Wightcare

Case Studies

Background

Mrs Jones is a 95 year old lady who lives alone at home. Mrs Jones has Alzheimer's Disease, osteoarthritis and recurrent chest infections. Because of her debilitating health Mrs Jones is also prone to falls at home. Her daughter, Mary is very supportive and visits every day.

Mary has been increasingly concerned about her mother's safety and well being. This has caused significant stress for Mary who is worried about her mother being on her own.

Care assessment

Following a care assessment, it was identified that Mrs Jones could be safer within her own home with Telecare. We also identified that Mary, as Mrs Jones's main carer, could also benefit from the peace of mind which Telecare provides. The assessment established areas of potential risk and that Mrs Jones could not recognise when she needed help.

Telecare provision

We were able to provide the following Telecare to help Mrs Jones and her daughter:

Community alarm - this allows us to communicate with Mrs Jones in the event of Telecare equipment being activated
Bed monitor - this is programmed for night-time use. When Mrs Jones gets out of bed, the bed side light automatically switches on to reduce the risk of falls in the dark. If Mrs Jones does not get back to bed within an agreed timescale, the alarm will activate as it may suggest an incident has occurred
Fall detector - to be worn by Mrs Jones at all times during the day. If Mrs Jones falls , the detector will immediately alert and help can be sent
Smoke detector - this automatically activates the alarm and help is provided should Mrs Jones have smoke or fire risk within her home

Outcome

Mary is delighted with Telecare and stated "it has given me reassurance and a reduction in stress" while Mrs Jones continues to be happy and safe at home.