Monday, March 1, 2010

Flashback….”I’ve fallen and I can’t get up”

A friend of mine from Tennessee was talking about her mother-in-law who was living by herself and the subject brought back memories of my brother who was the primary caregiver of mom after dad's death. My brother in 1991 died and I became the primary caregiver. Mom didn't have dementia at the time but she was living alone; although quite capable of living by herself I was still concern because she was 79-years old and alone. We have all seen the commercial with the old lady screaming "I've fallen and I can't get up!"

The objective behind the commercial is that senior citizens like my mom would receive a medical alert pendant that would allow our her to call out (verbally with her voice) to an audio receiving device and talk directly with a dispatch call operator, without the need to reach a telephone. The service was designed to appeal particularly to seniors who lived alone and who might experience a medical emergency, such as a fall in the bathroom, which would leave the parent alert but immobile and unable to reach a phone WRONG...the commercial was designed directly at the adult children whose parent lives at home ALONE.

My mom fought tooth and nail whenever I brought up the subject because she has also seen the "I've fallen and I can't get up" commercial. Mom looked at me with that superior look "I am not old and I can take care of myself" and I said I will hire a live-in caregiver if you don't wear the pendant. She finally relented and said "I will wear the pendant."

Here's an update version of the commercial; http://tiny.cc/cUAM9

6 comments:

Midnight Music Man said...

CareGiveGuy I had to laugh because my dad was screaming and hitting his fist against the table when I told him that he had to wear the emergency alert device. "I aint no old lady who can't get up" he yelled. I had to bribe him with a trip to Reno. CareGiverGuy welcome back!

Midnight Music Man
NYC

Lisa Wong said...

CareGiverGuy

My father died six months ago and I'm extremely worried about my 78 year old mother. She stays in the house and sometimes works out in the garden. I also live in the Bay Area in Orinda. Who would you recommend for a service? I will email you my request and hopefully you will contact me soon. Which support group do you attend when you're in town?

Larry Taylor said...

Caregiverguy where's your support group in the Bay Area? I would like to meet you because you made me laugh today with your hip hop revision of that commerical.

Anonymous said...

Thanks for the 411 on the medical alert devices. I'm trying to encourage grandma to wear the pendant but she's so stubborn.
Any suggestion?

Renee
Hayward, CA

Tom - Half Moon Bay said...
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Fayne Cohen said...

Hi Lisa,

The company I work for (Bay Area Vital Link) provides emergency response systems and we are located in Berkeley, CA. We are a family owned business that has been around for 29 years! We have many clients in Orinda and would be happy to answer any questions that you may have about the service. Our number is 1800-752-5522.

Best,
Fayne Cohen
Office Manager
Bay Area Vital Link
800-752-5522
www.vlink.org