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#85438 - 02/11/07 07:34 PM Medical info, emergency info, etc...
yeti Offline
Enthusiast

Registered: 12/16/06
Posts: 203
Loc: somewhere out there...
I'd like to ask under a single heading about info preparation. While I'm asking it of everyone, there are some more specialized folks I'm also asking. I break this down by info type: here's why...

MEDICAL INFO

in: http://www.equipped.org/ubbthreads/showf...o=&vc=1

paramedicpete says:

Quote:
"What every EMS provider is trained to look for: is a MEDICAL ALERT ID necklace, bracelet or other MEDICAL ALERT type of jewelry. It is universal (at least in the US), provides immediate and vital information, cost effective and in my humble opinion, the best mechanism of providing immediate life saving information"


OK... this caught my eye. We all have convenient ways of organizing, storing, and carrying info. I'm after thos hints too. However, the statement above struck me (as did several others in old threads) that the info may need to have several different "houses" and targeted for those we might wish to show. So for medical info...those of you who are first responders dealing with medical info, should we really have say a [bold]Medic Alert[/bold] piece for emergency? Does anyone have the scoop on what all may be available and what the pros and cons of each are?

Several folks in threads also carry much more detailed info...info you'd want to give to a strange hospital or doctor where the hardware is available...care to share the pros and cons of your systems, anything new, etc? I ask because I think it might be wiser to use a two-stage process...true emergency info and in a different "container" more the medical history type info.


EMERGENCY INFO

I can see I've been remiss with this aspect. And truthfully, it may take a while for me to get this one sorted out. It's like doing the "in-case-of-death-packet"...a lot to think about and organize, especially when I've been lax.

Pics and lists of self, family, home, important docs, belongings make sense. Anyone wanna share their lists and thoughts?

What novel ides aree out there?

I was recently ordering tags for my dog. I used the same company I've used for 15+ years. The tags last a LONG time. The company is LuckyPet. Contact phone (24/7) is 1-800-543-8247. Their website is: http://www.luckypet.com/. Anyway, I recently ordered tags for my dog and several emergency kits in which I keep an extra collar and lead (as well as at a family member's house). When I got my shipment, it occurred to me they'd make good zipper pulls on gear for emergency situations so I re-ordered. The round or rectangle plastic are the best shapes to get the most info on them. I use round for pets as I don't like anything with corners or angles on animals. But the color selection is good and they always add print in contrasting colors (the color is in the core of the blanks). Also, immediate re-orders are a little cheaper. Additionally, you can have text on front and back on the plastic tags. You have to call them via phone for that though. So, any handy items like that for info in your arsenals?

BTW, I'm not yet sold on electronic media for info storage for emergencies. They are typically fragile, don't deal with heat and cold well, don't tolerate moisture well, and need power to use them. I am envisioning a system with reduced-in-size hard copies
and photos sealed in plastic bagging (maybe vaccum???). I can still see a redundant system with electronic media however. Thoughts? MEDICAL INFO EMERGENCY INFO
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#85439 - 02/11/07 08:05 PM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
wildman800 Offline
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 11/09/06
Posts: 2846
Loc: La-USA
I don't have a condition that warrants a Medic Alert medal. I do carry my medical history on microfiche in my wallet plus my medical history is encoded into my military I.D. card. Hopefully, this will give you some ideas. That could be turned into a profitable sideline
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#85440 - 02/12/07 12:51 AM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
Bluecimmers Offline
Stranger

Registered: 01/28/07
Posts: 15
Loc: New York
I keep a list of my medications in my wallet, and an ICE (In Case of Emergency) number in my cellphone.

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#85441 - 02/12/07 01:34 AM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
Eugene Offline
Carpal Tunnel

Registered: 12/26/02
Posts: 2995
I've been thinking about this myself. We have a one year old now and when he was small enough to fit in an infant carrier it had a stacker with his name, doctors name, relatives names, etc in case something were to happen to us such as an auto accident. Now that he has moved to a seat we don't have that sticker with his emergency contact info. Since he and his pockets are too small for a wallet I don't know where to put his information. I've thought about something like a luggage tag attached to his clothing but would have to be something he can't remove easily. Suggestions?

