I have a Road ID attached to my BSB, so it doubles as the scraper/striker. The info I had put on the ID was name/phone number/spouse phone numbers. It makes my wife feel better that I can be identified if found unconscious or dead during my numerous hikes and trail runs.

Would a hospital check a thumb drive if you were brought in unconcious? Or, would they rely only on written information? I'm thinking that the hospital IT department would be reluctant to allow plugging in an unknown drive into a networked computer.

Looks like the tag has all the information I'd care about most from the hospital side of things. Having name/date of birth is very helpful since it lets me pull your medical record if you've been seen at our facility before. One thought is to have a secondary contact in case your wife is unavailable.

Mark, if I had a patient who can't answer questions but had a thumb drive that looked like it contained medical information, I'd plug it in. I wouldn't tell IT though!

I thought dog tags once carried religion as well, in case last rites were required urgently?

Mine,circa 1960, did - still does and I will put them on occasionally in dicey situations.

From what I've seen, no USB drives allowed in hospital computers(data mining, virus concerns, etc). I know my computer won't even recognize a USB drive if I want to save something to it.

Regarding name, yes, it helps. They can pull up your medical record if you're at the same hospital, police can pull your ID (which has address, which typically has next of kin living there).

If you don't use the SIN up there for medical records, having your health insurance ID would be a legit alternative.

I have one of these:
diamond Edge Dog Tag

It is a good cutting edge for hard materials. It is stainless steel, and I recommend covering the edges with a dog tag silencer (the rubber ring that goes around the edges of a dog tag).

I have another one that is black ceramic that has a very sharp cutting knife edge. I can't find it on the internet (so no link), but I can get them locally. It also need to be covered for wearing it. These need engraving rather that the normal stamping used for regular dog tags.

Just handy to have additional tools if needed.

Lighter weight, more decorative: safety tattoo

There have been a lot of good responses so far, thanks!

As some have already mentioned, our SIN isn't really used for much up here, but our provincial health number would be important in a medical emergency; I definitely think that would be worth including.

Some have mentioned MedicAlert which I do think is a good system. I have one for my son who is a type 1 diabetic and also has several drug allergies. For myself however, I don't think its a good fit since I don't really have any medical issues. Another alternative to the MedicAlert system (and a little cheaper) is Road ID's interactive service. This also provides a 1-800 number & an online portal that can provide expanded medical & contact information. But again, I don't feel it fits my particular needs.

Regarding whether a first responder cares about by name & contact info, I'd guess they might not. But the main idea in my mind is that if I were incapacitated those further down the line would be able to contact my family.

Glock-A-Roo, you mentioned some good tips for condensing the info; I think the approach I am taking is to be as verbose as possible, while including all the info I can think of that might be helpful. In my v.2 of the info, I've used some of your ideas and can condense further if I decide on more info to include.

So, now I'm thinking my template for a Fixx ID would be:

STEVEN TODD HAUSER
CITY, AB CANADA
HOME 403-555-5555
WIFE 403-555-5555 CELL
AB PHN 12345-6789
DOB 2 JAN 1971 / B NEG
NKA / NKDA / NO MED HX