Know someone who worries about an elderly parent living alone—maybe at a distance of hundreds or thousands of miles? It’s a common dilemma for Boomers who are busy with careers and raising their own kids. They worry Mom or Dad could take a life-threatening fall, become forgetful about taking medicines or eating and staying hydrated. Assistance is available from the growing number of companies offering remote monitoring technology offer that can be installed in a senior’s home, and connected to adult children via the Internet, PDA or phone. The best part is, these systems don’t require installation of any complicated, difficult-to-operate technology. For example, Quietcare Home Health Security System installs a series of motion sensors around a senior’s house that are plugged into electric outlets and communicate via a standard phone jack connection. The sensors are connected to the company’s software, which can detect changes in normal living patterns that could indicate a problem. “If someone doesn’t leave the bedroom in by the usual time in the morning, or isn’t opening the refrigerator door in a regular pattern that will set off an alert,” a spokeswoman explains. No cameras or microphones are involved, which helps lessen concerns all around about invasion of privacy. The system costs about $200 to install, and there’s a $100 monthly service fee ((“Less than the cost of a latte at Starbucks when you look at it on a daily basis,” the spokeswoman says.

The Wall Street Journal’s Sue Shellenbarger produced a video recently that gives a good sense of how these services work.

Tags | caregiving, health care, Technology