Most seniors want to live independently in their own homes for as long as possible. A new system works with Alexa to watch out for falls.
Falls by seniors can lead to serious injury, and even death. In order to live safely on their own, a fall detection system can help notify caregivers or emergency services if they need assistance. A new system from a company called Vayyar uses radio waves to detect when someone in the home falls. The new feature is that it works with Alexa Together, a subscription service from Amazon that provides support for elderly living on their own. If someone falls in the area covered by the sensor, the Alexa digital assistant can ask if the person needs assistance. If no response is detected, the system will automatically go ahead and call an urgent response help line and send an alert to an emergency contact. The system is not foolproof; it won’t work if the power is out or Internet service is down, but it does provide a passive system to detect when someone needs help.