Nearly two million people a year suffer some kind of accident through falling over, most of them in their own home. Older people are particularly at risk, with one in three people over 65 falling over each year, but medical conditions and disabilities can leave people of any age feeling vulnerable. As well as the physical damage a fall can cause it can have a devastating psychological result, leaving people insecure and worried about their safety when they’re at home alone.
The Vale Care Link personal help alarm system, run by The Vale Housing Association, can offer support and reassurance to people who want to feel safer in their homes. Users are given an alarm, which can be worn as a pendant around their neck, to press to summoned help in an emergency. If they press the alarm they are connected to our control centre who alert their chosen emergency contacts. These contacts are nominated by the users themselves - they can be either friends and family or one of our response managers.
Mrs Mary Theobald of Wantage calls her Vale Care Link personal alarm system her life-saver
. She’s used it twice since she joined the service, once when she cut her head badly. I honestly think I would have bled to death without it,
she said. I’m never without it, just in case.
More recently, she needed to use it again when she fell and could not get up. Through using the alarm she was able to summoned assistance from one of The Vale Housing Association’s scheme managers, who helped her up and made sure she was alright.
Mr Peter Rogers of Abingdon, who suffers from Parkinsons Disease, lost his balance and fell in his kitchen recently. He summoned help through his alarm but was actually able to get up himself before his emergency contact arrived. It was reassuring to know that help was on the way, however
he commented.
Both Vale Housing Association tenants and private residents are able to join the scheme for a small weekly fee. It can be installed easily using an existing phone line. To find out more, or for a free demonstration, contact David Woodhams or Roger Bartlett on 01235 536001.
Communications and Research Manager
The Vale Housing Association
01235 536001