AI technology reduces falls in Arizona senior communities

Senior living communities in Arizona are sharply reducing falls with the AI-powered monitoring system “Paul.”

PHOENIX — Falls, long one of the most persistent and devastating risks to older adults, are being sharply reduced at senior living communities across Arizona.

At some facilities, the incidents have nearly disappeared thanks to “Paul,” an AI-powered monitoring system that uses radar to track motion and prevent accidents before they happen.

For residents like Mesa’s Foster Vance, the change has been life-altering.

“I have a sciatic nerve problem and so I use the walker, or I use my scooter,” Vance said. “I visit with people and then next thing I know, one side might drop, and the other side might drop, and I find myself picking myself up.”

Now, at Fellowship Square Mesa and more than a dozen other communities statewide, those falls are becoming rare.

The technology was developed by San Francisco-based Helpany. Co-founder and CEO Sandro Cilurzo said he has spent nearly a decade focused on preventing what he calls the “fall epidemic.”

The device, which resembles a smoke detector, is mounted on ceilings and works without microphones or cameras. Instead, it analyzes residents’ movement patterns to detect risks and trigger preventive alarms. That allows caregivers to step in at the right time.

“The system analyzes the motion patterns of every single resident,” Cilurzo said. “For high-risk individuals, the system automatically enables what we call preventive alarms and then staff members are empowered to be with the right resident in the right moment in time, to lower the risk of the fall in the first place by being present.”

Cilurzo said the technology protects privacy while giving staff a new tool to understand residents’ needs.

“Motion is extremely powerful to unveil hidden risks,” he said. “That’s the whole purpose of the technology—that we literally know who needs our attention.”

At Fellowship Square Mesa, assisted living director Tawnya Williams-Christensen said the system has transformed care.

“Life changing for me, life changing for our residents, life changing for our staff,” she said.

Since its rollout, she added, they haven’t had to call 911 for fall-related incidents.

“I’m able to get information that helps me triage each and every resident and be able to put priority on the people that have a change in condition,” Williams-Christensen said.

For Vance, the difference is peace of mind. He knows the system checks on him overnight, a crucial safeguard given his diabetes.

“I feel secure that I’m not going to be found 48 hours later,” he said. “I’m as safe as you can possibly be, other than having a caregiver coming in and out.”

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