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Borough Council service helps Margaret, 90, after fall
A service from the Borough Council helped a 90-year-old Hinckley woman to summon help quickly when she fell outside her home earlier this month.
Thanks to the Borough Council’s Tunstall Lifeline alarm scheme, Margaret, who lives alone, was able to activate her Lifeline device, immediately connecting her to the council’s local control centre.
The operator spoke to Margaret, established she had fallen and was unable to walk and called the emergency services within two minutes of receiving the call before going on to notify her family about the incident.
Margaret’s son, Grahame, has now contacted the council, praising the Tunstall Lifeline alarm, the swift actions of the council operator, ambulance service, and NHS, which proved invaluable during a crisis. Grahame said: “We want to applaud the whole operation; we were thrilled to have had such a great experience, from a quick and easy arrangement of installation, to the service supporting Mum.”
Following her fall, Margaret underwent hip replacement surgery and is now recovering well at home.
The Tunstall Lifeline alarm scheme offers users the ability to call for help at the touch of a button, 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Calls are routed to the council’s control centre in Burbage, where staff can get in touch with emergency contacts, visit if needed, and call emergency services when necessary. The service is available to anyone living in the Hinckley and Bosworth borough for a small weekly fee, with a free trial offered for new users.
Executive Member for Housing and Community Safety at the Borough Council, Councillor Michael Mullaney said, “It’s great to hear the Tunstall Lifeline service was able to help Margaret in a crisis. The service is incredibly valuable, offering peace of mind to users and their families and supports continued independence in later life or when someone is living with serious illness or disability. Not all authorities have been able to retain their support services, so I’m really proud that HBBC has, because it makes a huge difference to those who use it. If you or a relative might benefit from this service, or would like to know more, do please get in touch."
For more information about the Lifeline alarm system, contact www.hinckley-bosworth.gov.uk/pendantalarm or call 01455 251137.
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