BOSCH Security Escort
When you want to locate and track your residents
A highly reliable wireless Help-Call system
for Independent and Assisted Living Retirement Communities
With graphical display to locate your residents when they activate an alarm
VIRTUAL FENCING customizable per resident – click and drag to create boundaries
Track residents or property as they move throughout the system’s area
– within 25 feet or less
Ideal for Memory Care in Assisted Living facilities
No need for expensive wandering systems with mag locks and key pads
A wireless system that works every time and everywhere
Some facilities hesitate to consider wireless emergency call systems. They are concerned that the technology is not yet proven and that there may be blind spots, such as in stairwells. That may be true with some systems, but the BOSCH Security Escort system, however, is in a class of its own. Prepare to be amazed.
Wireless is where the BOSCH Security Escort system excels, both in its reliability and proven track record. For 19 years, the Security Escort system has been protecting people around the world.
65 correctional facilities nationwide in the U.S. rely on it
That is why over 65 correctional facilities across the U.S., including the United States Brig, are using the system. The 304MHz frequency used by the Security Escort system has no problem penetrating the thickest and strongest walls of those correctional facilities to protect the lives of the officers, staff, civilian personnel and even visitors.
Protecting staff at two Ontario hospitals
The same signal strength and penetrating power is also used at the Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital in Windsor to protect over 2,200 staff members. Similarly, St. Joseph Healthcare in Hamilton uses the Security Escort system in their secure psychiatric area to protect their staff.
Providing peace of mind on college campuses
On college campuses, the Security Escort system works over multiple buildings as well as multiple floors and offers both indoor and outdoor protection including elevators, parking garages, underground tunnels and basements. Randy Bevins, Director of Campus Security at Florida Southern University, stated that “the system is accurate within 10 feet and that he has experienced no major system failure since installation, despite the fact that the system is seventeen years old”.
Matching the independence of residents in retirement facilities
– and staff benefit from its Virtual Fence feature
More and more Independent and Assisted Living facilities are using the wireless Security Escort system in the U.S. because it lets residents move about freely and not worry about calling for assistance wherever they are in a retirement community. The system also fulfills the needs of residents and staff, helping ease the anxieties brought on by health concerns and physical limitations. eCall is now proud to introduce this very same BOSCH Security Escort system to Independent and Assisted Living facilities in Ontario.
How the Security Escort works
How coverage throughout is achieved
Coverage throughout a facility or outdoors is provided by Receivers strategically located to form a grid. Within a residence, Receivers are installed with a maximum of 80 feet apart and can locate residents within 25 feet or less. If installed outdoors, Receivers are spaced with a maximum of 300 feet apart and can locate residents within 50 feet or less.
Receivers receive alarm information and relay it to Transponders
- The Receivers get the alarm transmissions from the call buttons and relay the information to the Transponders.
The systems are designed so that a minimum of three (3) Receivers will pick up the alarm signal transmitted by portable Call Buttons and Transmitters.
Transponders provide communication link
between Receivers and the Central Console
- The Transponders in turn relay alarm and test signals from all the Receivers that picked up an alarm signal to the Central Console including the Call Button ID code, its battery condition and the signal strength information and address of each selected Receiver. All this takes place within two seconds.
Central Console Software determines location of alarms
and transmits information to Pagers
- The Central Console then computes the most probable location of the request for help by analyzing the signal strengths and locations of the Receivers that picked up the alarm. Although BOSCH states an accuracy of within 25 feet, some facilities report that their Security Escort system shows the location of alarms within 10 feet.
The Central Console then transmits to Pagers the relevant information such as type of alarm, name and/or room or apartment, and location from where the alarm was transmitted. Again this all happens within a few seconds.
For example, a Pager could receive a message that Mary Jones from Apartment 301 needs assistance, and that the alarm was activated in the east wing of the 1st floor and not from her apartment.
A customizable graphical display to locate residents
and track their movements
Central Console displays resident location and alarm information
- The monitor at the Central Console displays the appropriate floor plan along with a yellow circle indicating the resident’s most likely location, with updates every 7 seconds.
