Survey: Seniors Feel Safer When Using Medical Alert Systems

WASHINGTON (November 15, 2022)—A new national survey from U.S. News & World Report’s 360 Reviews finds 96% of senior medical alert system users say they feel relief from their device, with 93% saying they feel safer when using this health technology.

U.S. News polled 1,000 U.S. adults who have and use medical alert systems for seniors, as well as U.S. adults with parents who have and use medical alert systems for seniors. Respondents were surveyed about the specific ways medical alert systems make them feel safer, seniors’ feelings of connectedness to their neighbors and their preferences for using various technologies and social media platforms to interact with loved ones and new people. Survey responses were weighted in order to be representative of the U.S. population.

“There are projected to be more than 80 million U.S. seniors in 2040, a nearly 22% increase from 2019; with the global Medical Alert Systems industry projected to more than triple in revenue from 2020 to 2030, 360 Reviews researched the perceived feelings of safety that medical alert systems provide both senior users and their children and found these devices bring an overwhelming majority of senior users and their children feelings of safety and reassurance,” said Kristen Mollica, assistant managing editor of 360 Reviews.

“The survey also explored seniors’ feelings of connectedness to their neighbors and their preferences in how they connect with loved ones and new people,” Mollica added. “Two in three senior medical alert system users (67%) have neighbors who either sometimes or regularly help them, while four in five senior users (80%) also say they wish they knew their neighbors better.”

“As for how these surveyed seniors use other technologies to connect, a sizable number note they use Twitter (37%) and TikTok (26%) to connect with new people,” Mollica said.

Additional survey highlights include:

• 71% of senior medical alert system users say the pandemic has brought them closer with their neighbors
• 69% of senior medical alert system users say they have received help because of their medical alert system being activated
• 48% of senior medical alert system users prefer Instagram to stay connected with friends and family
• 41% of senior medical alert system users often or sometimes feel lonely
• 98% of children of senior medical alert system users say they feel their parent is overall safer due to their medical alert system

Read the full survey findings here.