Choosing Between DIY Monitoring And A 24/7 Professional Monitoring Service

Keeping Staff Safe: The Purpose of a Lone Worker Safety App

Every organisation with lone workers shares one overriding responsibility: keeping their staff safe. Lone workers face unique risks ranging from medical emergencies to physical assault, vehicle accidents, and environmental hazards.

That’s why solutions like the My Safety Buddy lone worker safety app exist. With the Duress Alarm, wearable Duress Buttons, Man Down Alarm, Scheduled Check Ins, Journey Monitoring, and Welfare Checks, the app provides the tools to keep staff safe and supported.

But while the app provides the technology, organisations must still answer one critical question: what happens when an alarm is activated?

Why Response Procedures Matter

An alarm is only the first step. The real safety outcome depends on how quickly and effectively someone responds.

If an employee activates the duress alarm, collapses from a medical event, or fails to check in, a alert is sent out instantly. But if that alert isn’t noticed, or isn’t acted upon, then the purpose of the app is undermined.

This is why organisations must map out a clear response procedure as part of rolling out a lone worker safety app. Who receives the notification? How do they respond? How quickly can they respond? What escalation steps are in place?

With My Safety Buddy, you have the flexibility to choose between two models:

DIY Internal Monitoring. Your own emergency contacts (e.g., managers or team leaders) respond to alarms.
My Safety Buddy’s 24/7 Monitoring Service. The Monitoring Service team from My Safety Buddy responds immediately on your behalf.

Option 1: DIY Internal Monitoring

Many organisations start with DIY Internal Monitoring. In this model, alarms are sent directly to designated emergency contacts (e.g., managers or team leaders) inside your organisation.

Here’s how it works:

When an alarm is activated, each emergency contact receives an automated voice call, SMS, and email.
The voice call and SMS notify the emergency contact immediately, while the email provides full details including GPS location and other incident data.
You can set up as many emergency contacts as needed for each user.

Finding the Sweet Spot

While technically you can assign one or even five contacts, experience shows the best results come from 2 – 3 emergency contacts per user.

One emergency contact is rarely enough unless it’s a centrally staffed number. If that one person is unavailable, the system fails.
Four or more emergency contacts often leads to the “someone else will do it” problem, where each person assumes another will respond, and no one does.
Two or three emergency contacts provide balance: redundancy without confusion.

Benefits of DIY Internal Monitoring

Internal control over response protocols.
Some cost savings compared to My Safety Buddy’s 24/7 Monitoring Service.

Risks of DIY Internal Monitoring

If no one is available, or no one acts, the worker remains at risk.
Staff working outside normal hours may activate alarms when no manager is awake or on duty.
Managers may experience fatigue if they are constantly on-call for after-hours alerts.

DIY Internal Monitoring works well if you can guarantee consistent and immediate responses. If not, the risks may outweigh the cost savings.

Option 2: My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service

For many organisations, the safer choice is the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service.

In this model, alarms are handled by our dedicated Monitoring Service team, who are available at all times.

How It Works

When an alarm is activated, the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service is alerted immediately.
Trained professionals follow a rapid response protocol, contacting the user and escalating to emergency contacts and emergency services according to the pre-agreed procedure.
Our Monitoring Service staff are highly experienced in handling duress, medical, and critical incidents so your workers are never left waiting.

Performance Targets

The My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service has strict response benchmarks:

95% of alarms are responded to within 1 minute.
100% are responded to within 2 minutes.

That’s peace of mind you can rely on especially in time-critical emergencies.

Benefits of the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service

Guaranteed response at any time of day or night.
Protects managers from fatigue by removing the burden of out-of-hours callouts.
Professional expertise ensures emergencies are escalated appropriately.
Consistency across shifts, sites, and geographies.

When It’s Essential

The My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service is strongly recommended if:

You can’t guarantee emergency contacts are always available.
Your staff work outside of normal business hours.
Your organisation wants maximum confidence in incident response.

50/50: How Customers Use Both Options

Interestingly, around 50% of My Safety Buddy customers choose DIY Internal Monitoring, while the other 50% opt for the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service.

This reflects the diversity of workplaces:

Some organisations have robust rostering and on-call systems already in place, making DIY Internal Monitoring an effective option.
Others recognise the limitations of internal resources and prefer the certainty of professional monitoring.

For the organisations who start with DIY Internal Monitoring, they take comfort in knowing they can upgrade to the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service at any time if they experience challenges with maintaining reliable internal coverage.

Choosing the Right Model for Your Organisation

So which monitoring option is right for you? Ask these questions:

Can you guarantee someone will always be available to respond immediately?
- If yes, DIY Internal Monitoring may work.
- If no, the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service is safer.
Do you have staff working nights, weekends, or remotely?
- If yes, the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service removes after-hours burden from managers.
Are you comfortable with the risk of delays or non-responses?
- If not, professional monitoring by the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service provides peace of mind.
How important is cost vs certainty?
- DIY Internal Monitoring saves money, but the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service ensures rapid and reliable response.

Final Word: Technology Plus Response Equals Safety

A lone worker safety app is only as effective as the response system behind it. My Safety Buddy gives organisations the flexibility to choose between DIY Internal Monitoring and the My Safety Buddy 24/7 Monitoring Service. Whichever option you select, the goal remains the same: keeping your staff safe.

The decision comes down to your resources, risk tolerance, and operating model. What matters most is that you don’t leave staff safety to chance.

~ ~ ~

Travis Holland
CEO
My Safety Buddy

Should you wish to discuss strategies to improve your staff’s safety in their work environment, please feel welcome to contact My Safety Buddy.

Passionate about creating safer workplaces our goal is to enhance wellbeing for all concerned whilst also delivering improved operational and financial performance.

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