Home Free alert system in place

“Emergency! Come help me!”

It’s the familiar red button by the bedside. An alert button can also be worn on a wristband or as a pendant as the person moves around. In an emergency, help can still be called.

But when Bigfork Valley Villa decided to purchase a mobile system, administrators listened to the residents. One thing residents did not want was the confusion in notifying a central office which then contacts the healthcare facility ... which then has to find the resident.

“Home Free,” the new state-of-the-art alert system recently purchased and installed at Bigfork Valley Villa, sends the signal directly to the caregiver at the facility who knows the patient best. With small antennas along the Villa corridors and into the clinic, the system can identify not only who is calling, but where they are when they push the button on a pendant.

Home Free is also expandable in the future, explained Carol Gilbertson, director of home care services. For instance, the system has the capability of alerting caregivers if a resident with dementia should wander away, and it can be extended to other parts of the facility.

The Home Free service is available for a nominal monthly fee as part of optional home care services offered to residents of Bigfork Valley Villa.