A new hi-tech support system for seniors and disabled people who want to live in their own homes is to launch in the new year.

GrandCare — the brainchild of pizza firm chief Marico Thomas — uses technology designed to monitor the health and well-being of people who may be vulnerable and living on their own — and sends alerts if a problem is suspected.

GrandCare sales and marketing manager Deborah Outerbridge said: “It really is peace of mind for families and it gives seniors their independence, but they will know that if they need help, it’s not far off. It gives them independence and dignity.

“A lot of people have lived in the same home for years and years and they don’t want to leave. Our service means they can stay at home and be safe, healthy and happy.”

Ms Outerbridge said: “Marico Thomas is quite a tech buff and he goes to a lot of the tech shows and he stumbled across this — he was very concerned about the cost of healthcare and the declining services available for seniors so he got the rights for Bermuda.”

The GrandCare system combines home automation, online communications and healthcare monitoring and uses a simple, easy-to-use touchscreen linked to caregivers and the firm’s care centre.

Depending on the level of support required, vulnerable people on their own can get sensors and health devices placed around the home which report to the GrandCare system.

Motion sensors — which detect movement and can alert caregivers by phone, text or e-mail — are available, as well as door and appliance sensors and push-button personal alarms for emergencies.

Door sensors can detect when windows are opened or closed, while appliance sensors can turn household appliances on and off.

Bed, chair and mat sensors are also available, while ‘telehealth’ sensors to measure blood pressure, pulse, weight and blood sugar levels automatically transfer the data to GrandCare, which has a duty nurse to check results.

Ms Outerbridge said: “We also have temperature sensors — if the stove was to be left on, we can automatically turn it off.”

She added that one of the major causes of hospitalisation of the elderly and infirm is because people fail to take prescribed medicines — but GrandCare can ensure that medicine is taken on time and can even send alerts to clients to remind them.

Ms Outerbridge said trained GrandCare care managers will carry out a home visit and assessment of the level of monitoring required and create a customised plan to suit.

She added: “The rules on alerts can be as intensive or as discreet as the client needs them to be.”

Ms Outerbridge said that careful monitoring could reduce the costs of healthcare required because people neglect to take medicine or check their health on a regular basis, as well as reduce the need for rest home accommodation.

And she added that an ageing population, and few places in seniors’ homes, meant that more and more people would require some kind of support at home.

Ms Outerbridge said: “I believe there will be a lot of demand for this, especially in Bermuda because there are really not a lot of places for people to go.

“Right now, we’re getting all the information out there with the hope of doing our first installations in January.”

Ms Outerbridge said GrandCare cover started from around $750 a month, which was much cheaper than rest homes or a home help.

She added: “There are a range of options, but to be in a care facility now costs $6,500 a month and getting a caregiver in three days a week costs around $2,500 a month.

“It will have an impact on healthcare by reducing costs because they are taking care of their health, their vitals and their medication. GrandCare offers a level of security that all these things are being done — and the care centre we are opening up in January adds an extra layer of monitoring.”

Ms Outerbridge said that the system also provides social tools to help older people on their own stay in touch with friends and family using one-button video chat using Skype and offers a range of games.

She added: “Other socialisation aspects are they have access to a message system, calendar events, spirituals, news and weather, as well as brain games which helps with cognition.”

For more information visit www.grandcarebda.bm. GrandCare, based in Flatts, can also be contacted on 236-2273 or by e-mail at info@grandcarebda.bm.