Rome deploys smart bracelets to protect elderly during heatwave

Rome’s municipality has rolled out a €400 million support scheme, funded with EU post‑COVID money, to equip vulnerable seniors with electronic bracelets that monitor heart rate, sleep patterns and can summon help in emergencies. The devices, worn like watches and equipped with motion sensors to detect falls, are currently used by about 700 older residents, including 85‑year‑old widow Dina Gazzella, who says the bracelet gives her peace of mind during the intense heat.

Social workers at a local pharmacy operate a support desk, checking daily on users’ medication, wellbeing and coping with the heat, and forwarding alerts to relatives via a mobile app. While the service is free, some participants have privacy concerns, and retention has fallen from 70 initial sign‑ups to roughly 45. The initiative is part of Rome’s response to a deadly European heatwave with temperatures reaching the upper 30s Celsius, aiming to prevent health crises among isolated elderly citizens.