/Marketing (’86-’93), were the strategically formative years when PERS became an important healthcare business channel, expanding from acute care to senior living, consumer direct and at-home care segments .

Thursday, May 3rd 2pm ET – 1pm CT
GrandCareSystems.WebEx.com
Call in: 1-408-600-3600 Pin:665 632 100#
More information

GrandCare Software Tour

A webinar review of the latest and greatest in GrandCare software development.

This 45 minute session will take the viewers through a tour of the GrandCare vision, sensor offerings and capabilities. We will tour the online caregiver/user remote interface and see some live examples of case studies.

Thursday, May 10th 1 – 1:45pm Central 

Where: 

http://www.grandcaresystems.webex.com GrandCare staff will be available on the webinar for a question/answer session. This webinar will be recorded and available to the public.
All are welcome to join us!

About GrandCare Systems

GrandCare offers a senior friendly, internet enabled, private home touch screen system aimed at maintaining independence, controlling chronic conditions, and reducing hospital readmissions. It combines the technologies of smart home, activity monitoring, wellness monitoring, and social connectivity. The wellness aspect includes wireless physiological readings (weight, blood pressure, oximeter, glucometer), self assessment, and medication compliance with associated rule sets, alerts, and congregate analytics. The social aspect includes one button Skype, wellness videos, reminders, and other standard social media content aimed at reducing isolation, educating the patient, and influencing them to better self manage their health.

For more information about GrandCare Systems

-Visit grandcare.com

-Find us on Facebook

-Follow us on Twitter

Flagship Franchises of MN, Inc. Includes GrandCare to its Services

Minnesota entrepreneur, Deborah Delaney, has recently added the innovative technological product known as GrandCare to her company, Flagship Franchises of Minnesota, as a way to ensure that seniors are realizing the best possible quality of life.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

PRLog (Press Release) – Apr 20, 2012 –
(Savage, Minn) – Minnesota entrepreneur, Deborah Delaney, has recently added the innovative technological product known as GrandCare to her company, Flagship Franchises of Minnesota, as a way to ensure that seniors are realizing the best possible quality of life. Delaney is passionate about the need for high quality care for seniors, the fastest growing population in the U.S. She recognized GrandCare as a new technology that can help seniors live a more fulfilled social life, safer home life, ensures through monitoring that health issues are taken care of, and provides family with peace of mind.

About GrandCare
GrandCare combines aspects of “Smart Home” automation, Internet communications, social networking designed for residents, tele-health assessment, ADL (activity of daily living) monitoring, cognitive assists, medication management and two-way video chat technologies into one flexible, user friendly, and affordable package. Available since 2006, GrandCare Systems offers the most comprehensive and fully featured aging & technology system on the market today.

The GrandCare System begins with an interactive computer box (no mouse or keyboard) along with sensors in the Resident’s home. Typically placed in a high-traffic area, the GrandCare System quietly listens to the activity and wellness sensors while providing a simple, intuitive interface (interactive touch and non-interactive TV versions available) for the Resident to receive social interactions from family, keep up with current events, play games, and receive cognitive prompts throughout the day. Using a standard Internet browser, remote Caregivers can go online to view activities, monitor vitals, send messages and designate rules as to when and how they’d like to be alerted upon unusual activity in the residence.

As CEO of Flagship Franchises of Minnesota, Delaney offers the GrandCare system through Flagship to her SarahCare clients and to anyone who could benefit from this innovative technology.

Delaney recognized that GrandCare ultimately allows the elderly to live more independently whether they are on their own or living with a loved one. Not only does the program monitor health and medication, it also allows seniors to maintain social connections; even participate in “real time” activities and events. When asked why she made the decision to include GrandCare in her services provided by Flagship, Delaney responded; “Many people are working full-time and have to run home on their lunch hour to check in and/or disperse medication, take blood pressure readings, etcetera. The GrandCare system provides not only a peace of mind, but respite for the caregiver.” This was an important to the home care part of her business.

About Flagship Franchises 
Deborah Delaney is owner and CEO of Flagship Franchises of Minnesota, Inc. Ms. Delaney founded the company in 2002 with the vision of creating and investing in companies that “connect people with premium care”. Its initial investment is SarahCare® a franchise specializing in providing superior Adult Day Care and Home Health Care Services. Community Based Services and the Elder Care Market are two of the most flourishing industries in the United States.

