- Calls from older and vulnerable people using personal alarm technology are expected to more than double this Christmas
- But demand will drop as the last ever Downton Abbey airs on Christmas Day
A provider of technology that is used by 125,000 older and vulnerable people to stay living independently is expecting to answer more than 600 calls an hour over the Christmas period, twice the normal amount.
The number of calls made by customers of Centra Pulse using telecare technology like personal alarms, smoke detector sensors and mobile GPS watches is expected to peak at 700 between 8am and 9am on Christmas Eve, based on historic data.
The service provides them with an instant connection to trained telecare call handlers who are able to arrange the appropriate support for their needs such as contacting the emergency services or putting them in touch with a relative or neighbour.
More peaks are predicted at the following times:
- from 8am – 11am on Christmas Day, with more than 600 calls an hour due
- following Christmas lunch, when Centra Pulse staff last year responded to more than 1,100 alerts between 2pm and 4pm
- from 5pm on Boxing Day afternoon, when 670 calls were made over an hour last year.
Calls to Centra Pulse also increased to nearly 570 in one hour following last year’s Queen’s Speech, a 73% rise from the average hourly number of 335.
The rise in demand for telecare technology over the festive period is being predicted by Centra Pulse at times when older and vulnerable people are most likely to be alone. Nearly a third of customers who used the service last Christmas Day needed simple reassurance from Centra Pulse staff and there was also a rise in the number of smoke alarm detectors activated due to Christmas dinner cooking mishaps, allowing staff to intervene before the emergency services needed to be called out.
But the fewest number of calls are expected to be made while the last ever episode of Downton Abbey airs on ITV1. Just 305 alerts, more than half the usual amount, were made by customers of Centra Pulse during last year’s two hour Christmas special. Just 162 calls were received while the Eastenders Christmas special aired on BBC1 last year.
Susan Smart, Managing Director of Centra Pulse, the UK’s largest independent provider of telecare, said: “Every Christmas we respond to a noticeable spike in calls from older and vulnerable people who rely on our support to stay living safely and independently at home. Centra Pulse responds instantly to alerts all year round and at any time of the day or night so we are often the first point of call if anyone needs some reassurance or emergency support.”
“We’re always fully prepared to offer extra reassurance or emergency support to our customers and their families when it is needed but would ask everyone to keep an eye on any older relatives or neighbours who may be feeling a little more alone and vulnerable at this time of year.”
Sam Studwick, 23, has been a call handler at Centra Pulse for two years and worked over Christmas last year. He said: “I’ll be working between 2pm and 10.30pm this Christmas day so will celebrate with my family at around 11pm over leftovers.
“We get more calls from customers who are feeling lonely over Christmas because they haven’t seen their relatives. There are also more smoke alarm detectors activated on Christmas Day by people who don’t cook much for the rest of the year and try and do a roast or forget that they have left something in the oven. In those cases we are often able to get in touch with them and prevent a serious fire before the emergency services need to be called out.”
Centra Pulse is part of not-for-profit organisation Circle Housing.
Visit www.centrapulse.org.uk for more information.