For those with elderly relatives, you often have to weigh up your loved one’s independence and safety in equal measures. No one wants to be in a position where they can no longer care for themselves, but at the same time we don’t want any harm to befall our loved ones because we weren’t around when something happened. I think most people will reach a point where they either have to move in with adult children or look into carehome options, but I think it’s important to do everything we can to help seniors stay independent as long as safely possible. Thus, I think it’s great that we can often use technology to improve the quality of life for elderly persons. I received an email this week about Genesis Phone, an upcoming product that aims to improve on cell phones to optimize them for caregivers and their loved ones.
The idea behind Genesis Phone is that it will combine GPS technology with an easy-to-use phone that includes a support center. For caregivers, this phone means that with GPS location, they can know where their elderly parent is; for seniors, this means and easy-to-use phone with a one-touch dialing, automatic reminders on their phone for things like their medications, and a 24/7 emergency line. The idea behind the emergency line is that your loved one can reach out when they need help but don’t want to call 911. This is actually a great idea, because I personally know senior citizens who have gone through health issues that really needed attention but didn’t want to “Bother” anyone.
Since this product is upcoming, it is still in the development phase, and the company hopes to build it exactly to the specifications of the customers. In order to secure funds to create the product, they are asking interested parties to pre-order the phone on the website for $149 each – I don’t know what the policy will be on pre-orders if the product never makes it to the market, as they details on the site are sparse. They also have a “Donate” button on the site where you can contribute a few bucks to the development of the product if you like. The details on the website are fairly sparse, which I can understand as the phone doesn’t exist yet, but I think elaborating more on the project (Maybe with a blog including photos of the staff and what they are working on?) would encourage more people to look into it and possibly contribute. They do have full contact info on the site, so you can always give them a call or send an email for further details. If they raise enough funds to go ahead with this, I’ll be really interested to see the final product. I absolutely think there’s a market for something like this and I think that technology will enable today’s seniors to stay in their own homes and live independent lives for longer.
What are your thoughts on this project, readers? What features would you like to see a phone like this have?
What an awesome use of technology! This sounds really cool, especially the GPS part.
that’s a good use of technology right there
Wow, I think that’s a great idea!
I like the idea, not just for seniors but for disabled family members as well. Having a special needs child that is trying to find her way, I’d feel good about being able to log into a site and just check in, just in case. Since she’s terrible at being aware of her surroundings I MIGHT not freak out if she were to call and tell me that she didn’t know where she was. I’d like something that linked to my own phone so that I could check in the event of an emergency.
This sounds like an amazing thing!
This is a great thing to have. Thanks for sharing.
This sounds like it could be a really awesome product. Melinda’s grandfather has had a lot of serious health issue over the last six months and I think if he would have had this technology he may have recovered a lot faster due to a caregiver being able to take care of him more quickly. Thanks for sharing.