More About SarahCare
SarahCare© is a participant-driven program developed in 1985 by internationally renowned gerontologist Dr. Merle Griff, Ph.D. in Canton, Ohio. The unique program begins with the individual and reaches outward to involve the community as a whole. SarahCare© offers unparalleled assistance to the participant’s special needs, but more importantly recognizes the uniqueness of each individual. Beyond our professional staff of nurses and specialists helping with the daily tasks of living, SarahCare© seeks to share in the richness of the individual’s personal life and actually customize the environment to stimulate the client’s senses.

From specialty programs like our Men’s Club and Kitchen Crusaders, SarahCare® truly is a unique concept that is setting the standard for the adult day services industry.

Delaney opened the SarahCare of Savage, MN facility in 2004 as the first investment of her Flagship Franchises of Minnesota enterprise.

For more information about any of these services or to schedule an interview, contact Deborah Delaney
Office:  952-465-0555
Mobile: 612-810-9796
ddelaney@sarahcaremn.com

GrandCare on Age Friendly Tech Blog

“GrandCare making a difference for those wanting to live in their homes longer”


A recent news piece from Cold Spring Minnesota shows first hand the difference that GrandCare can make for those who wish to live independently and their families who may live a distance away.

GrandCare monitors health and the taking of medication but some would argue that keeping them in communication with their loved ones is as important…for better emotional health.

One touch to Skype can make a monumental difference.

GrandCare helps give families peace of mind by the way it is able to remotely monitor daily activities with sensors that detect and report both ususal AND unusual activities for families and caregivers…:

  • When pills are taken (or not taken)
  • When a door is opened or not opened (like a fridge)
  • When there is irregular activity (like getting out of bed during the middle of the night and Not getting back in …or Not getting out of a chair)
  • When there is more frequent or less frequent movement than normal (like wandering at night).

GrandCare monitoring costs around $100/month… Leasing options are available.

Note from GrandCare: Pricing varies but can be leased for as low as $99 per month with an upfront installation fee. Final pricing depends on activity and digital health devices deployed.

Original blog post by: Silver Compass Age Friendly Tech Blog

Forbes weighs in on Hospital Readmissions…

I wanted to share the article in Forbes on the healthcare crisis and the problem with Hospital Readmissions.

Regardless of what happens, our healthcare system needs to change. The statistics Forbes shared are overwhelming. Healthcare consumes 17% of our GDP and as a society, we have been known for paying for pounds and pounds of cure. We need to shift our mentality to start paying for those ounces of prevention. The in-home care service is critical to help support patients as they transition from hospital to home. But, that is only one piece of the puzzle. The hands on care is necessary and can help to relieve loneliness, isolation, provide transportation support and act as a helpful resource. But there are more things at play. Many cannot afford round the clock care and may not want someone living with them all hours of the day. That’s why a combination of digital health technology tools, in-home caregiving services and medical provider support is necessary for successful transitions. We just wrote a whitepaper called “Healing in Place”, which explores the successful transition piecing together the home health providers, technology, hospital staff, family and patient to seamlessly provide care and make sure they remain happy, healthy and safe at home. GrandCare is passionate about helping to provide the digital health technology (activity of daily living remote monitoring, digital health/vitals monitoring, medication reminders/alerts, socialization/webchats, touch-based resources & instructions).

 

FORBES:  A Low-Tech Business That Can Prevent Hospital Readmissions

by Zina Moukheiber, Contributor

I cover health IT and Middle Eastern billionaires.

One of the provisions in the Affordable Care Act that is likely to remain untouched by the Supreme Court is linking Medicare payments to hospitals to a patient’s outcome. According to a 2009 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine on Medicare’s fee-for-service program, nearly 20% of Medicare patients discharged from a hospital were readmitted within thirty days, and 34% were rehospitalized within 90 days. Hospitals are now scrambling to comply with the new rules that go into effect this year, and that includes making sure older patients are looked after following discharge.
 Lily Sarafan sees an opportunity—and it’s at the opposite spectrum of the smart home as envisioned by Intel’s Eric Dishman. “We’re positioning for post-hospitalization,” says Sarafan. The 30-year-old is the president of Palo Alto, Ca.-based Home Care Assistance, which is in the very low-tech business of providing expert caregivers by the hour or as live-ins. Their non-medical tasks include assisting with walking, making sure patients take medications on time, driving them to doctor appointments, and cooking healthy meals. (Home Care Assistance posts on its site a testimonial from famed MIT linguist Noam Chomsky who praised it in helping his late wife).

