At 3am the pendant on the nightstand looks like the cheapest answer to the question you are really asking, which is what happens if she falls on the way to the bathroom and cannot get up. Before you buy one, price it the way it will actually be used. That means counting what it costs every month, what it needs to keep working, and who gets the call when it goes off.
Local option: New Plan Care gives families in the St. Louis area in-home help so a parent can stay home: companionship, help with bathing and dressing, meals, and overnight care. Call (314) 405-0887.
What moves the bill
Start with the monthly plan. Many pendant services charge a recurring fee for monitoring, and that fee often runs longer than the device itself. Ask whether the fee is billed monthly or under a contract, whether it starts at purchase or at activation, and what happens to it if she moves, stops wearing the device, or ends service. Get those answers in writing.
Next, look at the device. Ask how often the battery must be charged or replaced, who pays for the replacement, and whether the unit works in the bathroom and on the path between the bed and the toilet. Test it against the six stops, not just the living room where the salesperson demonstrates it.
Then check what the service needs from the house. Some systems require a base unit, a landline, or a cellular connection, and each one adds a line item or a condition. Find out which of those the house already has, so you are not paying for a second connection to make the first one work.
Who answers
A pendant sends a signal. It does not get anyone out of bed. Before you commit to any service, write down who is on the call list in order, what each person does when the call comes in at 3am, and whether that person can physically reach the house. If the first name on the list is yours and you are asleep two rooms away, the plan has a gap.
Ask the service what the monitoring center does if she presses the button and does not speak. Ask whether the device detects a fall on its own or only when she presses it, because a person who is stunned or on the floor may not press anything. Do not assume the monitoring center knows her routine or her bathroom path unless you tell them in writing.
Ask her doctor the clinical part
Whether a pendant fits her health picture is a question for her physician or her care team, not for the sales call. Bring the night route with you, including how often she gets up and whether she has ever felt faint or passed out on the trip. Ask the doctor whether she should use the device on her own, or whether she needs someone in the house overnight. The sales rep can describe the product. Only her doctor can say what she needs.
What to write down
Write the monthly fee, the contract length, the cancellation rule, the battery replacement schedule, and the call list in order. Write which of the six stops the device covers and which it does not. Write the name of the first person to call and the backup. Compare at least two quotes using the same list, so the numbers line up. Keep the page with your night route notes, so the next person who picks up the phone knows what she needs.
For where the general facts in this guide come from, see the Sources page.