Elderly Care Monitoring – What is it? How to do this? What are the benefits of it?

We often hear this, don’t we? “Extra pair of eyes is needed when around small children”. It is no different with the elderly, either. Any fall, accident, failure in security, or medical ignorance can damage their mental or physical wellness. For their safety and security and our sanity as family members, we need to ensure elder care monitoring with or without human touch and utilize the many elder care monitoring systems and devices available in the market.

What is Elderly Care Monitoring?

Keeping a check on physical wellness, emotional stability, and safety with minimal risk to the elderly is elderly care monitoring. The traditional and primary way is through an accompanying family member or a caregiver 24*7. While it is idealistic, being able to be around the loved one, but practically impossible. Nuclear families today don’t have the flexibility to spend that much time with their jobs, travels, house works, kids to attend to, etc. While full-time nursing staff can be a solution, not all residents are receptive to it. They are usually hesitant if mentally stable and believe they can manage. Therefore, senior care monitoring systems have taken precedence and working well by keeping everyone’s interest and wellness in mind.

Elderly Care Monitoring System – What is it & how it works?

• Surveillance camera: CCTV cameras around the house or entry-exit points help keep a watch on residents prone to wandering but also safeguard residents’ safety. Any strange movements or people detected can warn residents or neighbours. The connection with mobile phones or systems of families anywhere in the world enables remote monitoring of elderly parents.
• Video Doorbell: Installing video doorbells helps residents to see the visitor before opening the door. It even comes with night visions. They even come with night vision cameras.
• Elderly monitors: Just like babies, we can place monitors responsible in elderly persons’ rooms and raise alarms to prevent falls, accidents, and wandering or attend to their urgent needs.
• Wireless Cameras: Various brands are available that help monitor video of elderly folks from one’s phones, receive alerts, and act like an intercom wherein you can interact with them. These video devices are one of the best monitors for elderly care as one has instant access to the voice and face of the elderly.

Elderly care monitoring devices

• Smart Watches: It helps to track the steps, pulse rate, heart rate, etc. These watches help set exercise reminders, motivate them to complete the workout, warn them to go slow when needed, etc.
• GPS Trackers: This is very useful for patients with Alzheimer’s or dementia who are most likely to get lost. It enables us to track their live location if and when lost.
• Phones with emergency diallers: For the convenience of the contact list, we have family or caregiver numbers synced with emergency dialling. They can reach out to loved ones struggle-free when urgent.
• Diaper alarms: There are alarms manufactured now that come inserted in diapers to warn of potential leakages and remind to change them.

Such senior care monitoring systems are worth exploring and can be purchased based on family needs and individual budgets.

10 Benefits of using Senior Care Monitoring Systems

• Considerable reductions in accidents and falls have resulted from timely warnings to the residents directly or to their families.
• Many senior citizens are used to the independent lifestyle and are hesitant to move out or stay with families. A sound monitoring system helps elongate their stay on their own and keeps them safe.
• Placing cameras discreetly without invading their private space helps them continue their stay with dignity without feeling violated.
• The vital markers and measurements being checked regularly through devices help caregivers and families to keep track of wellness.
• Monitoring devices help maintain discipline with constant reminders to walk, work out, complete the target steps, take medications, etc.
• Elder care video monitoring keeps them in touch with families with constant interaction, conversations, and involvement.
• Satisfaction levels are higher within families as the elderly feel safe and secure in their surroundings.
• For Alzheimer’s and dementia residents, it helps track their movements and find them if they get lost.
• We, as families, get a good history of data like movement, temperature, behaviour, and sleep patterns to understand their conditions better.
• It even helps reduce unnecessary worries, expenditures, and trips to doctors and diagnostic centres.

Conclusion

As a family and as a younger generation citizen, it is our moral responsibility to give the best care to our elderly members of family and society as they did their share of the load for us. Their mental, physical and emotional wellness is our priority, whether they can express it or not. And with the additional help of elderly care monitoring systems and devices, one can be clued on to health updates and new developments in the life of the senior member.