Hi, I’m Diane. I’m retired but I used to work for the local council delivering managed care, so I know a little bit about what the ageing process looks like.
As I age, I know I’m getting frailer. A few years ago, I had a fall in the garden and broke my wrist. There was nobody in the house and I was trying to figure out how I could get up. I was shouting for help and luckily my neighbour heard me and managed to get in to help me into a chair and call the ambulance. It would have taken hours so she found my ‘phone and called my son, who took me to the hospital, but if my neighbour hadn’t been walking around the back at the time, I don’t know what I would have done.
After the fall, I referred myself to the falls prevention service, which diagnosed a balance problem and gave me some exercises to help, but I had another fall in the shower and, while I managed to get myself up, it is scary when you’re in the house on your own and these things happen.
That’s why I started to ‘old proof’ the house and when I heard about the Technology-Enabled Care programme, I was all for trying it out.
I’m going through the process at the moment and I can see as I’m getting different equipment, how helpful it is for me and how it is making me safer. For example, if I’d had the falls watch a couple of years ago, I could have just pressed the button and I’d have had help immediately. I also have movement sensors so my sons know if I’m in the house or moving around as normal. If I go out of the back door and haven’t come back for a while, the sensors will pick up on it and let my sons know so they can check on me. I’ve also got a video care phone, which tells me the day and time so I don’t get confused. I can just press a button to call either of my sons – no need to remember their number – and I can see who’s calling me too.
I think it’s a good thing, it makes me feel more able to go about and do what I want to do, rather than just sitting in a chair. When I fell, I was so isolated in the garden and when I went home with my cast on and everything, I didn’t go out in my garden for quite a while. I was very nervous about it.
I don’t want to leave my home as I get older, no-one does, but unfortunately lots of older people have to. You’re much happier in your own home but family and friends can live a long way away. This technology can help you feel and be safe.
I’m putting it in while I’m still relatively young and fit. I think it’s important that it is preventative and that you plan for it so you understand what the system is and what it is doing before you get to a state when maybe you don’t understand.
I was a bit worried that it might feel intrusive but it’s not. It’s just a system that helps me stay safe and I actually find it comforting now. It really is, to know the house is starting to be so much safer for me. If I fall, I can press the button on my watch. If I’m unconscious, I know the sensors will pick me up and alert someone to help me.
The old telecare systems – the pendant round your neck – labelled you as old. This is different. We all need to plan for ageing. We’re all getting older, but getting the right support in place is brilliant. It allows me to live my life and stay independent in my own home.
