As a trauma surgeon for 15 years, Dr. Shea Gregg has treated his share of elderly patients who’ve been banged up and bruised from bad falls.Gregg noticed that while many of his patients owned medical alert devices, they often told him they were too embarrassed to wear them.Some of his patients complained that old-school devices […]
Get Instant Access to This Article
Subscribe to Hartford Business Journal and get immediate access to all of our subscriber-only content and much more.
- Critical Hartford and Connecticut business news updated daily.
- Immediate access to all subscriber-only content on our website.
- Bi-weekly print or digital editions of our award-winning publication.
- Special bonus issues like the Hartford Book of Lists.
- Exclusive ticket prize draws for our in-person events.
Click here to purchase a paywall bypass link for this article.
As a trauma surgeon for 15 years, Dr. Shea Gregg has treated his share of elderly patients who’ve been banged up and bruised from bad falls.
Gregg noticed that while many of his patients owned medical alert devices, they often told him they were too embarrassed to wear them.
Some of his patients complained that old-school devices were too bulky. Or they’d trip an unnecessary call to 911, such as if someone stooped down to pet their dog. For many patients, the devices simply made them feel old, according to Gregg.
Those concerns, combined with his desire to help older adults live with dignity, be safe and age in place, inspired Gregg to create something better.
After several years of research, Gregg, a trauma surgeon in the Hartford area, founded and developed FallCall Solutions in 2015. The Trumbull-based startup is behind an app designed for Apple iPhones and Apple smartwatches.
The app is geared for older adults and their caregivers, to help people maintain their independence.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, millions of people aged 65 and older fall. Of the one out of four older people who fall each year, less than half of them tell their doctor about it. Deaths due to falls have increased 30% from 2007 to 2017 in older adults, according to the CDC. The agency anticipates seven fall deaths happening per hour by the year 2030 if rates continue to rise.
Gregg’s patients served as his main inspiration to create FallCall Solutions.
“More older adults coming into the hospital tended to own mobile phones, and an increasing number of older adults were wearing a smartwatch,” Gregg said.
Those factors, coupled with the launch of Apple’s smartwatch in 2015, led Gregg to develop the FallCall app that could be integrated into smartphones and smartwatches. Gregg said the company was the first to bring a complete app-based, 24/7 emergency monitoring system to Apple Watch, iPhone and Android devices in the U.S.
While there are other personal monitoring devices on the market and have been for years, like the infamous “I’ve fallen and I can’t get up” Life Alert push button pendant, FallCall’s products are different, according to Gregg.
“Traditional personal emergency response systems, or PERS, are stigmatizing and make people feel old,” Gregg said. “This is not FallCall, which downloads on devices already owned, is engaging and simple to use.”
The flagship app, called FallCall Detect, contains an algorithm Gregg and his team developed that can differentiate between the severity of falls, and contacts different tiers of help based on severity. The research team analyzed thousands of data points of mannequin and human falls in older adults to develop the technology. As a result, FallCall Lite was launched in 2018 and allowed Gregg to bring the first electronic personal emergency response system with central monitoring to the Apple Watch.
Gregg said the technology helps reduce unnecessary ambulance trips to the hospital.
“Specifically, falls from sitting will contact caregivers only, and falls from standing will contact caregivers and emergency monitoring,” Gregg said. “Given that there is so much variability in lifestyles as we age, we are building artificial intelligence that understands movement patterns and personalizes notifications to reduce fall risk.”
To date, Gregg said FallCall’s technology has been integrated in the U.S. and Australia. His aim is to expand around the world. While Gregg declined to disclose annual revenues, he said FallCall has gained legions of users.
“Although our app runs on popular wearables, some people still like medical alert buttons,” Gregg said. “Through global partnerships, we have integrated jewelry quality, Bluetooth-based medical alerts into FallCall. We strive to be the leader in non-invasive safety that is there when needed and invisible when not.”
As FallCall Lite gained a following, Gregg said the team forged ahead with integrating its “smart fall detection” algorithm on the newer and more powerful Apple Watches that hit the market.
FallCall Detect was launched in 2021.
Gregg and his five employees are currently working on AI that aims to predict falls based on abnormal ambulation and sleep.
“I wanted to build something specifically for this population that can detect falls and eventually predict fall risk through AI,” Gregg said. “FallCall ensures that caregivers are engaged the moment that a potential injury is sensed. Outside of these populations, lone workers, students and even domestic violence victims are users of our system.”
Gregg said FallCall was able to get off the ground with funding by himself, family and friends.
His idea also landed $150,000 in seed money from Connecticut Innovations, a leading source of financing and ongoing support for the state’s innovative, growing companies.
FallCall’s app is downloadable for free and can be upgraded to a monthly, central monitoring service ($14.99), and ($19.99) for a Bluetooth-compatible jewelry pendant.
One of the product’s users, Don Shaw, an 84-year old resident of Playa Del Rey, Calif., said he couldn’t be happier to have FallCall part of his daily life.
“I am healthy and active, but both I and those who care about me recognize that could change in a moment,” Shaw said. “I have used a medical alarm device for some time, but it was expensive, required me to wear an ugly pendant, was less than reliable and did not provide 24/7 coverage in all areas and situations.”
Shaw switched to FallCall in 2018 because of the ease of use on both his iPhone and smartwatch.
He also liked how he could trigger the system by saying “Hey Siri” or by tapping his watch or phone. Shaw hasn’t experienced any falls, but he is glad he’s armed with the protection he needs should it ever happen.
“Bottom line is better protection at half the cost,” Shaw added. “Dr. Gregg and his team seem to be always working to improve the system and to add new features. I and the people who care about me have a feeling of confidence in FallCall and would feel comfortable using it in unrelated non-medical situations like needing police intervention if robbed or threatened.”
On the global front, FallCall is in the running to win an international award, having been recently selected as the U.S. representative finalist for the MAPFRE (Mutual Association of Owners of Rural Properties in Spain) Fundacion Social Innovation Award in the Silver Economy Category. Gregg said FallCall is competing for a social innovation award grand prize of 40K euros ($43,362) against a finalist from Brazil, Latin America and Europe. The company will present its work in AI to predict fall risk at the Reina Sofia Museum in Madrid, Spain, at the competition May 24.
FallCall is also currently offering a seed round investment opportunity. Gregg said of the $1.5 million goal, so far $500,000 has been raised.