The help is not cheap. Home Care charges between $20 and $30 an hour, and up to $300 a day for live-ins. The company generated $50 million in revenues last year, and Sarafan says it is profitable. Anthos Capital, a private equity firm founded by former Goldman Sachs partners invested an undisclosed amount…

To read the entire article go Here

GrandCare featured in Kare 11 News: “New technology keeping aging relatives in their homes longer”

The GrandCare System was featured on Kare 11 News of Minneapolis/St. Paul Minnesota.

The news story featured the GrandCare user, Ed Thelen, and how he uses the system as a comprehensive solution for his various health conditions and social connectivity.

Written by: Renee Tessman

Full story and video found HERE

Kare 11 News Station

Ed Thelen, GrandCare User

COLD SPRING, Minn. – New technology is making it easier for the elderly to live independently. It’s called GrandCare. Not only does the program monitor health and medication, it also allows the elderly to stay in communication with caregivers and loved ones.In his apartment in Cold Spring, Ed Thelen now has this magic window to a healthier world. As he touched a picture of a camera on his GrandCare touch screen he said, “My favorite things is merely touching this little thing and having all these beautiful people available to me.”

He’s talking about being able to talk to his three kids and six grandkids through a simple touch screen version of Skype. He said it has been beneficial to his emotional health.

He said, “This system has kind of re-birthed me, so to speak.”

Thelen, who battles Parkinson’s, Diabetes and depression, now sees family who live a minimum of an hour away almost every day.

His grandson, John Volkers, said, “It means a lot to me because I barely get to see my grandpa a lot in real life.”

His family can also see if he’s taking care of himself.

His daughter, Kerry Volkers, said it’s, “Nice to be able to make sure that he’s OK. And since we don’t get to go see him as often, it feels like he’s part of our life on a daily basis.”

GrandCare helps families remotely monitor daily activities with sensors that send notifications when pills are taken or when a door is opened. Thelen said, “I can take my blood pressure and that automatically goes onto the system. I can take my glucose.”

Brain waves can be monitored for those who have seizures. Motion sensors can detect movement for those who may wander at night. All of it can be monitored remotely by all caregivers, including family and health care professionals.

Deborah Delaney is with Sarah Care, a local home health care service that helped Thelen get the GrandCare system.

Delaney said GrandCare truly relieves the stress on caregivers who want to keep their loved one in their own home. She said, “Many people are working all the time and have to run home how do I know that dad’s ok during the day now they can communicate all day long and it’s just a peace of mind for people.”

And Tom Ardolf of Cybermation which installs GrandCare technology said GrandCare costs much less than the alternative.

Ardolf said, “Literally the cost of this system, in general, is less than one month of an assisted care facility.”

With the help of an iPad camera, GrandCare also allows Thelen to watch his grandson play basketball live this past weekend.

Thelen said, “When he came by the bench where my daughter was sitting he looked in the camera and he says, ‘Hi grandpa!'”

Thelen said he has a bad short term memory, so the GrandCare reminders to take his meds and to eat healthy for his diabetes are invaluable. He believes he is not only healthier physically, but emotionally too.

Story from: kare11.com

Images from: kare11.com

Full article: HERE

See who’s next, at What’s Next!

Save 20% on your conference
registration with the exclusive code
wndc12gc – Register Today!

See who’s next, at What’s Next!

Join us where America’s leading analysts, executive marketers, business leaders, and research experts will gather to introduce new research, products and services that truly represent what is next on the horizon for businesses selling to baby boomer and senior customers today.

Featured Agenda Tracks:

– The Innovation of Frugality

– Integrated Media and Marketing: Social, Mobile, Gaming

– The New Service Economy: Housing, Caregiving, Mobility and Healthcare

– Entrepreneurship! Encore Careers and Personalized Business Models

View the complete agenda here.