The monitor also displays the resident’s information that was entered in the resident database. This can include name, room or apartment number, picture, telephone number, medical conditions, handicaps and whether they use a wheelchair or walker
- Multiple alarms can be handled and displayed.
- An audible alarm can be activated at the Central Console.
- The Receivers are powered from the Transponders, so there is no need to provide electrical outlets at the Receiver locations, only at the Transponder locations.
Outdoor coverage
The Receivers can be enclosed in a weatherproof enclosure for outside use. They are normally installed on the outside wall of a facility or on lamp posts. Outside Receivers are usually installed 300 feet from each other and provide a locating accuracy within 50 feet. These can provide coverage for parking areas, walking paths or outside patios.
Two types of SE88 portable Call Buttons
Call Buttons transmit alarms, tests and tracking signals
- To call for assistance, a resident simply needs to press their personal Call Button.
- The Security Escort system can handle 60,000+ Call Buttons and Transmitters.
There are two types of SE88 portable call buttons. They are identical in appearance; the differences are in their functions and related supervision time. One is supervised every 60 minutes, while the other is supervised every 30 seconds.
To locate when a resident activates an alarm
Supervision every 60 minutes
- Regular portable SE88 Call Buttons, with supervision every 60 minutes, will only start tracking when a resident activates an alarm. Once a resident activates his/her Call Button, a number of Receivers will pick up the signal and transmit it to the Transponders – who in turn will relay it to the Central Console at the computer location. All this would take place in less than 2 seconds.
- A page is then sent to the appropriate Pagers or group of Pagers.
To trigger an alarm when a resident leaves a designated area,
to locate a resident and track their movement
Supervision every 30 seconds
The second type of SE88 portable Call Buttons is supervised every 30 seconds. If a resident needs assistance and activates this portable Call Button, the operation is the same as the 60 minute SE88 call button. This call button has two additional features.
- The first feature of this Call Button is its ability to automatically trigger an alarm if a resident leaves a particular area. The area can be part of a floor used for Memory Care, the entire building or if outside Receivers are used, it can cover the outside property as well.
- The second feature is the ability to locate a resident. By simply entering the resident’s name at the computer, his/her location within 25 feet, in the last 30 seconds, will appear as a dot on the relevant floor plan and his/her movement will be updated every 7 seconds.
Can be worn on the wrist, as a necklace or wall-mounted
Portable Call Buttons are water resistant which means they can be used in the shower or in a bath or water therapy pool or in inclement weather, however, they are not waterproof for depth pressure such as in a swimming pool.
- They can be worn on the wrist or as a necklace with a breakaway safety.
- They can also be wall-mounted in common areas or resident bathrooms instead of traditional pull cords, if a facility wishes to get away from an institutional look.
For added peace of mind to your residents
Whenever residents need help and press their portable or a wall-mounted Call Button, they are reassured that their call went through by seeing an LED indicator light up.
Benefits of portable Call Buttons – for you and your residents
Increase security for mobile residents while lowering your costs
These portable Call Buttons offer considerably more security for your residents wherever they are when they need help, than fixed wireless pull cords by their beds or their bathrooms. They are especially convenient for those residents:
- who like to walk around or
- when in their wheelchair and need assistance when out of their rooms, or
- should they fall in their room attempting to reach the bathroom, or
- simply sitting in their favourite chair unable to reach a bedside pull cord.
Wireless Pull Cords are so much easier to install where and when needed. Facilities can provide portable Call Buttons to residents as they move in and then, as their health concerns elicit increased protection, they can add the wireless Pull Cords where they can be most helpful for these residents. Not only do Call Buttons cost less than Pull Cords, facilities can buy Pull Cords in future, as they need them, or in the case of a new residence, as occupancy fills up and the revenue stream grows.
Benefits recognized by the Ministry in Ontario for LTC
Using portable Call Buttons in Long Term Care requires a different mindset than using Bed Station Push Cords. The Ministry in Ontario recognizes the benefits, which is why their use has been approved since 2003.
Aside from providing greater security for Long Term Care mobile residents, another great benefit is the difference in cost. Portable Call Buttons are considerably less expensive than wireless Bed Station Push Cords.
Resetting Alarms
Resetting alarms involves the following steps.
