Belle (to protect her privacy, not her real name) is a 92-year-old woman residing in an assisted living apartment in a modest senior community outside a major city. Belle’s primary family caregiver is her granddaughter. She lives an hour’s drive away – a remote caregiver. As she juggles the responsibilities of a full-time job, raising two young children, and an hour’s drive to visit, she found it increasingly difficult to maintain enough involvement in Belle’s day to day well-being to satisfy her peace of mind. The envoyatHome senior remote monitor was installed in Belle’s apartment, giving her family remote mobile caregiver access to her safety and well-being 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
The Challenges for Remote Caregivers
Belle’s granddaughter is like so many remote caregivers: she lives close enough to the assisted living community for a planned visit but too far to drop in unannounced. The family wanted assurances that Belle was getting the help she needs for activities of daily living like going to the bathroom, bathing, and getting dressed. Like all families, they were also concerned with the problem of senior social isolation – was Belle participating in the community’s group activities? Was she taking her meals in the dining room or having them brought to her apartment? At 92 years old, Belle couldn’t always answer these questions herself, leaving her family concerned about whether she was getting the help she needed.
With an envoyatHome expert by her side via a video call, Belle’s granddaughter quickly placed envoyatHome’s discreet sensors in the apartment. With clicks and swipes in the mobile app, together they personalized Belle’s care plan for the family’s specific care concerns. Family members were added to the senior remote monitoring system so they could all be involved in decisions that were important to Belle’s well being. After an hour, Belle’s family was up and running, and envoyatHome immediately began discovering, monitoring, reporting, and analyzing the behaviors that keep Belle safe and well.
What Belle’s Family Learned
Belle’s family was relieved that envoyatHome data confirmed that she was taking advantage of social activities in her community, including having most of her meals in the community dining room. Data also showed that during the day, staff entered and exited the apartment regularly, giving the family confidence that Belle’s basic needs were met.
However, envoyatHome data showed a concerning pattern at night. Upgraded bed check service, contracted by the family to ensure Belle’s safety, was not consistently or reasonably delivered.
envoyatHome found serious and consistent flaws in the way her bed checks were done. What expectations did the family have? The “every two hours” bed check service promised a staff member would open the apartment door, enter far enough into the apartment to see around the corner to Belle’s bed, shine a light to make sure Belle was “OK”, then quietly exit and close the door.
envoyatHome reported that on many nights, Belle was checked less frequently than every two hours, and some nights, she wasn’t checked at all. envoyatHome also reported that during many bed check visits, the staff member didn’t walk far enough into the apartment to possibly be able to see Belle or her bed.
The family was very concerned.
Caregiving Made Smarter
After a family discussion, Belle’s granddaughter scheduled a meeting with the director of the assisted living community. Armed with her envoyatHome caregiving insights reports, Belle’s granddaughter shared her findings with the director and expressed her disappointment that contracted services were not delivered as promised. The director recommitted to the service and put new procedures in place to ensure the night staff understood and performed their responsibilities.
In Belle’s world, everyone’s caregiving got smarter with envoyatHome.
You might think that staff was upset with an elderly monitoring system working for Belle’s family, but on the contrary, envoyatHome insights gave staff the platform they needed to discuss overnight staffing levels and responsibilities. envoyatHome insights became the platform for a productive conversation between facility management, the family, and staff.
How to Help Family Caregivers with Remote Caregiving
As the service demands within senior living facilities continue to increase, even with best intentions many facilities struggle to maintain adequate staffing levels and proper management oversight for the fulfillment of contracted services. envoyatHome offers an affordable solution to families whose loved ones are aging with professional support. Providing virtual visibility into wellness, safety, and cognitive well-being like social isolation, remote caregivers are no longer left to wonder whether their loved one’s are receiving the services they need. With envoyatHome’s elderly monitoring system, families can rest easier 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. envoyatHome’s personalized approach for remote senior caregivers ensures that older adults receive the attention they deserve, with affordability for their families – from any place their loved one calls home.
