According to AARP, 40% of seniors aged 80 and above in the United States live alone, and for those over 65 the rate is one-in-three. Furthermore, there are currently 5 to 7 million adults serving as long-distance caregivers for family members, usually an aging parent. As a caregiver for a loved one still living at home, you may worry about them falling, getting lost while out-and-about, or even wandering off if they have some cognitive impairment. We live in the Technology Age, and the good news is that are now several new innovations to assist your caregiving efforts. In the hands of caregivers, these high-tech gadgets are helping keep seniors safer, healthier, and more socially interactive so that they can continue aging independently in place. What follows are some of these better caregiving technologies.

Safety Devices

We’re all familiar with the “Help… I’ve fallen and I can’t get up!” Life Alert ads. Any senior living alone should have access to a Personal Emergency Response System (PERS). A PERS device allows the wearer to call for help, like when they fall, with the push of a button. There are wearable GPS activity sensors for seniors which are highly beneficial for wandering Alzheimer’s patients, and others affected by dementia. Many wearables resemble watches or pendants and look quite fashionable, which may help overcome a wearer’s objections. Electronic senior safety devices include:

Medication Management

According to recent surveys, over 50% of seniors are on 5 or more prescription medications, and 25% take over 10 pills daily. It’s no wonder mom or dad have trouble remembering to take their meds! To make it easier, seniors and their caregivers now have at their disposal caregiving technologies that work better than traditional pill boxes. There are also devices that promptly provide first responders with a senior’s medical history and medication lists when they show up at their home. Some of these modern caregiving technologies include:

Health Tracking

A senior’s medical history, physician contacts, health conditions, and medication list can now all be stored using Smartphone apps and cloud-based health information systems. That’s not only handy for first responders, but also for caregivers when emergencies happen, or questions arise. Allergic reactions, dangerous drug interactions, and other life-threatening medication-related situations troublesome in the past can now almost be avoided when using these new health tracking gadgets, such as:

Social Media

There is now a plethora of social media platforms, and each provides an opportunity for you as a caregiver- notably a long-distance one- to stay connected with a senior. For example, in the event of a natural disaster like a hurricane, caregivers can monitor the health and wellbeing of seniors remotely in real time using social media. Outside of caregiving needs, studies have further found that staying socially connected benefits seniors by keeping them healthier and happier. Many professional home care agencies are now using social media like Skype or Facetime to chat with clients while checking in, or to monitor their health, safety and wellbeing when nasty weather prevents routine in-home visits.

Monitoring At-Home Seniors is Our Specialty!

At Cranberry Home Care, we understand how important monitoring your aging loved one’s health, medications and safety can be. When you’re providing caregiving for an aging family member, there will be times when you need a break, or live too far away. And, that’s when a reliable caregiver from Cranberry Home Care can step in and lend a hand. Our home care aids are carefully- screened, highly-trained and ready to deliver the care your loved one deserves when and where they need it. Our family-trusted senior in-home services include medication monitoring, fall prevention, light housekeeping, meal preparation, personal hygiene and transportation, all provided in an affordable, individually tailored package to restore your peace-of-mind. For more information about Cranberry Home Care’s senior in-home caregiving services in the Middleboro, MA area, or to schedule an initial consultation, please visit: www.cranberryhomecare.com now!