If you care for a person with dementia, you need to think about how they will react to the national test of the government’s mobile phone Emergency Alert system.
This is a test that will be sent to all mobile phones at 3pm this Sunday, 23 April. There’s no need to take action, but it may be confusing or distressing for a person with dementia, particularly as a loud alarm will sound.
If possible, we’d suggest that you be with the person at the time of the test. The alarm is loud enough to make anyone jump, but it might also bring back frightening memories of house, car or fire alarms.
If the person with dementia can turn their phone off or put it on flight mode – or you can do it for them – this will stop the alert. You may be able to explain to a person living alone how to do this, or provide clear instructions. Turning the phone onto silent wont work – the alert will override volume controls.
It’s really important a person who is alone knows how to turn their phone back on, so that they are not at risk. If they can’t, they should keep the phone on. You could call them on a landline just before 3pm and stay on the phone so you can explain what’s happening and reassure them.
Emergency Alert is a new UK government service that will warn you if there’s a life-threatening emergency nearby. In a real emergency, you should follow the instructions in the alert to keep yourself and others safe.
For Sunday’s test, you don’t need to take any action – the sound and vibration will stop automatically after 10 seconds. All you need to do is swipe away the message or click ‘OK’ on your phone’s home screen and continue to use the phone as normal.
This is a test that will be sent to all mobile phones at 3pm this Sunday, 23 April. There’s no need to take action, but it may be confusing or distressing for a person with dementia, particularly as a loud alarm will sound.
If possible, we’d suggest that you be with the person at the time of the test. The alarm is loud enough to make anyone jump, but it might also bring back frightening memories of house, car or fire alarms.
If the person with dementia can turn their phone off or put it on flight mode – or you can do it for them – this will stop the alert. You may be able to explain to a person living alone how to do this, or provide clear instructions. Turning the phone onto silent wont work – the alert will override volume controls.
It’s really important a person who is alone knows how to turn their phone back on, so that they are not at risk. If they can’t, they should keep the phone on. You could call them on a landline just before 3pm and stay on the phone so you can explain what’s happening and reassure them.
Emergency Alert is a new UK government service that will warn you if there’s a life-threatening emergency nearby. In a real emergency, you should follow the instructions in the alert to keep yourself and others safe.
For Sunday’s test, you don’t need to take any action – the sound and vibration will stop automatically after 10 seconds. All you need to do is swipe away the message or click ‘OK’ on your phone’s home screen and continue to use the phone as normal.
