Home medical alarms are also called personal emergency response systems (PERS). When an alarm is activated by the user, a transmitter sends a wireless signal to another location. This signal is received by a relative, friend or a monitoring center. Help is dispatched or, with some units, inquiries are made via a return signal.Home alarms can help people with disabilities to preserve their independence and security.

Data about falls in Senior citizens suggest the importance of home medical alarms. 30% of people over the age of 65 fall at least once each year. Seniors who do not receive help for 12 hours after a fall are five times more likely to die than Seniors who receive help.

Home medical alarms have become common since their development during the 1970's, and their technology has become increasingly sophisticated. Full service companies guide customers in the selection of a medical alarm that is appropriate for their circumstances, and explain its use. They will install the system and provide maintenance, periodically checking on its effective function.

Medical alarm systems can now :

• monitor the wandering of patients with dementia
• use GPS technology that increases range for communication by 1,000 feet
• detect falls
• send alerts directly to a caregiver’s cell phones and I Phones by text messages
• use sensors beneath matresses to monitor the vital signs of people in bed
• detect the onset of epileptic seizures
• alert a user to the need for medication and dispense the medication