Pharm Alarm is a mobile App that helps people with Alzheimer’s, dementia, and memory loss. It reminds patients and caregivers when it is time to take medication, complete tasks, go to appointments, and logs patient events for doctors.
A team of students from Meyzeek Middle School in Louisville, Kentucky were named Best in Nation winners in the fourth annual Verizon Innovative Learning App Challenge.
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In addition to winning a $20,000 grant from the Verizon Foundation for their school, the “Pharm Alarm App” team of students had the chance to work alongside experts from the Center for Mobile Learning at the MIT Media Lab to turn their concept into a real, working mobile app that is now
Some of the things the App can do for people with Alzheimer's or memory loss:
- remind patients to complete essential tasks,
- take medication,
- and eat meals.
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The App helps caregivers:
- log patient information for doctor's visits,
- and reminds them about appointments.
The Calling Feature is an essential part of the APP because it ensures that the patient is taking their medications. When it is time for the patient to take their medication, a notification will appear on their device, and will sound a ringtone specific to the App, that reminds the patient which medication to take and the dosage.
It can also show a picture of the medication.
When the patient finishes taking the medication, they press a button which will stop the alarm. If the button is not pushed within a designated time of the alarm sounding, Pharm Alarm will call one of the relatives on the contact list with a pre-recorded message, stating that the patient has not taken their medication.
You can also connect a Fitbit or Jawbone to the application to monitor sleep and exercise patterns, as well as location.
As an alternative the caregiver could use the App to accomplish all of the above. The Pharm Alarm App then acts like a free personal assistant.
Pharm Alarm is the second App to receive the Alzheimer's Reading Room Seal of Approval.
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