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#85442 - 02/12/07 03:15 AM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
OldBaldGuy Offline
Geezer

Registered: 09/30/01
Posts: 5695
Loc: Former AFB in CA, recouping fr...
"...I keep a list of my medications in my wallet, and an ICE (In Case of Emergency) number in my cellphone...'

I do that too, plus I had one of those red dog tags made up with the REALLY important meds I take, and the doseage, listed on it. That goes on the long chain. On the short chain is a plain dog tag with my name, dob, blood type, and drivers license number. Should I really be out of it, and my wallet missing, that should give the medics something to work with...
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#85443 - 02/16/07 10:52 AM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
MartinFocazio Offline

Pooh-Bah

Registered: 01/21/03
Posts: 2203
Loc: Bucks County PA
Well, I'll chime in with the others who are first responders (I am a firefighter/CFR, working to EMT soon) and I'll agree with the bracelet as the most important thing for serious medical conditions (like diabetes).

As far as ID and alerts and medical info tags let me be a little gloomy here and remind you that in a trauma first response situation, I don't care what your name is, I don't care where you live, I don't care what your religion is. I'm going to get you out of the car wreck as fast as I can, and I'm going to try not to hurt you while doing it. Once you're out of the wreck, I'm going to do the minimal necessary treatment to hold you together until you get to the hospital or until someone with more skills than me takes over.

OK, so that's first reponse in a nutshell. But what about ID for a kid? Well that's a bit of a scary issue - your kid is riding with a freind, they get into a wreck...who's kid is it? It's easy to imagine and it does happen. However, the reality is that it's not too hard to locate parents in that situation, they come forward fast enough.

Finally, a thought on the process of fingerprinting and photographing your kids. I see this at couny fairs and festivals, and wonder if anyone stops to think what the purpose of this process is. Basically, it's for body identification, nothing more. Fingerprints on file do nothing to prevent abductions. On the other hand, a photograph of your kid that was taken 3 years ago is pobobly useless. Now, having been involved in a lost child search for a freind's 9 year old daughter a couple of years ago, I can tell you that a RECENT photo is very much needed in that situation. That's why when we go to places that are big and crowded, I take a picture of my kids (and their shoes) with my cell phone camera before we go in. It cant' get more recent than that. Sorry, I've wondered a bit. It's early I haven't had coffee yet.

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#85444 - 02/16/07 07:51 PM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
JCWohlschlag Offline
Old Hand

Registered: 11/26/06
Posts: 724
Loc: Sterling, Virginia, United Sta...
Quote:
That's why when we go to places that are big and crowded, I take a picture of my kids (and their shoes) with my cell phone camera before we go in.

That actually is a fantastic idea! Having a recent photo is definitely a plus, but being able to have a photo of what your child or children are currently wearing is great. Imagine how much easier it is to spot someone if you not only know what they look like, but know exactly what their clothes look like too!

However, I would like to request further details about the shoes comment. The only thing I can think of about the shoes relates them to the rest of the clothes as I've described above, but it seems you may have another reason. Somehow, I feel like I'm not putting 2 and 2 together here.
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#85445 - 02/17/07 03:29 AM Re: Medical info, emergency info, etc...
ratbert42 Offline
Member

Registered: 05/31/06
Posts: 178
Loc: Florida
A few years ago I was in a grocery store when a fairly clean-cut "drunk" wandered down an aisle with a pair of employees watching him. When he collapsed, they stood around debating what to do. I walked over and pointed out his alert bracelet (diabetes) which got them to call 911 instead of dragging him outside.

The point is: nobody was about to dig into his wallet or even scroll through his cell phone to look for medical info. If it hadn't been right there on his wrist, he might have waited another 30-60 minutes before he got medical treatment.

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