Savvy Living

What types of new home technologies can you recommend to help me keep tabs on my elderly mother? She lives alone, about a one-hour drive from me and I worry about her safety.

Helping an aging parent remain independent and living in their own home has become a little easier in recent years, thanks to a host of new and improved assistive technology products. Here are some top-rated options you should know about.

Medical Alerts

If you worry about your mom falling and needing help, one of the most frequently used products over the years for seniors living alone is a medical alert device. This device is known as a "personal emergency response system" or PERS.

These devices provide a wearable "SOS" button – typically in the form of a necklace, pendent or bracelet – and a base station that connects to the home phone line.

At the press of a button your mom could call and talk to a trained operator through the system's base station receiver that works like a powerful speaker phone. The operator will find out what's wrong and will notify a family member, neighbor, friend or emergency services as needed.

If you're interested in a PERS device, there are dozens of services to choose from including the Philips Lifeline (lifelinesys.com, 800-380-3111). This is the most widely used medical alert service in the U.S. and costs around $35 per month. Philips also offers a new Auto Alert option for $48 per month that has fall detection sensors in the SOS button that can automatically summon help without your mom ever having to press a button. This is helpful because many seniors after a fall become confused or disoriented and forget to press the button.

If you're interested in a more budget-friendly option, consider an unmonitored medical alert like the new VTech CareLine Home Safety Telephone System for $120 (vtechphones.com). This device doesn't require professional monitoring services and so has no monthly monitoring fees.

To deal with falls or health emergencies that happen outside the home, there are mobile-alert GPS products now available that work anywhere. To find these, go to GreatCall.com, MobileHelpNow.com or PhilipsLifelineGoSafe.com.

Monitoring Systems

A home monitoring system is another sophisticated technology for keeping tabs on your mom. These systems will let you know whether she is waking up and going to bed on time, eating properly, showering and taking her medicine.

They work through small wireless sensors (not cameras) placed in key locations throughout the home. The sensors will track her movements, learning her daily routines and will notify you or other family members via text message, email or phone if something out of the ordinary is happening. For instance, if she went into the bathroom and didn't leave, it could indicate a fall or other emergency.

You can also check up on her patterns anytime you want through the system's password-protected website. For additional protection, most services offer SOS call buttons as well that can either be placed around the house or worn.

One company that offers a quality home monitoring system is BeClose (beclose.com, 866-574-1784), which costs $399 or $499 for the sensors plus a $69 monthly service fee if paid a year in advance. GrandCare Systems (grandcare.com, 262-338-6147) is another company with a quality system. The company adds an outstanding social component through a senior-friendly computer to go along with the activity monitoring. GrandCare leases for $150 to $300 per month.

Medication Management

If you want to make sure your mom is keeping up with her medications, you can rent a medication management device. This device will dispense her medicine on schedule, provide constant reminders and even notify you if she is not taking her medicine. Two products currently on the market are MedMinder (medminder.com, 888-633-6463), which rents for $40 per month, and the Philips Medication Dispensing Service (managemypills.com, 888-632-3261) that costs $75/month.

Savvy Living is written by Jim Miller, a regular contributor to the NBC Today Show and author of "The Savvy Senior" book. The articles are offered as a helpful and informative service to our friends and may not always reflect this organization's official position on some topics. Jim invites you to send your senior questions to: Savvy Senior, P.O. Box 5443, Norman, OK 73070.