Richmond Alarm News Blog

Today, Richmond Alarm launched a new and separate website: Richmond Medical Alert. This is a Personal Emergency Response System (PERS) that is worn and can summon help when the phone is out of reach. Designed for seniors living alone, the button can be worn anywhere, even in the shower where many falls occur. At the push of the button, you can speak with our monitoring center that will contact emergency services if you need it, as well as a family member or friend. 

For Today's Active Seniors

Active seniors want to age in place, and Richmond Medical Alert can give you the peace of mind you need. Our technicians install the system in your home and show you how it operates so you won't have to wonder if it set up properly. The technician will also explain the range settings to you. The Medical Alert system works within hundreds of feet of the base, and usually this extends into the yard, and our technician will help you identify the safe area of your property.

Now is the Time

If you have considered a personal emergency response system, now is the time. Don't wait until a scary situation occurs. Contact Richmond Medical Alert today and we'll be glad to get you on the road to a new peace of mind.

Get in the Spring, Home Improvement Spirit

Look for Richmond Alarm this weekend at the Home & Garden Show located at the Richmond Raceway Complex. The show starts Friday and runs March 2-4, 2012. We are sharing a booth with the BNI Home Services Power Players Team in Building 2, Booth 64. We’ll be there all weekend handing out swag and demonstrating medical alert & home security systems and giving away Virginia Key & Lock magnets.

Additional displays and give-aways from our partners on the BNI Home Services Power Team:

• Blankenship Insurance Services
• CitruSolution Carpet Cleaning
• Mr. Rooter Plumbing
• Atlantic Heating & Cooling
• Oriole Landscaping
• OSM Paint & Repair
• A&W Powerwashing

We look forward to seeing you there and hope you enjoy the Home Show!

Caring for elderly parents can be a challenge, but Richmond Alarm Company has a simple solution to help you care for the ones you love without the pain and trouble of relocation. Utilizing the Total Connect system from Honeywell, combined with personal monitoring devices, Richmond Alarm can help you keep a watchful eye on aging or disabled family members, even when you are away from home.

How It Works

Remote Security Monitoring

This system can alert you when someone enters the home. Upon entering, a picture can be taken and sent to your mobile web-enabled devices such as your smartphone, iPad®, or laptop immediately. You can also receive images from cameras placed anywhere in the home at any time. This feature is especially helpful if your loved one is receiving in-home care, as you'll be notified immediately when they arrive. The remote monitoring features can also be integrated into existing security systems.

Personal Home Monitoring

Falls within the home, particularly involving stairs and showers, are a major concern when caring for an aging family member. Richmond Alarm's personal monitoring device allows the individual to simply press a button on a pendant worn around their neck, wrist, or clipped onto a waistband to call emergency services as well as alert you and, if necessary, your neighbors. Monitoring centers are local to help insure the quickest response to any emergency need.

The Benefits

The elderly tend to do better, have a better standard of living and are happier, in their own homes. While it is not possible for everyone to grow old in their own homes, for those who can, it is a comfort and a blessing. The biggest concerns for family members are typically issues of safety. These systems, especially when combined, can help family members, however distant, keep a watchful eye on their aging parents or loved ones. More information about helping the elderly age in place can be found on the AARP website.

Monitor Your Home or Business from Anywhere

When you are away from home, wouldn’t it be nice to instantly see what is going on there? Total Connect Services gives you access. Through your web enabled mobile device you can see in real time:

• When someone arrives at your home or business
• Employee performance
• Child, parent or pet activities
• Caregiver attention
• Activity that triggers motion sensors

Using an app for your mobile device, you can control your Honeywell security system from anywhere, and receive text messages of notifying you of important events in and around your home or business. Contact Richmond Alarm and we'll get you started.

The risk of accidental falls increases for seniors over 65

Do you remember the commercial, with the lady who fell and couldn’t get up? Those of us who grew up in the 1980’s have laughed at it over and over.  But now, we have older parents who live alone and we worry about them, and that commercial isn’t so funny anymore.  We need something to let us know if mom or dad has fallen, but more importantly have someone call if medical help if needed.  A study on the National Institute of Health (NIH) website says, “In the United States one in three people aged 65 or older, living in the community, fall at least once a year. This proportion increases to one in two for those over 80 years old.”

Shelly from Mechanicsville Virginia shared this with us:

Recently, my aunt fell. She is 80, and lives alone. She has family nearby and they check on her regularly but unfortunately she fell when there were not scheduled to visit.  She was stuck on the floor - hurting, cold, and unable to move - for an entire weekend.  Despite the family’s best efforts to keep in contact with her, we missed the opportunity to help her when she needed it. We couldn’t have prevented the fall, nor the heart condition at the root of the problem, but we could have prevented her discomfort and loneliness.

Why didn’t we give her a personal emergency monitor?  No one wanted to TELL her she was getting old, her health was failing and that we worry about her.  As it turns out, she knew it and had been thinking about getting a monitoring device.

Monitoring Solutions from Richmond Alarm

Does your elderly loved-one live alone?  A personal emergency response system (PERS) could be the peace of mind you need.  Necklace pendant, belt clip, or wristwatch style transmitters can signal the need for assistance from anywhere in the home. Systems start at $175 installed and $40 per month.  The necklace pendant can even be worn in the shower where many falls occur.

Contact Richmond Alarm for more information on the Personal Emergency Response Systems (PERS) solutions we offer, and give yourself and your elderly relative’s peace of mind.