Featured Agenda Tracks:

Quyen Le

Gene Zaino

Missy Sullivan

Deborah L. Jacobs

Quyen Le
Senior Technical Sales Productivity Specialist,
Salesforce.com

Gene Zaino
CEO & President,
MBO Partners

Missy Sullivan
Senior Editor,
SmartMoney
The Wall Street Journal

Deborah L. Jacobs
Author & Journalist
Forbes

Hanna Gryncwajg

Lynn Mento

Jason Rozenblat

Winter Casey

Hanna Gryncwajg
Senior Vice President,
Advertising Sales,
RLTV

Lynn Mento
Director,
Membership,
AARP

Jason Rozenblat
General Manager – DC,
Living Social

Winter Casey
Global Public Policy,
Google

Check out the complete agenda, speakers and more at BoomerSummit.com
Click here to find-out who attends year after year, and why.

Platnum Sponsors:

AARP, Crew Media, United Healthcare

Gold Sponsors:

Microsoft, Caring.com, Linkage, RLTV, Silverado Senior Living, MBO Partners

Silver Sponsors: 

General Mills, GreatCall, The Hartford, SilverRide, Starkey, GrandCare Systems, Facetime Strategy, Google, InnovateLTC, Independa, AAA, Virtual Health

Bronze Sponsors:

VibrantNation.com, Hipcricket, PositScience, MetLife Mature Market Institute, ADEPT Driver, CareLinx, Inc., ABHOW

The What’s Next Boomer Business Summit is affiliated with the
American Society on Aging (ASA) Aging in America Conference that takes place on March 28 – April 1, 2012.

Preparing for Future Technology- Enabled Care Models: Part 2, With Paul Burnstein

Thursday, March 15th 2pm ET – 1pm CT
GrandCareSystems.WebEx.com
Call in: 1-408-600-3600 Pin: 661 857 384#

Health care reform is rapidly accelerating changes in aging services that were already underway driven by consumer demands, capital and payment mechanisms, workforce, technology, quality, transparency and accountability. These changes are driving innovation and the emergence of a number of new care/ business models.

This presentation will continue outlining innovative technology-enabled care models and describing key enabling technologies that CAST encountered in its recent Scenario Planning effort.

Part 1 of this presentation is available for Download Here.

  • See how the field of aging services is rapidly evolving under health reform pressures, among other things.
  • Learn about emerging long-term and post-acute care models that CAST encountered in its Scenario Planning exercise.
  • Learn about key enabling technologies for the emerging future models.

Paul Burnstein, Associate Director, Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST)

Paul Burnstein joined the LeadingAge Center for Aging Services Technologies (CAST) as Associate Director in 2011. Prior to CAST, Paul was the executive director of Sinai Family Home Services, a start-up, non- profit, in-home care agency in Portland, OR.

Paul helps execute CAST’s agenda in leading and expanding a national network of technology companies, providers and research institutions focused on technology solutions for an aging society. He coordinates state-level technology initiatives that aim to identify barriers and opportunities to facilitate the use of technology in an aging society, in partnership with LeadingAge State Affiliates.

GrandCare Systems will exhibit at In-NOW-vation Tech Showcase & Celebration

GrandCare Systems has been selected to be an exhibitor at the MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge 3rd Annual In-NOW-vation, Tech Showcase & Celebration, to be hosted April 26th, 6-8:30 p.m. at Microsoft NERD in Cambridge, MA.

For this exciting showcase and celebration, guests will be voting on their favorite innovative technology demos.  Awards will be given to the winners –

Exhibitors are competing for four prizes:
• Company I Want to Have a Beer With
• Coolest. Company. EVAH.
• Most Likely to be Acquired by Dr. Evil in his plan for World Domination
• Most Likely to Develop a Cult Following

About In-Now-vation Tech Showcase and Celebration: A showcase of creative companies going head-to-head for cool prizes, voted by you, the community, in the guise of a cocktail party. Enjoy fun food and drink and the most exciting demo night this spring!

Follow MIT Enterprise Forum of Cambridge on Twitter @MITefcmb

See more info about the event: Here