is it a good idea to install indoor cam to monitor senior parents?

[teetee]

My grandfather had one stroke before last Christmas and another one at the end of January. He went through rehab this month (we take turns staying with him as temporary assistants during this time) and gained most of his mobility and independence back. He is 97 years old and I am wondering if it is a wise decision to install multiple indoor cameras for monitoring purpose.



We considered the life alert system (the one with one button device that you can wear as a watch or as a pendant) but it requires the patient to be conscious enough to press it before he loses consciousness. The issue with the stroke patient is if another stroke happens, or if he messes up with the blood pressure meds and falls or has another syncope episode, he may not have the chance to think about press the button.


With multiple indoor cameras his children will be able to check up on him 24/7.



He is in his right mind and lives alone in an assisted living apartment which requires the tenant to be able to live independently. This means we will start leaving him alone sometime in March. I can tell he can't wait for that to happen soon enough.



Anyone have been through something similar with your senior parents? If we go ahead and install the cameras, there will be three people who have access: his two daughters and a son. It can also be a convenience feature to check if he is in the bathroom before we call him. Right now we call him and let it ring for one time then we hang up, so that he can call us back without being rushed and risk the fall. But sometimes he forgets.

 

[skyking1]

Aside from the privacy issues with his family, there are privacy concerns with a breach. how are you going to secure the feeds?
If he is wanting this, think of camera placement that gives him a modicum of privacy. Don't aim a camera at the pot from right in front of it, for example. You can check on him without that indignity.

 

[Whisper66]

It may be wise in terms of trying to protect his health but an unwise invasion of his privacy. Unless he's 100% on board with being watched all the time, I'd try to get him to (1) have a life alert thing (2) carry his cell phone at all times with 911 and my # on speed dial and (3) allow his phone to be tracked onllne by at least one of the kids. My Dad has agreed to the later two.

 

[pacergal]

If he is in assisted living, how often do they check in on him? How often would you check the cameras, 24/7, to be able to catch any falls and contact 911 for help?
It seems a life alert may work better.
Would the place allow cameras in the apartments?
If you are that concerned for his safety, perhaps he is at the point of needing more closely monitored care.

 

[twaddle]

Amazon's "Echo Show" might be useful. You can set it up so your grandfather can easily call some family member just by yelling out "echo, call Joe."

It also has a "drop in" feature you can enable that let's you make a video call to check on his status.

Unfortunately, my dad refused to even consider it, but maybe you'll have more luck than I did.

 

[Franklin]

My grandfather had one stroke before last Christmas and another one at the end of January. He went through rehab this month (we take turns staying with him as temporary assistants during this time) and gained most of his mobility and independence back. He is 97 years old and I am wondering if it is a wise decision to install multiple indoor cameras for monitoring purpose.



My relative and I thought about the life alert system (the one with one button device that you can wear as a watch or as a pendant) but it requires the patient to be conscious enough to press it before he loses consciousness. The issue with the stroke patient is if another stroke happens, or if he messes up with the blood pressure meds and fall or had another syncope episode, he may not have the chance to think about press the button.


With multiple indoor cameras his children will be able to check up on him 24/7.



He is in his right mind and lives alone in an assisted living apartment which requires the tenant to be able to live independently. This means we will start leaving him alone sometime in March. I can tell he can't wait for that to happen soon enough.



Anyone have been through something similar with your senior parents? If we go ahead and install the cameras, there will be three people who have access: his two daughters and a son. It can also be a convenience feature to check if he is in the bathroom before we call him. Right now we call him and let it ring for one time then we hang up, so that he can call us back without being rushed and risk the fall. But sometimes he forgets.

TT not to worry. Ive tons of experience with this. My brother and mom (lived together) and both had strokes. Mom moved into assisted living at 93 and brother stayed alone in the house. Given he was 65 he did not want caregivers and wanted to do his thing alone. Unfortunately after the stroke he was incapble of taking the meds, cooking, and life's other requirements. I was living 4000 miles away. So, to your point I bought 2 nest cam's (portable cameras) and kept a close eye on him. I gave him his personal space but the common areas were monitored. All you need is internet and the cam. Now, Ill fast forward.....I probably had to call 911 at least a dozen times after watching him fall from 4000 miles away. Another benefit was that I could send the footage to the doctor and have him understand better what was causing the falls. I did ensure both mom and brother had the 911 necklace. You can also assign a code to allow others to peep in and check on their safety. A side benefit was I could witness brothers sessions with the therapist. He normally lied about his activities and actions and I'd have to call the therapist and let them know he had not been honest. I know this may sound intrusive but someone needs to look in on a stroke patient often. To conclude I was in L.A. one day and realized I had not seen brother moving around for 24 hours. I scanned the cameras and nothing. I called for a welfare check and they found him dead on the bathroom floor. So, your question is right up my alley and yes you do need an eye on them within reasonable limits, Good luck with your situation and PM me if you need other details.

