Panic Buttons & Medical Pendants

The key feature of any security system is the ability to summon help when you need it.  While your basic security system will do this when it’s armed and subsequently triggered, this typically means you aren’t home, or you’re asleep, or it may alert authorities in response to other dangers such as fire or alert you to flooding , but this may not always cover your needs or unexpected emergencies.  

If there is an intruder when the system isn’t armed because you’re home, your security system won’t be active.   Though this isn’t common, it is a terrifying scenario. However, many business security systems have been designed to deal with this exact situation for many years.   Silent alarms in banks have been a mainstay for decades, allowing tellers to quickly and safely alert the authorities to an emergency.  

To this end, installing panic buttons near registers, safes, and any other likely targets, as well as at reception desks and any other ‘gatekeeper’ post is a wise way to keep employees safe.   Even with on-site security personnel, arming them with panic buttons to alert the authorities when a situation arises reduces their personal risk and the risk to any other employees, customers, or other vulnerable parties.

Even in cases where armed robbery is unlikely, panic buttons allow your staff (or your family) to get help when they are unable to make a phone call or must have assistance as immediately as possible.  

This same concept is available for home alarm systems in the form of wearable and static panic buttons. These panic buttons alert the correct authorities as fast as possible through the Central Monitoring Station.   Wearable panic buttons are generally designed to be worn as a pendant or bracelet that is easy to activate in an emergency.   By integrating these buttons into your existing security system, you give yourself an instant way to make use of the substantial resources tied to your security system.   The 24/7 Central Monitoring Station can be made aware of emergencies your system simply can’t recognize on its own.

This technology may sound familiar.   Medical alert systems have been advertised on television for many years, allowing you to call for help immediately if you have an unexpected fall or other medical emergency. They operate under precisely the same principles, but are focused specifically on medical emergencies, whereas a good security system will summon whatever kind of help you need.

In many ways, the widespread use of this technology in homes through medical alert systems has been excellent for helping to make these systems even more reliable and safe through extensive testing and innovation in real world settings and scenarios.   The buttons and systems available today typically involve more redundancies and digital monitoring than in the past, helping to ensure they will work properly when you activate them, or that you will know when such a system is in need of maintenance.

In these troubled times, protecting yourself, your family, and your employees from violence and other dangers is more important and challenging than ever.   Being proactive in addressing these risks requires you to prepare today for the problems you may face tomorrow.   Installing panic buttons in strategic locations and/or offering wearable panic buttons to your employees will help to keep them safe by getting the right emergency services involved as quickly as possible.