- Staff first press the Reset button on the resident’s SE88
Call Button (or on a bathroom Pull Cord face plate, or the
latching button on a Bed Station Push Cord),
- then press their own RF3502 Acknowledge Transmitter.
This will clear the alarm on the monitoring screen and record in the database the time at which the alarm was reset – as well as which Acknowledge Transmitter was used to clear the alarm, thus identifying which staff member responded to the alarm.
The versatile 3401 Transmitters
Door alarms when residents tend to wander,
can also integrate with Pull Cords and Bed Station Push Cords
There are two different 3401 Transmitters. Both are supervised every 65 minutes, including battery status information.
- The RF3401 is used in stationary applications such as wireless Pull Cords, Bed Station Push Cords, door bells, fire alarm interfaces and door alarms.
- The SE3401 is used to track mobile assets such as portable computers, Med Carts and wheelchairs.
Pager notification – when these Transmitters trigger an alarm
- The RF3401 Transmitters can be used for monitoring the outside doors. The system has the capacity for 99 different schedules for door alarms, thus allowing for different doors to be monitored during different periods.
Whenever a door is opened during an “armed period”, a message will be transmitted to all Pagers or a select group of Pagers, depending on the area or wing where the alarm originated. For example: “Door alarm, 3rd floor balcony”.
- The RF3401 Transmitter can be attached to virtually anything you would like to monitor such as bed rail pads, wheelchair pads, bed or incontinence alarms.
- They can be installed on valuable portable equipment, such as laptop computers, and in combination with the virtual fence feature, activate an alarm if removed from a certain area.
Door alarms when residents wander
- It is most frequently used in Independent and Assisted Living residences, on individual doors of residents who have a tendency to wander particularly at night.
For example, if a resident door is opened between 11 p.m. and 6 a.m., the staff would receive a message on their Pagers such as: “Door alarm, Bob Smith, Room 315”.
Because these are wireless, they can easily be installed or moved to different rooms by the maintenance staff without the need for service calls. The relative information is then entered in the database and monitoring on a door is immediately activated.
Check-in monitoring – for additional resident protection
The simple addition of a motion detector, floor pad or a bathroom door contact with the RF3401 Transmitter can be used to make sure the residents are up and about every day.
A check-in period of 6 a.m. to 10 a.m. is typically used. A report can then be produced showing the apartments where no movement was detected during that period, along with the room or apartment number, the name of the resident, the telephone number and the last time he/she checked in.
This feature can save your staff valuable time every morning; they only need to check in on a few residents. It also ensures that not one resident is missed.
Green conscious and savings down the road
All Transmitters have replaceable batteries
The batteries in all BOSCH Transmitters and portable Call Buttons are easily replaceable; they are available at such stores as Canadian Tire or Shoppers Drug Mart.
- The RF3401 Transmitters typically used for Pull Cords and Bed Stations have a battery life of up to 5 years.
- Regular SE88 portable Call Buttons have a battery life of up to 3 years.
All Transmitters are supervised to ensure they are operational
All BOSCH Transmitters and Call Buttons are supervised, so that when their batteries start getting low, the staff will be notified in plenty of time to change the battery.
- The RF3401 wireless Transmitters, used in conjunction with the Pull Cords and Bed Stations, send a digitally-coded transmission every 65 minutes to provide operational information and battery status.
- The SE88 portable Call Buttons, to be used by wandering residents, transmit their location, operational information and battery status every 30 seconds.
Feature highlights of the Security Escort system
VIRTUAL FENCING
On alarm screen – click and drag to create boundaries,
customizable per resident
When residents have a set area in which to move about, the staff will benefit from the Security Escort’s Virtual Fence feature. In the system’s software, you simply click and drag to create boundaries for each Call Button, creating a Virtual Fence.
When a resident wanders outside of the designated area, the system initiates a Wander Alert within a maximum of 30 seconds. The areas can be defined as part of a floor, an entire floor, the entire facility or the facility’s property if outside Receivers are used.
What happens when there is a WANDER Alert
The wandering Call Buttons worn by Memory Care residents will be tracked every 30 seconds within approximately 25 feet.
Should a resident wearing one of these Call Buttons leave the Memory Care area, in a maximum of 30 seconds, a page will be sent to the Pagers, identifying the resident who just left the Memory Care area and his/her present location.