 

[Teacher Terry]

I wouldn’t set up anything without permission. It would be uncomfortable to know others could watch you. Maybe a Apple Watch that calls 911 would be better.

 

[braumeister]

Another option, if cameras are too intrusive, could be simple motion sensors. I think Wyze is a good brand.

 

[larry]

Back when the internet was just starting to be a real thing there were two things I vividly remember, Peapod and Grandpacam. Somebody broadcast their grandpa's easy chair and you could watch grandpa rocking away in the chair. Thought that was pretty non-invasive and that's where he would spend most of his time.

 

[Jerry1]

I had not seen brother moving around for 24 hours. I scanned the cameras and nothing. I called for a welfare check and they found him dead on the bathroom floor. So, your question is right up my alley and yes you do need an eye on them within reasonable limits, Good luck with your situation and PM me if you need other details.

And this is the hard reality. We have a similar situation with a parent with Alzheimer's. The unfortunate truth that we all have to deal with is that there is nothing we can do to prevent the ultimate outcome. At 97, I would consider a single camera in an area that will catch common movement - like the kitchen or the living room. Some day, sadly, you will likely end up in the situation Franklin describes. At least you will have cared enough to ensure that it isn't weeks before someone checks in.

Also, as braumeister mentions, there are motion detectors. For example, you can set something up to tell you if the bathroom door opens (something that should be a regular occurrence) or if there is movement in the refrigerator area. Personally, we ended up scrapping those options and the parent had to go into a memory care unit because she was walking away.

It's a very difficult thing to manage. I wish you well.

 

[Ian S]

My relative and I thought about the life alert system (the one with one button device that you can wear as a watch or as a pendant) but it requires the patient to be conscious enough to press it before he loses consciousness. The issue with the stroke patient is if another stroke happens, or if he messes up with the blood pressure meds and fall or had another syncope episode, he may not have the chance to think about press the button.

Some of the call button systems will also monitor for falls.

 

[Ronstar]

I’ve talked to DW about putting Wyze cameras in her DM’s living room and kitchen. We live 10 minutes away and could get to her place quickly if we see something amuck.

 

[ocean view]

Some of the call button systems will also monitor for falls.

Here’s a consumer reports article about medical-alert systems. It seems that many do offer fall detection for an additional fee.

https://www.consumerreports.org/medical-alert-systems/how-to-choose-a-medical-alert-system/

I have a relative with this service. She said that one day while showering she heard a noise in the house/on the roof. She exited the shower to find fire crews about to break down her door. It seems her medic-alert necklace was activated as a fall as she stripped off her clothes pre-shower and the necklace ended up tangled in her pjs and tossed on the floor. So it does work.

 

[Freedom56]

We set up laptops with built-in cameras at my parents and our in-laws home for video conferencing. It's not exactly a spy cam. I loaded both with Skype and set it to auto-answer and turn on the laptop display and camera. After the call the laptop shuts off the camera and screen and returns to power saver mode. This set-up allows us to see and talk to our parents without them having to worry about worry about pressing any buttons or turning on/off the computer. The laptops are set up in their family room where they normally watch TV.

 

[twaddle]

Another option, if cameras are too intrusive, could be simple motion sensors.

This idea is really growing on me, and it would be a fairly simple project. A quick google yielded "Wyze Sense is currently not available. Stay tuned for the next generation of Wyze Sense."

But these are simple networked PIR sensors. I would add a vibration sensor too in order to detect a fall. On my to-do list.

 

[ATX78701]

Great topic. I'd like to put something like that in DM's house, but she is adamant that she doesn't need it because enough people check on her. DB is 45 miles away whereas I'm 1500 miles away, so we aren't pushing this for now. DB can monitor her car - she wanted to BTD two years ago, and the car comes with programming that can be reviewed from a smartphone - basically oil change reminders and tire pressure but enough that DB can see if the car has been driven and for how long.

One thought about the cameras would be to verify the wifi signal in the house. DM's signal is super slow and she doesn't want to just providers because she never uses wifi. She lives in an area with a cell phone tower gap, so any camera or device that relies on cell phone signals isn't an option.

