A medical alarm is an alarm system designed to signal the presence of a hazard requiring urgent attention and to summon emergency medical personnel. Other terms for a medical alarm are PERS,Personal Emergency Response System or medical alert.

Typical systems have a wireless pendant or transmitter that can be activated in an emergency. When the medical alarm is activated, the signal is transmitted to the Allstate Security central station or one of their sister Central Stations. 
Elderly people and disabled people who live alone commonly use/require medical alarms medicare may paid for the installation, monitoring fees and up keep.

A medical alarm system consists of
	an emergency transmitter, which is worn like a wristwatch or a pendant
	a base station, which is connected to the telephone line and can contain a very sensitive microphone/speaker unit.

In addition there are various other types of accessories (fall sensors, smoke detectors, motion detectors). A plethora of devices are available that can be connected over analog or digital phone line connections. These devices make possible a high degree of safety, since in event of a power outage they operate on batteries.

In case of emergency, for example, after a fall or a suddenly appearing ailment, the user can set off a call for help by a simple press of the alert button on his wrist or around their neck, without needing to reach the telephone. The devices are configured so that any calls or connections in progress are terminated and a call for help can be initiated over the telephone.

With some systems, an alert arrives in the offices of the alert system operator (which may be a public rescue service or a private security company) and the data of the affected person (address, medical condition, family contacts) are displayed. With others, there is no system operator, and the user simply programs the numbers of family members, neighbors, or local emergency responders.

When the alarm signal is received in the Allstate Security central station the trained alarm monitor will follow the instruction on your information sheet and dispatch the needed authorities i.e. ambulance, neighbor, relative, someone with a key to allow entry in the city limits of Amarillo. Allstate security provides an additional service were by a Allstate security Patrol officer can respond to your home with a key provided by you to your home to allow entry to emergency personal or to assist you. If for example, you have fallen out of bed or out of your chair and just need assistance our Allstate security patrol officer's can offer this assistance. Your key is kept locked in our central station with only a ID number on it not your address or name.

Through the microphone/speaker unit in the base station the employee of the alert system operator can speak with the user in order to clarify the type and severity of the emergency and discuss further measures.

Depending on the organization of the service and the type of emergency help required, relatives or neighbors can be informed. If necessary, health care services or personal physicians can be notified or emergency medical services can be alarmed. Some monitoring services also provide the client with a USB medical alert device so that arriving emergency personnel can have immediate access to vital medical information.

Some units can call user selected numbers, so relatives or neighbors can be called directly, avoiding the expense of a monitoring service.

With some systems, it is common practice for the user to leave a house key with a neighbor or at the system office so that emergency personnel can enter the house even if the resident cannot open the door. Keys are kept in a safe and marked only with numbers so that improper use is precluded.

In addition to this "active alarm" there is also the option of a "passive alarm" (sometimes called a "safety clock"), on the principle of a so-called dead man's switch. On the base station is a button that the user is to activate several times a day; this confirms that the user is well. If this confirmation goes lacking for a longer period (usually around 12 hours), a telephone call is placed or someone is sent to check whether everything is in order at the residence.

Depending on the company offering it, the system is not only intended for emergency use, but is also used to conveniently call for help with shopping or cleaning.