A new page will be transmitted every time the resident enters a new area. For example, the consecutive pages could identify the location as 3rd floor exam room, 3rd floor south west, 2nd floor south west, etc.
Simultaneously, the Monitor at the computer location will display a floor plan showing where the resident is presently located and his/her movements.
ESCORTING a Memory Care resident
Whenever the staff wishes to escort a resident out of a Memory Care area, they will have to disable the tracking function of the Call Button worn by the resident. This is a simple operation at the computer location.
Similarly, the tracking will have to be re-activated once the resident returns to the Memory Care area.
LOCATING a Memory Care resident
In the event that a Memory Care resident cannot be located, the staff will only need to access one of the computers and enter the resident’s name. The monitor will display the present location of the resident within 25 feet and his/her movements. This is achieved by assigning Memory care residents a portable SE88-30S Call Button, which supervises itself every 30 seconds.
Some facilities equip their Culturally Deaf residents or those showing early signs of dementia or other health concerns, with these SE88 Call Buttons – so that the residents can move about freely everywhere and yet can be located at a moment’s notice.
In a similar manner, assets such as portable computers, wheelchairs, Med Carts and other vital equipment can be located if equipped with a Transmitter.
“Code White” when staff needs assistance
Call Buttons can also be carried by staff, to use when they personally need assistance. Whether encountering a violent situation in a Memory Care area or simply needing assistance with a resident, a simple press of his/her Call Button will trigger a “Code White” alarm which will be sent to other staff members’ Pagers, identifying the staff member seeking help, along with his/her present location. This same information would also be displayed on the computer screen.
Constant supervision of the system’s backbone
The Receivers and the Transponders are in constant communication. The Transponders communicate with the Receivers 10 times per second to detect alarms, system faults, including tampering, tests from Transmitters, and battery conditions. This information is then passed on to the Central Console.
The Receivers contain a test transmitter for maintenance purpose. The Central Console automatically activates these test transmitters several times a day to transmit a “Buddy Check” Test, to verify that all Receivers are functioning properly.
The Transponders communicate with the Central Console at least every minute to send either an Alarm, Test or Trouble message, or if there is no message to send, it will transmit an “I’M OK” message.
System even displays response instructions
Should a system trouble occur, the Central Console will display a problem description as well as the action the staff should take in response to the problem, including a pop-up dialog box showing contact information for service, if deemed necessary.
System also notifies staff immediately via Pagers should a problem occur
If the Central Console receives no message from a Transponder after a one-minute time period, it will request the Transponder to send a message. It will repeat this request every 10 seconds for a total of seven times, or until it receives a message from the Transponder. If there is no reply from the Transponder, it will display a “Communications Failure” warning on its monitor and alert the appropriate staff via Pagers.
Pagers – for faster transmission of alarms and enhanced messaging
Pagers will provide mobility for your response staff, in that they can receive a page when someone needs help, wherever they are.
- The pagers being provided, along with the paging system, will work in all locations in a facility.
- Pagers will receive alarms in their own respective areas or floors.
- Once an alarm has been reset, Pagers will receive the message that it has been “cleared”.
- Since the BOSCH Receivers and Transponders operate over their own network, requests for help are quickly displayed on the computer screen and passed on to the Pagers in a matter of seconds.
- With the BOSCH software, the Pager message is enhanced by displaying the resident’s name, his/her room number and the resident’s present location. In the case of a common area, it would display the actual location, for example: “Exercise Room”.
Repeat Pager messaging
Alarms that have not been reset within two minutes will automatically be retransmitted to the same Pagers or group of Pagers. If more than two pages are required, a time delay timer can be installed.
Audible alarm will continue at computers till resident alarm is cleared
The computers on which the alarms appear will however produce an “audible” alarm when a resident calls for help. This “audible” alarm will continue until the resident alarm is cleared.
Computer access to Paging – for individual or group messages
The BOSCH Security Escort software has the ability to send messages to individual Pagers or a particular group of Pagers – from the Central Console computer location.
It can be a message to one Pager such as: “Call me at Extension 222, Katherine” or to a group of Pagers such as: “3 p.m. meeting moved back to 3.30 p.m.”.