 

[mountainsoft]

He is in his right mind and lives alone in an assisted living apartment which requires the tenant to be able to live independently.

At 97 I'm guessing the facility serves his meals? Whether they serve him in his room, or he has to go down to the dining room, I'm sure the staff would check up him if he didn't show up for a meal.

A few years ago, I toured an independent living facility where residents lived in their own cottages. The staff basically left them alone to live independently. That had a system where the resident had to push a call button each day to let staff know they were OK. If they didn't get the call, they would go check on the resident. I thought it was a simple and elegant system, though it does mean the resident could be laying on the floor for 24 hours before being detected.

 

[Badger]

I had this same concern/question when my parents went to an assisted living facility years ago. There were cognitive and physical issues and I wanted to be proactive making sure they were safe. I was told that this would not be allowed for various privacy reasons. That may have been a CYA for them. I don't know but I was sure uneasy about it. You hear so many horror stories about Assisted Living and nursing facilities that I would want that for me if I was becoming lets capable of taking care of myself and wanted it for my advocate.



Cheers!

 

[twaddle]

The "what would I want for me?" is a good way to frame it, I think.

I'd want autonomy, privacy, as well as a way to assure everybody I was OK, and a way to communicate that I need help.

More the case for aging-in-place than AL, but I'm thinking:

• passive motion monitors
• passive fall detection (i.e., nothing I need to wear)
• voice-activated call for help
• the ability for me to tell the system that I'm OK if it somehow gets a false positive
• a "heartbeat" that lets family know that the system is still working

 

[Sunset]

We are currently talking about this for Dad.
We are familiar with Wyze camera's and the new V3 camera has motion detection, and free cloud storage with live views.
(V3 is better than V2 and V3 works with their CamPlus, but wouldn't be needed).

The thought was put one in the kitchen and it will alert us when someone enters the kitchen, then we can look to see he is OK.
Same with the living room.

If we don't get alerts one day we know to drive over or phone him as he is sleeping the day away.

The Wyze V3 camera is $20 plus delivery from https://wyze.com/shop-wyze

The camera's also hear sound,

 

[Sunset]

The "what would I want for me?" is a good way to frame it, I think.

I'd want autonomy, privacy, as well as a way to assure everybody I was OK, and a way to communicate that I need help.

More the case for aging-in-place than AL, but I'm thinking:

• passive motion monitors
• passive fall detection (i.e., nothing I need to wear)
• voice-activated call for help
• the ability for me to tell the system that I'm OK if it somehow gets a false positive
• a "heartbeat" that lets family know that the system is still working

When really old I would like some way for caring family to look in on me, literally to see that I've not fallen "asleep" for 2 days in my chair.

I would want privacy in the bathroom and bedroom, so just a button or cord to press/pull.

I'm already seen by all sorts of stranger camera's when I go out, in the store, on the street and driving my car. Eyes are everywhere already so it's nothing new.

 

[teetee]

I am the op. Thanks for all helpful suggestions and advice on the methods. We will wait for my grandfather to register the camera idea and understand what it means to his privacy before he can make an informed decision on if he wants us to visually monitor his life.

The goal is to make him feel as comfortable and as safe as possible.

 

[Bamaman]

My mother was in a CCRC at 91, and we had to have 24/7 keepers to watch over her. She had earlier had a stroke and fell and broke her hip. She was burning through money at an alarming rate. It's especially tough when anyone loses mobility and goes into a wheelchair.

In retrospect, we really should have had her in full nursing home care.

 

[mystang52]

I have no idea if this is a product already available or pending, but I recently did a survey for CVS on this subject. It would be some sort of combination wearable alert button, fall sensor motion detectors, and ability to call a monitoring center even without the wearable button. It appears is would be something like $250 up front plus a monthly monitoring fee in the area of $40.
DW and I are healthy, and I'm giving it some thought in event I see it show up as available.

 

[marko]

With mom, age 91 and a disabled, non-verbal brother, both living together on three floors, I have a total of six cameras monitoring them. As I visit them every morning I mainly check-in at night to make sure everyone has made it to bed safely. A combination of DLink and Wyze cams; about $30 or so each.

Also comes in handy before I call them; sometimes they're not near a phone.

This has saved me incalculable time if/when I can't reach them only to find that they've wandered out onto the deck or something. Otherwise I'd have to drive over. I did find brother on the floor one time; if not for the camera, he'd have laid there all night.

They love the idea of having me keep an eye on them without intruding. Brother waves when he sees the green camera light come on showing that I'm 'live'.