David, my late father had one of these alarms but had to pay for it himself as he was a self funded retiree so no entitlement through government funding. It was rather expensive as I remember it but worth it for peace of mind.
I have forgotten which company it was through but we were given an attachment for his landline and a pendant to hang around his neck with a button to push for help.
Every week he had to push the button to connect to the company to prove it was working....he had a half hour timeslot and if he did not do it they rang him. They were very patient with him as he hated to do it.....I tried to be there during his allotted time so I could make him do it....and then reset it properly.
We had to give them 3 phone numbers of people who could respond within a certain timeframe....a few minutes initially. The device went through those numbers and if not answered it contacted the ambulance.
Only once was it activated (probably accidentally as Dad did not remember doing it) and I received the first phone call. The operator was lovely and very calming....and even kept her temper when I had to explain that it was a false alarm.
When my grandmother was alive we had a signal system.....mum would signal her with 3 rings of the phone around 9 am every morning. My grandmother would signal back. If either of them wanted to speak to the other they just let the phone ring until it was answered. I rang my grandmother every afternoon after my kids arrived home from school so they could say hello.
That may be something to think about setting up with your brother as he lives close by.
The alarm we had was recommended by the local ACAT team (aged care in NSW) so you might try the equivalent in your state,
