My 80 year old mother lives alone. I am an hour away. Other family is closer (15-20 minutes away) but they don't see her daily. She is on continuous oxygen (4L) from a machine that runs on AC power. I am trying to figure out the most efficient and cost-effective way to ensure she is able to notify someone if her power goes out.
She is not tech savvy. She uses a cordless phone (useless if power goes out) through her cable provider (modem is also useless if power goes out). She had a cell phone briefly but didn't ever learn to use it -- prefers her landline because she's more familiar with the phone and can see/push the buttons easier.
She does not know how to set up her portable oxygen tanks by herself, and one only lasts about 30 minutes anyway. What she will need is to be able to contact an ambulance to help her if the power goes out. The hospital is a 1/4 mile from her house (which is essentially 2 houses down -- she lives in the country). So they could be there quickly and she could breathe if she sits still until they get there. I just need to figure out how to alert them.
So far I've looked at generators (too expensive), portable oxygenators (still wouldn't give her a way to call for help before it runs out), power outage alerts (requires wifi to send an alert to my phone, which would go down when the power goes out), and medical alert buttons (she is allergic to most things so can't wear a watch or a necklace, and some require wifi which wouldn't work during an outage).
So all I can come up with is a cell phone and just praying she'll keep it charged, close by, and use it. But aside from the risk that is also an additional cost she doesn't need (she has a fixed income, most of which goes to medications, but makes too much for low-income programs).
Are there any other aging-in-place options I don't know exist or haven't considered??
Thank you.
I suggest you get her a landline. As you said, cordless are not helpful during an emergency. I know its an added cost but maybe all her kids can chip in the monthly fee. Its very rare that landlines go out.
And a cell phone will probably be a better option for her, as most landlines now also go out when power does. They didn't used to, but sadly they do now. I have my landline through Spectrum, and when we lose our power, the phone goes out as well. It also did when I had AT&T/Direct TV years ago as well.
And by all means call your County Emergency office, like JoAnn 29 suggested, so they are aware of your moms situation.