Despite the infamous and slightly ridiculous “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” commercials, medical alert systems sales are growing fast as the baby boomers age. These systems provide help in the event of a medical emergency and you are unable to call for help yourself. Before you buy one for yourself or a parent, there are a couple of things you should look for.

• Pick a system that fits your specific need. Today’s systems offer wearable, voice and motion activated features. Based on your physical state, the type of system you should buy will vary.
• It includes help buttons that can be placed near the floor in rooms in case the user falls and isn’t wearing the pendant.
• It has the option of multiple contacts, ranging from a friend to emergency services
• Battery backup in case the power fails
• The company employs its own trained emergency operators located in the U.S., rather than outsourcing its monitoring center
• Monitoring center is certified by Underwriters Laboratories which is a nonprofit safety and consulting company

Below is a brief chart showing some comparisons between the types of medical alert systems.