Billy activity tracker app has kept father with advanced dementia living at home, son tells Royal Commission

Damien Harker (pictured above right), the son of an ECH home care client, has told the Commission his family would be “lost” without the Billy activity tracker app that they use to monitor the welfare of his 89-year-old father George, who is living at home with advanced dementia. Appearing for 30 minutes via video link from Adelaide (as per the Royal Commission’s new policy on not requiring residents and aged care staff to attend in person) with Denise Griggs (pictured above left), ECH’s Relationship Manager, Mr Harker said his father – who has been on a Level 4 Home Care Package since 2016 – has six sensors in his home which he and his brother – who both live close by – use to monitor their father’s activity and whereabouts. Mr Harker said in the two years between his father’s diagnosis and the app being installed, he would often receive calls from police, paramedic or hospital staff who had picked up his father.

“We’re sort of constantly worrying after that point when the first time it happened and from time to time it happened again,” he said.

Asked to trial the app (pictured above) by their father’s care manager at ECH, Mr Harker says it provides feedback on when their father ‘misses’ one of his routines, such as leaving at an unscheduled time, in real time.

“It’s just provided so much assistance to us and peace of mind that, you know, we feel we can better manage dad’s health care,” he said.

Ms Griggs added that the care managers can look at the reports from the app every morning to check for any activities outside the normal parameters of their clients and follow up with the family if necessary. There are some negatives, both witnesses said. Mr Harker said the app doesn’t prevent his father leaving the house and the family is considering a WiFi-controlled door so they can let him back inside if he gets locked out, while Ms Griggs said some clients with reasonable cognition consider the technology an invasion of privacy. Either way, the Commissioners appeared impressed.