As an option, special paging software is available which allows the transmission of messages to a single Pager or groups of Pagers – from a number of computers throughout the facility.
Operation during a power failure
The Central Console computer and paging equipment are normally connected at an outlet that is directly connected to the facility’s generator. The APC Battery Backup unit that we install will provide backup for the 10-15 minutes that a facility requires till a generator is engaged.
The Transponders, that have built-in Battery Backup, would also be connected to electrical outlets connected to your generator. The Receivers are powered from the Transponders, so the entire system remains operational during a power failure.
With Transponders connected to a generator, and Receivers powered by the Transponders, the entire system remains up and running
Since the Receivers installed throughout a facility are powered from the Transponders, no electrical outlets are required for them, which can amount to significant savings for a facility when compared to other systems that require electrical outlets at every receiver location throughout a facility.
Options as to where the Calls for Help are directed
Although most installations involve directing the alarms to Pagers, the Security Escort software has the ability to transmit the alarms to telephones that can receive TAP protocol.
Feature highlights of the intuitive
BOSCH Windows®-based software
Central Console and Workstations
Security Escort runs on Windows 7
The Security Escort system is controlled through user-friendly, proprietary BOSCH software. It is maintained through the Central Console which consists of an IBM PC compatible computer. The software also has the capability to operate with a backup computer and up to 8 additional workstations.
The Microsoft Windows®-based software is quite intuitive and requires very little training, with basic single-clicks and pull-down menus to access system functions and features. The operating system can work in any environment, from Windows 98 all the way to Windows 7.
The Central Console computer is responsible for receiving alarm and test messages from the Transponders and is connected to the on-site paging system. It is also responsible for receiving trouble messages from the Transponders. These messages could be tamper alarms, loss of power, low battery, bus faults, output device errors, bad checksum, and receiver jamming.
Database is continuously updated on backup computer
A second computer can serve as a backup. The Central Console and backup computer continually exchange information, so that the backup is always current. To transfer system control to the backup simply involves the manual transfer of AB switches – which takes but a few seconds and can be done by your own staff. The workstations and backup computer can perform all normal Security Escort functions with the exception of communicating with the Transponders.
Backup computer and 8 workstations make it
accessible to different areas of care
There is no software cost to add workstations. Alarms received at the master computer can be displayed on up to four ‘different area’ workstations. For example, the alarms activated in the Assisted Living area could be displayed only on the computer screen in the Assisted Living area, while the alarms from the Independent Living residents could be displayed on another computer.
The Security Escort software does not need dedicated workstations, which means that the program can work in the background. For example, someone could be working in a Word document at a workstation and when a Security Escort alarm comes in, the relevant map and alarm information would pop up on the screen.
Easy to use, helpful management reports
Another effective use of the Security Escort software is that it can provide very user-friendly and useful management reports such as:
- The computer screen shows all details of help alarms coming in. When the alarms have been responded to, the system logs them in a history file.
- From this history file, management can know when alarms came in and when they were reset, and by whom.
- If used, the history file can display a Description of the Problem along with the Action Taken.
- You can do event query reports by range of date and time, person, device and event and type of alarm.
- The history file also stores a map of the location from where an alarm was activated.
- Most computerized emergency call systems on the market have reporting capability but the BOSCH Security Escort software takes it to a higher level by placing these management tools at the fingertips of Administrators. A couple of clicks of a mouse will display a report of alarms, along with the time at which the alarm was reset. A few more clicks of the mouse and you can either print or save the reports.
About installation and the eCall BOSCH team
When installing a Security Escort system, eCall is responsible to input the database in the computer, assemble and program all related equipment, install and test all Receivers and Transponders, Transmitters, portable Call Buttons and Pagers.
Whenever doing a large installation, we can always call upon and benefit from help from two terrific people, John Day, who is the Canadian BOSCH representative to plan the cabling and where to position equipment for optimal results and Hal Feith, the Manager and Systems Engineer direct from the BOSCH Security Escort division in Rochester, NY. Hal travels on a regular basis worldwide to assist Security Escort dealers. His 15 years’ experience with the system is invaluable.
