Personal alarms lift confidence, but not in bed

A new study of 2,610 Australian personal alarm users has found that although most wore them regularly around their home and in the garden, many did not wear it in the shower or bath or in bed at night.

Despite 65% of users saying that they were aware that the alarm was water-proof, only 39% said that they always wore it in the shower.

The lower use in bed at night was related to concerns that the alarm would be activated accidentally and that the alarm cord could get entangled around the neck.

In the report by Kristen De San Miguel, of Silver Chain, Western Australia, and Gill Lewin, of the Centre for Research on Ageing, of Curtin University of Technology, WA, and published in the Australasian Journal on Ageing, they said that nearly one third of those surveyed had used the alarm in an emergency situation with this due mainly to falls.  Of these, 80% found the emergency response to be efficient and that the alarm was an effective device for getting faster assistance.

But some users were hesitant to press the alarm because they said they “did not want to bother anyone”.

Previous studies had also found that although people had fallen and hurt themselves they did not activate the alarm even though they had the opportunity to do so.

In terms of the alarm’s impact on the users’ lives the WA study concluded that older people felt that having the alarm had provided them with faster assistance in emergencies, increased their sense of security, reduced their anxiety about falling, and increased their confidence in performing everyday activities.