The Granny Pod - Good Idea of Bad

This is reprinted from my Friday about.com blog.

MEDCottage also known as a Granny Pod is a mini mobile home that you park in the backyard, hook it up to your water and electricity, and it becomes a free-standing spare room for mom and dad. While introduced a couple of years ago, it is only this year that a family is actually taking delivery of one in the U.S.

The 12 foot by 24 foot portable, modular “medical home,” can be purchased or leased and are equipped with health monitoring equipment and lifts to assist people who have problems with mobility.

Also included are security cameras that sweep up to 12 inches off the floor (foot sweep) in order to observe falls. A computer or mobile device can monitor the cameras. The cottage also has safety lighting along the floors. 

The AARP calls it an “innovative idea,” but critics describe the portable homes as “storage containers.”

In Virginia, the state government has eased zoning restrictions so no municipality can block them from being installed.

This from their web site. Our signature product, the MEDCottage, supports this idea of family-managed healthcare. The MEDCottage is a mobile, modular medical home designed to be temporarily placed on a caregiver’s property for rehabilitation and extended care. Simply stated, it’s a state-of-the-art hospital room with remote monitoring available so caregivers and family members have peace of mind knowing they are providing the best possible care.

They boldly state that this is an alternative to nursing home care.

The Washington Post asked readers: “Would you purchase a “granny pod” for your aging relatives?” Seventy-six percent responded in the affirmative.

On the site, Care2makeadifference, a dubious writer posed a question to readers about whether they would live in one of these pods. I was survey number 440 and answered with a resounding NO. Interestingly the numbers were split. Thirty-six percent answered ‘no’; 14% were leaning ‘no’; 29% answered ‘ yes’; 21% were leaning ‘yes.’

A lot of the comments that followed tracked for the positive. After all, wouldn’t this be a great getaway for the grand kids too one offered.

I think I rather have a traditional in-law suite attached to the house than a pod on the property. Yet it contains all the innovative things we keep harping about especially in the arena of telehealth. It could never be a nursing home because there is the human element of skilled medical professionals that would be needed.

Perhaps perceptions comes with the dubious nickname of being a “pod.” The term cottage does sound more appealing. And being a marketer I know people will get hung up on this. So call it a pod and people might want to eject themselves from such a place!

So let me hear from you professionals in the industry, caregivers and people who just may be of the age to use these. What do you think?