About training
User manuals
User manuals are customized for each facility since the operation of the system and the components installed vary from facility to facility.
Response and general staff training
This training is provided to all response staff to give them an overview of how the system operates, to show them how the pagers work, what is displayed on the computer screen and how to reset alarms.
Additional training is provided to a smaller group of staff – especially for those who would be responsible to manage the resident database as residents move in and out, or to print various reports.
Advanced training for maintenance staff
This training is made available at no cost. It covers in greater detail scenarios such as troubleshooting, identifying problems and how to resolve them. It covers such things as the operation of the Receivers and the Transponders and changing batteries in Transmitters. It also covers a greater understanding of the operation of the BOSCH Security Escort software. The training is customized to train the maintenance staff so that they understand the various components and operations of the systems that they wish to be able to maintain directly, as well as adding Pull Cords, Call Buttons or Door Contact Transmitters, thus eliminating the need for service calls.
About service and warranty
eCall provides full turnkey installations, including coordinating with other technology providers, onsite system training and a customized user guide for all designated users, 24/7 service and telephone technical support, including online access for diagnostics or programming.
Remote access to emergency call computer
The computer system would be installed with remote access software to provide
eCall remote access through a facility’s internet connection to the computer software, should the need arise. Similarly, BOSCH tech support staff would also be able to access the software, if troubleshooting or assistance is required from them.
This type of access has proven to be very effective in that it speeds up any programming change or service, without disrupting staff activities, and by providing immediate access. It would be the responsibility of the facility to provide the internet access for the computer.
Experience is a valuable asset
eCall is located in the Thousand Island region of the St. Lawrence in Ontario with a local presence in London to cover South Western Ontario. The management team has been selling and servicing emergency call systems in the Northeast U.S. since 1996 and for a few years now in Ontario.
Inventory and spare parts are stocked at our Canadian location and all is easily available as well from BOSCH in the U.S. We also stock a spare computer pre-loaded with the software at our offices and as well, keep copies of each customer database at our offices. That allows us to be much more reactive in the case of computer problems at a facility and to simply replace the computer immediately should a hard drive problem occur.
The Security Escort system is manufactured by BOSCH, a name which has stood for quality and reliability for over 100 years. It is a global supplier of innovative technology backed by the highest standards for service and support.
All equipment provided in a turnkey Security Escort system and technical support carry a one-year warranty.
Check out the Security Escort’s proven track record
The BOSCH Security Escort system has been used all over the world for 19 years in a wide variety of applications, such as:
- Patient/resident monitoring in hospitals, assisted living facilities and adult communities
- Personal protection on campuses
- Man down and guard tour features for correctional facilities
- Asset tracking in museums and financial institutions
- Monitoring cash runners at sports and entertainment venues
- Public safety in Courthouses
Correctional facilities
The Security Escort system is used in over 65 correctional facilities across the U.S. from the United States Brig in South Carolina to the Immigration & Naturalization Service in Texas. These facilities need the reliability and the powerful transmission offered by the BOSCH Escort 304 MHz frequency throughout their highly secure structures, where the walls are among the thickest and strongest.
Hospitals
The Security Escort system is also used in a number of hospitals. These applications are more to offer protection to the staff and to protect and locate valuable assets. Wally Dowhayko, the Security Manager at the Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital in Windsor, Ontario made the following comments.
The use of the pendant for the Security Escort system has become mandatory for all employees of the hospital -- close to 2,200 staff members -- as part of our Occupational Health and Safety Policy. Now, the system covers every inch of the hospital and provides protection whether employees are in a parking garage or other high-risk areas of the hospital," said Wally Dowhayko, security manager for Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital. Dowhayko is considering additional uses for the Security Escort system to increase the hospital's return on investment, including utilising the system's ability to track objects as an asset protection device.
St. Joseph’s Healthcare in Hamilton, Ontario uses the Security Escort system in its highly secure psychiatric area for the protection of staff. The Provo Psychiatric Hospital in Utah and the Mohawk Valley Psychiatric Center in New York have similar uses.
Educational facilities
It’s important that students, faculty, and staff feel safe while traveling around their campus. The BOSCH Security Escort provides the peace of mind they are looking for. It works over multiple buildings, as well as multiple floors, and offers both indoor and outdoor protection including elevators, parking garages, underground tunnels and basements – anywhere in the system’s area.
