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Lifeline Systems, Inc. and the Pioneering of Personal Emergency Response Systems (PERS)
Lifeline Systems, Inc. was founded in 1974 and became the major provider of Personal Emergency Response Systems/Services (PERS) in the USA and Canada. The Company advanced PERS technology and pioneered PERS to the healthcare market, creating a new outreach service for hospitals and other care providers.

PERS History
Fisk reports that as early as 1948 direct wire signaling systems were being used in Devon (UK) to link resident to their wardens. Modern PERS using telephonic remote signaling and monitoring was enabled by the Carterfone decision in 1968, opening the door for commercial device connection to common carrier networks. Devices became available that when activated would electronically dial one or more numbers and present pre-recorded messages that identified the caller and/or send digital messages that would display or print out at a call center. In the early 1970's PERS products making use of these triggered by wireless push buttons appeared. One was Securaline by Aritech Corporation, which was on display at a Boston Home Show, but did not go into production. Another, Microlert, was publicized in national magazines.

Andrew S. Dibner, Ph.D., considered to be the father of PERS in the United States, conceived the system/service in 1972 while on sabbatical at Duke University from his faculty position at Boston University. A psychologist specializing in gerontology, Dibner's research was directed toward helping people continue to live independently.

Lifeline Systems, Inc.
Dibner and his wife, Susan S. Dibner, a Sociologist specializing in the elderly, were the founders of Lifeline Systems, Inc. Andrew invented a step-up in PERS technology that provided for both passive detection that called for help even if the subscriber is unable to do so, and a closed-loop system that reports that the responder arrived. He applied for his initial patent on the system in 1974 and it was issued in 1976. In 1975, together with Hebrew Rehabilitation Center for Aged in Roslindale, MA and Boston University Gerontology Center, a grant was received from the National Center for Health Services Research to test the efficacy of PERS. The report, which compared older persons living alone with PERS and a control group, showed important reductions in the need for nursing home days along with enhanced quality of life and savings in the cost of health care. An innovative component of the service was the contribution of Susan Dibner to include the neighbors, friends and family as unpaid responders who were to be called when help calls were initiated. This proved to be an important and cost-saving aspect of PERS.

Notwithstanding the positive results of the research study, sales were meager and the company was struggling to survive. L. Dennis Shapiro, joined the Company in the fall of 1978 as CEO (1978-88) and Chairman (1978-2006), He attracted venture financing and initiated product redesign embodying new patents. The new system included a small waterproof wireless "help" button that could be worn as a pendant or on the wrist. Shapiro redirected all marketing efforts to hospitals, pioneering PERS as a component of hospital outreach and community wellness. Robert A. MacDonald joined as a VP and later became President and COO. Richard Conard, M.D., CEO of the Blake Hospital in Bradenton, FL, wanted Blake to be the first hospital to offer PERS and joined the Lifeline board.

In these early years, each hospital operated its own call center at a place that had 24x7 coverage, such as the switchboard or the emergency room. Lifeline provided call center equipment, subscriber units and training of installer and monitoring personnel.

At the time of its IPO In 1983, the Company reported programs at 528 hospitals and healthcare providers, and had shipped 21,931 subscriber units. As each hospital program grew, what was easily accommodated began to require additional staffing and space. To serve this market, Lifeline developed high-capacity PERS call center technology and began to offer central monitoring to its customers. Arthur Phipps joined Lifeline in 1988 and became CEO 1989-1992. In 1991 Lifeline received the Shingo Prize for Operational Excellence.

Ron Feinstein became CEO 1993-2006, and during his watch the company enjoyed a sustained period of growth through market expansion and acquisitions. Central monitoring became the norm and Lifeline transformed from a hardware to a service company. In 2006, when Lifeline was acquired by Royal Philips Electronics it had programs with 2,500 health providers across the United States and Canada, and was monitoring close to 470,000 subscribers. The acquisition took place on March 23, 2006.

American Lifeline Institute International Conference
In order to provide a framework for ongoing research in PERS and successful aging, Dibner and Shapiro established the non-profit American Lifeline Institute in 1986. It's initial project was to sponsor the First International Symposium on Emergency Response Services for Frail Person Living Alone, Washington, DC, May 31-June 2, 1990. Papers were presented by representatives from 12 countries reporting on the state and status of PERS.

Charles A. Dana Award
Also in 1986, the first Charles A. Dana Foundation awards were announced. Andrew and Susan Dibner were awarded a Commendation for Pioneering Achievement in Health for their Lifeline System of Personal Emergency Response, now bringing greater safety and serenity to 100,000 elderly or disabled people living alone; a creative integration of technology and community that may presage other responses to the needs of an aging population.