Apple Watch fall detection saves elderly woman, leads to lung cancer diagnosis

AppleInsiderAppleInsider
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in Apple Watch
An elderly woman credits Apple Watch fall detection for saving her life by automatically calling 911 -- which ultimately led to discovering she had lung cancer.

Fall detection saved Raylene Hackenworth's life. Image credit WFTS Tampa Bay
Fall detection saved Raylene Hackenworth's life. Image credit WFTS Tampa Bay


The Apple Watch is frequently credited with saving people's lives thanks to its integrated health systems like heart rate sensors and fall detection. Raylene Hackenwerth of Saint Petersburg, Florida fell hard and was nearly unconscious, but the Apple Watch dialed 911 for her.

According to WFTS, one of the paramedics said that a distress call from a watch is unique. The Apple Watch sent its geolocation when it called 911 to give paramedics a location to head to.

After Hackenwerth was taken to the hospital, a mass was discovered in her lungs. It was cancerous and she is now awaiting treatment.

"If it hadn't been for the falling and the Apple Watch calling them, I wouldn't even know this was there and maybe by the time it had got found in the future, it would be too late," Hackenwerth told WFTS.

The Apple Watch had been a gift from her son at Christmas so she could track her workouts. They had no idea that there was a fall detection feature, which is enabled by default if the user is 55 or older.

Fall detection has been credited many times with saving people's lives, sometimes more than once. Other times the heart rate sensors have warned wearers of potential health issues due to high or low heart rate, leading to life saving medical intervention.

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Comments

  • Reply 1 of 5
    robin huberrobin huber Posts: 3,960member
    That is great. But off topic, since last update both my and my wife’s watches are going dead on full morning charge in middle afternoon. Both used to go to midnight. 
  • Reply 2 of 5
    macguimacgui Posts: 2,360member
    The good news is you don't have a concussion. 
    The not so good news is you have...

    Wow.  But if it was caught early enough... If she hadn't had the watch, and she regained her composure, she might not have gone to hospital for a just in case checkup. Any way you look at it, she was luck. I hope she's luckier still.

    scstrrftwokatmewhcrefugeezigzaglens
  • Reply 3 of 5
    iOS_Guy80iOS_Guy80 Posts: 814member
    robin huber said:
    That is great. But off topic, since last update both my and my wife’s watches are going dead on full morning charge in middle afternoon. Both used to go to midnight. 
    I was having the same issue within 24 hours of the recent watch update but things now are running back to normal as far as battery usage and llevels go.
  • Reply 4 of 5
    robin huberrobin huber Posts: 3,960member
    iOS_Guy80 said:
    robin huber said:
    That is great. But off topic, since last update both my and my wife’s watches are going dead on full morning charge in middle afternoon. Both used to go to midnight. 
    I was having the same issue within 24 hours of the recent watch update but things now are running back to normal as far as battery usage and llevels go.
    Yes, watching the power meter and seems more normal today. Thanks for weighing in, thought I was nuts. 
  • Reply 5 of 5
    qwerty52qwerty52 Posts: 367member
    robin huber said:
    That is great. But off topic, since last update both my and my wife’s watches are going dead on full morning charge in middle afternoon. Both used to go to midnight. 

    There must be something wrong with the settings of your watch. 
    My watch battery has still about 40-45% left after 24 ours of use.
    I am wearing it all the time, doing work-outs and I am sleeping with……So check your settings 
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