The Security Escort system is in use at Florida Southern University, a 100-acre facility with 2,400 students and 2,200 undergraduate students. Randy Bevins, Director of Campus Security, has stated that “the system is accurate within 10 feet and that he has experienced no major system failure since installation, despite the fact that the system is seventeen years old”.
Nazareth College, which is located on a 150-acre campus in Rochester, NY with over 3,100 students, also has been using the Security Escort system since 1993. The system involves 16 Transponders and 300 indoor and outdoor Receivers. When a Transmitter is activated, it allows security officials to monitor students through a graphical interface that has floor-by-floor identification, inside and outside locations, and direction of student travel.
Assisted and Independent Living facilities
Housing units at Eskaton Village Grass Valley in California are for Independent Living with 130 detached patio homes and 80 apartments, and 57 Assisted Living apartments at the Lodge. The senior living community is spread over 42 shady and wooded acres.
"It's a great marketing tool for us" commented June Connelly, Administrator at Eskaton Village Grass Valley. "Our residents and their families really like Security Escort because it lets them move about freely and not worry about calling for assistance wherever they are in our community.” June has been with Eskaton for 15 years, opening this facility in May 2002.
“The Security Escort system covers almost our entire property – no matter where a resident is, they can signal for assistance with their own transmitter and we respond right away.” “We chose the Security Escort system because it fulfilled the needs of our residents and our staff, helping ease the anxieties brought on by health concerns and physical limitations”.
Some of the other facilities using the Security Escort are Inn at Silver Lake in Massachusetts and Woodmont Homes in Florida.
How Eskaton Village uses the BOSCH Security Escort
The system is especially useful for people with limited mobility – for instance, if someone falls in the kitchen or outdoors in one of the garden areas, they don’t have to try to crawl to the nearest wall-mounted pull cord. When someone needs assistance, it may be difficult, painful or even impossible for a resident to get to a telephone or a pull cord. Security Escort is there to help with its small, convenient transmitter.
Designed with a large push button for ease of use as well as other alerting options, the Security Escort personal transmitter may be worn as a wristband or as necklace/pendant, even in the shower. Once a transmitter is activated and generates an alarm, the staff is immediately notified of the resident’s name and location so they can send assistance.
Security Escort is also equipped with several features such as Check-In-Monitoring, which informs the staff of lack of movement in a room or designated area; Wander Alert capabilities, notifying the staff if a person or asset has left an assigned area.
“We monitor our assisted living residents routinely. If someone attempts to walk away from the area without advising us first, we are alerted by the system and able to track their location. We first check the system to see where they might be.” explains June.
The Security Escort system monitor is a standard personal computer into which maps and blueprints of the facilities and grounds are loaded and constantly monitored. The Alarm Screen instantly identifies user and location. Upon receipt of an alarm, the console software displays a map showing the location of the signal, indicated by the red circle in the map above. During an alarm event, the user’s name and personal information are displayed on the screen which can include a photograph, medical history, condition, drug allergies, age, height, weight and more.
After initial activation, the system also has the capability to track the movement of the person or item. Updated every seven seconds, the alarm screen’s user-friendly interface makes it easy to manage alarms and dispatch assistance quickly.
When necessary, the system administrator can search for someone by name or assigned transmitter number. Multiple alarms are handled and resolved separately so if more than one person calls for assistance at one time, no one waits.
Aging in Place
When an emergency call system is so much more
A great emergency call system can be a powerful tool in helping you to let technology do the work of protecting your residents, making their environments more secure, all while providing them with a stronger feeling of independence – and allowing your staff more time and energy to creating a comfortable “at home” feeling for them.
Gradual increased protection for residents – within the building, define an area,
know when they leave their room or their bed
Use the BOSCH Security Escort system to keep a closer watch on certain residents as their medical conditions change. It also means that you can retain residents, who are more at risk, a little longer in your facility.
- At some point you may want to ensure that a particular resident in Independent Living does not leave the residence. This is easily achieved using Virtual Fencing by a simple click and drag operation on a floor plan at the Central Console computer. In time if you decide to restrict a resident to the Assisted Living floor or Memory Care area, you simply repeat the Virtual Fencing process on the computer and change the area.
