Have you ever heard of such news? This is a true story of a demented elderly woman who took a train from Taichung to Taipei and forgot her name and address, but fortunately met a warm-hearted police officer who helped her find her family. According to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, there are currently 280,000 demented elderly people in Taiwan, and it is estimated that by 2026 there will be over 400,000, with one person suffering from dementia every 10 minutes. The risk of elderly people with dementia getting lost is very high, which not only jeopardizes their own safety, but also brings great pressure and anxiety to their families. To solve this problem, Taiwan has launched an innovative service: anti-lost personal satellite locator.
Ms. Lin is an office worker. Her father, Mr. Lin, has been retired for many years and suffers from mild dementia. Mr. Lin likes to go out for walks, but he often forgets the way home and sometimes even runs into strange places. Ms. Lin has to go to work and take care of her father every day, and she often cries at night as she searches for her father along the road, and she is in fear all day long. She tried using her cell phone to locate him, putting up stickers with his name and phone number, and putting a bracelet on him, but none of them were very effective. She and her father often had arguments, which caused pain and distress to both the demented elderly and their families. By chance, she met Mr. Wang, a social worker from Sunyu Academy, who introduced her to the Anti-Lost Personal Satellite Locator service.
The anti-lost personal satellite locator is a small device that can be carried around, which can use GPS technology to locate the user's position and allow family members to view it at any time via cell phone APP or computer website. This service is mainly targeted at demented elders who are at risk of wandering away or other special groups, such as autistic children and the mentally challenged.
I. Targets of subsidies:
Those who are 65 years old or older, have a physical or mental handicap manual (new Type I or old dementia), have the ability to go out independently and are in danger of getting lost, and have been assessed by the staff of the long-term care management centers (or assistive device centers) around the world after visiting and assessing their actual needs.
Application for the venue:
Long-term care management centers, aids resource centers, or township offices in each county and city.
III. Application process:
1、Fill out the application form and apply at the Long-Term Care Management Center (or Assistive Device Resource Center).
2. Applications are examined at the municipal offices in each township and the official letter of approval is issued (approving the amount of the subsidy).
3、Bring the official document to find the manufacturer, purchase the GPS locator, and then apply for the subsidy.
IV. Amount of subsidy:
1. The maximum amount of subsidy for low-income households is $10,000.
2. The maximum subsidy for low- and middle-income households is $7,500.
3. The maximum subsidy for general accounts is $5,000.
You can apply for the subsidy once every 2 years.
V. Personal satellite locator function:
1、Provide one anti-lost personal satellite locator, which can be in different styles and colors, such as watches, necklaces, brooches, and so on.
2、Provide teaching and technical support for the use of cell phone APP or computer website, so that family members can check the user's location, history track, power consumption and other information at any time.
3. Provide 24-hour emergency help service. In case of loss or other critical situations, you can press the SOS button on the locator to contact the professional team for assistance.
Dementia is an incurable disease, but that doesn't mean we can't help seniors with dementia and their families. Anti-lost personal satellite locator is a kind of technological innovation to provide effective and considerate services. It not only helps family members to find the lost elderly, but also helps them to recover important values such as trust, safety, freedom and happiness.
Source:
Yahoo News
Supplementary Measures for Auxiliary Aids for the Physically and Mentally Handicapped
