Does how a safety device looks put your parent off wearing it?

I suspect many of us here don’t have parents still alive harry. Call me cynical, but might you have something in mind?

Hello Hallygarian

At 86 I’m the parent in question. I don’t (yet) have a safety device. But I’m considering it. I believe these devices can come in the form of a wristwatch or as a pendant. The watch would obviously be unobtrusive. The pendant less so, but could be worn under a top. So I don’t actually see any problem but if indeed it were more obviously visible that wouldn’t bother me.
Good luck with your research.

My mother has an alarm pendent which is linked to the retirement flat she lives in. She also has a falls alarm which is on her wrist. Both aren’t very attractive but as my mum lives alone , she’s happy to wear them . Although initially she wasn’t keen. I explained that if she fell and couldn’t move , she’d be on the floor for a few days as I don’t visit daily .
When mum was discharged from a hospital stay last year , one of the recommendations from the OTs was a falls alarm , due to her being prone to falls.
IME I’ve had to be blunt with my mum.

I do have one, but don’t wear it. Yet!
Aged 73, I moved from Kent to Bristol after DH died and chose to live in sheltered accommodation. We have alarm cords but, although I was told they “were expensive”, I insisted on having one. It’s not pretty but…
My attitude is if I need more teeth, I get dentures; can’t hear - aids, etc. The call pendant is just another present from old age - the gift that keeps on giving!

Sorry for the miss-understanding I should have worded this better, But I was trying to insinuate anybody who may require one.

Thank you all for sharing this, really helpful to hear. Out of interest, if there was a fall-alert device on the market that looked exactly like a normal piece of jewellery, say a bracelet or pendant you wouldn't be able to tell apart from any other, rather than something that reads as 'medical', would that make you more likely to wear it, or choose it over what's currently out there?

I was issued with an alarm necklace sort of thing via Age Concern because I had 'a fall' (not fell over, not my fault) a couple of years ago. I can't bring myself to wear it...I hate it, it's so obviously an old persons alarm. It's sat in a drawer somewhere. I'd use my mobile phone alarm if I needed to in an emergency.

I wear no jewellery, so it felt intrusive.

My mum had first a wrist alarm - it proved too easy to trigger accidentally - and then a pendant.
She didnt like them and yes, they made her feel old, but to be honest I don't think she personally would have liked it any better if it had looked like normal jewellery.
That said, Im sure there are women who would be happier with device that looked like jewellery,

Im not sure what alternative might work for men though.

I have an alarm that can be worn either on my wrist or as a pendant and whilst I realise it's worth from a practical point I do try to hide it or take it off if going out or expecting visitors. I do make an effort to look smart and this ugly plastic button on black elastic round my wrist looks awful. I've tried wearing it as a pendant under clothing but kept setting it off.
I've often wondered why no one has come up with an attractive alternative. I would certainly be happy to pay a little more for this.

Thank you all, this has been really eye-opening. I'm looking into why so many people don't wear their alarms, so a couple of follow-ups if anyone has a moment:

1. Oldnproud, was the accidental triggering from the button being too easy to press, or the fall detection?

2. For those whose alarm ended up in a drawer, what would it have needed for you to actually wear it every day?

3. If an alarm alerted a family member you'd chosen instead of a monitoring centre, would that feel reassuring or more worrying?

4. Would a few seconds to cancel a mistaken press make a difference?

5. If it didn't look like an alarm at all, what form would you be most comfortable with: a bracelet, a plain band, a watch, or something else?

I don’t feel I m at that stage (although of course living on my own I probably am) but I do have my phone with me most of the time so would use that. So far when I fall i ve jumped up before I m down almost
I certainly haven’t thought of it for myself …that’s for old people
I would have thought with all the wonderful little things that can be made an update is well needed
Any piece of jewellery that can be thinned down to look less bulky would be more acceptable a normal sized watch can do a multitude of things so why not this !

I recently asked for advice re alarms.
I do still have a mother, she is 98 and frail but stroppy! After she fell over last week wearing the sliders I told her weren’t a good idea she has finally agreed to wear one. She has also ditched the footwear!
As she lives with us we only need one that would alert us in the house so the look of it wouldn’t matter in the slightest.

My sister has a pendent for falls. She does feel more secure wearing it.
However initially she was given one with a metal cord. She has allergies to metal. So more attention should be given to that aspect.
I changed it to a thin piece of ribbon. She tucks it under clothing as she thinks it's ugly.
I am trying to get her to wear it outside of clothing for accessibility. Now that is harder as she gets somewhat stroppy about that.
Possibly if it looked like a piece of jewellery it might be more appealing to some.

The pendent I have looks like a lump of plastic on a bootlace. I think I'd be more inclined to wear an alarm if it looked like a watch, with a strap and press the face of it in an emergency.

harrygallian

Thank you all for sharing this, really helpful to hear. Out of interest, if there was a fall-alert device on the market that looked exactly like a normal piece of jewellery, say a bracelet or pendant you wouldn't be able to tell apart from any other, rather than something that reads as 'medical', would that make you more likely to wear it, or choose it over what's currently out there?

Is this a fishing expedition Harry?

Are you designing one or are you selling one? Just wondered.

Some look very much like a smart watch. Some are like a button on an elastic band.

The problem with my parent - and I suspect many others - is that no matter what it looked like, they’d forget to wear it anyway.

I am 83, no relatives and had one for a year. I am supposed to wear it 24/7. In bed one night I heard a knock on my window, 1st floor and discovered a fireman on a ladder. My pendant must have got wedged and it is ultra sensitive. There were 2 firemen in my rear garden and a paramedic at my front door! Since then, it has had pride of place ion a drawer.

I paid extra so if I fell in the street I could talk through the pendant. It costs just under £400 a year. A good idea but far too sensitive,

Witzend

The problem with my parent - and I suspect many others - is that no matter what it looked like, they’d forget to wear it anyway.

I'm doing some research into how families keep elderly parents safe at home
What age does the OP think we are?
We are the elderly parents


DH wouldn't wear one anyway (you can take a horse to water etc).

Honestly I think it's nuts for anyone elderly and living alone to keep their alarm in a drawer, but then I have had a heart attack in the past so know that these things don't just happen to other people!
Mine is the bootlace round neck variety and I wear it all the time. If I go out and it will be useless as out of range I take it off and hang it on the inside of my front door handle so I don't forget to put it back on when I return.

Big smartwatches are fashionable so an alarm could I am sure be made to look similar.

Witzend

The problem with my parent - and I suspect many others - is that no matter what it looked like, they’d forget to wear it anyway.

Can't forget it if you never take it off!!