- If a resident develops a tendency to leave her apartment at night, the addition of a door contact that automatically arms and disarms itself at 11 p.m. and 6 a.m. is an inexpensive solution. When that resident wanders out of her apartment, your staff will receive an immediate “door alarm” page notification. By moving the resident to an Assisted Living floor, and moving the door contact as well, your staff will then be able to provide a quicker response.
- You can even use a bed or floor alarm to know when a resident gets out of bed. This is especially helpful when a resident is recuperating from a fall or surgery.
All this can be accomplished without the need for an expensive wandering system with mag locks and key pads and the institutional look that most Independent Living residences want to stay away from.
It can also all be handled by your own staff – with a simple programming change at no cost or less than a few hundred dollars for door or bed alarm contacts.
- The daily Check-in monitoring feature can be activated for one or as many residents as you want. Again a simple click of a mouse and the addition of a bathroom door contact or a motion detector will accomplish this at minimal cost, and will inform your staff of lack of movement in a resident’s apartment.
- The Locating feature lets you find a resident anywhere in your facility within 25 feet or less.
- A wheel chair pad can notify your staff if a resident falls out of it and identify the resident’s location.
- If a resident has a tendency to fall, your maintenance staff can simply add a wireless pull cord in their bathroom, by their bed or by their favorite chair.
Two recent events are good examples of the benefits of a wireless emergency call system.
- A resident in an Independent Living residence locked her keys including her door key card – in her car in the underground garage. Feeling trapped and in a panic, she pulled the fire alarm, and four fire trucks later along with the threat of a fine for a false alarm, the issue was easily resolved. We overnighted the facility a wireless pull cord that the maintenance staff installed in the garage and we remotely did the appropriate entry in the database. The entire residence, including the underground garage had been tested previously for coverage throughout, so that residents could use their portable call buttons. However, this was one instance where the resident was not wearing her personal call button.
- In another instance, the Ministry of Labour, requested a pull cord be installed for the staff in a Long Term Care facility’s laundry room because staff sometimes worked there alone. Again we overnighted them a pull cord, the maintenance staff installed it and we did the programming remotely. In this particular facility, the laundry room was in the basement in the older part of the building, with solid ceilings throughout and thick stone walls. It would have been extremely difficult and expensive to install a hard-wire pull cord in that area.
In both of these cases, everything was accomplished in a couple of days, for less than $200 including the equipment, even though one facility was 1 ½ hours’ drive from our office and the other, 4 ½ hours. Distance becomes irrelevant, equipment is shipped by courier and programming is done online. The same solution came about for some customers who started noticing certain residents wandering out of their apartments at night. A quick phone call or an email and a wireless door alarm transmitter is immediately shipped.
That’s a powerful benefit down the road when you can add only what you need, whenever and wherever you need it – at an affordable price, without delay or inconvenient labour-intensive service calls.
Many dealers would charge more than this just to show up at a facility, let alone the cost of equipment and the time to install wiring from central equipment to a pull cord location.
A perfect fit for billing “A la Carte” and “Aging in Place”
We train your staff to handle all of the above scenarios and more. The BOSCH Security Escort system allows you to purchase just the equipment you need initially, and as the needs arise, to add equipment for residents or at locations as they are needed. This fits in perfectly with the principle of billing for “A la Carte” services and increasing the facility’s revenue stream accordingly by charging extra for special features and benefits .
As you can see, the BOSCH Security Escort also fits perfectly well with the concept of “Aging in Place” – and simple programming changes or inexpensive wireless transmitters can extend a resident’s stay in your facility by months if not years, while adding to your revenue.
Reliable, versatile and price conscious as well
Another compelling reason to use the BOSCH Security Escort system in senior living facilities is the pricing. In the case of retrofitting a nurse call system, the wireless Security Escort system is significantly lower than traditional pull cord systems. And – it is often 20% less than the wireless BOSCH Nurse Call system, which eCall also sells.
Security, independence and peace of mind
are just a click away…
For more info or a demo, contact us at
info@ecallontario.com