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today i had the unwelcome experience of having to call an ambulance for a friend who i found unconscious and unresponsive at her home. i won't go in to details but she has underlying health issues. something didn't feel right this afternoon and i quit work early and headed home to see what was going on. dialed 999 5 minutes later. the emergency services were awesome, turned out very quickly, for which i cannot describe my gratitude.
anyway, despite aforementioned issues where i had considered exactly this scenario and had thought to myself 'i really should get x's sister's number', i hadn't, and it was only because the old girl's old school landline was knocking about with a missed call from her sister was i able to get in touch and let her know what was going on.
so, if you live alone, leave a number handy for someone, and if you know someone you are good friends with who lives alone, get an ICE number from them. do it now, not later. save yourself that piece of the puzzle at least. take care all.
An app call Road ID or some such has a Lock Screen that you can put numbers, so mine has 2 ICE numbers visible without a PIN.
Android (and presumably Apple) supports an ICE contact visible from lock screen by pressing the Emergency button and then looking at emergency info. I think you can also add emergency medical info there.
Not so relevant to the OP's situation but may be wise for all of us/kids/relatives.
I have one of these permanently on my watch strap:
https://www.roadid.com/products/universal-sidekick-for-garmin-fitbit
I reckon that's fairly likely to be found, given that people look for medical alert bracelets etc.
^ thanks folks. will look at suggestions.
Phone lock screen has name, phone number and the medical issue(s) of importance on all our phones.
TBH the next of kin thing seems a bit of a side issue to me. I mean, it's not like they are likely to be able to *do* anything besides worry and panic.
It's quite a good idea to make separate contacts for your emergency contacts with a tag of who they are to you "Diana - mum" for example.
My phone is not locked ie no code to open it. Mum is listed as Mum.
Done. Thanks OP
After trying and failing to find a how to guide on the web that worked i ended up just typing "emergency contacts" into the settings search on my android phone. Up it popped.
Hopefully not such an issue now but I never put the relationship to the contact in case the phone gets pinched and someone wants to make prank calls - perhaps it is just my dark and twisted sense of humour, but I'm sure it isn't just me that would consider a phone call to a parent to wind them up about their kid - certainly as a teenager, that would have been closer to maybe do that instead of being consigned to the never going to do that thought box.
I have ICE in front a few contacts on my phone and I also have ICE details on my phone lock screen. I've done a few first aid courses and get mixed messages about checking wrists and neck for ID stuff - some people do it, others don't and some ambulance people check it whilst others check it much later on (or not at all).
I think having something on the wrist is a good idea, but not everyone checks them.
Having ICE details readily accessible for someone is a good idea overall though, so I do encourage that when I'm at coaching when the topic starts getting talked about.
I mean, it’s not like they are likely to be able to *do* anything besides worry and panic.
There is a strong argument for an (unlikely but possible) scenario where knowing an unresponsive casualties name, any medical issues etc could be of real help to medical care. A quick phone call to your emergency contact is fast and simple. It also means that any next of kin can be alerted to come collect / visit / identify a person much quicker. I often ride with just my phone, no other ID. The emergency services would find it damn hard to find out who I am without *something*.
Can I also add, in the paperless world, if someone passes unexpectedly, it is a massive problem to access stuff without having the passwords written down somewhere.
Apple for instance require the serial number and proof of purchase plus death certificate to access a device. Not really what grieving relatives need to be doing.
I have an wrist band that I always wear when out running or cycling with some contact details on for my wife and my parents so people would know who to contact.
Like above, I also have the Emergency contacts section set-up on my iPhone which can be accessed without it being unlocked.
Speaking as a technophile, my personal opinion is that tech is the wrong solution here. Emergency services aren't going to want to play "guess where they've hidden contacts, maybe it's under 'mum' on the phone" whilst you're bleeding out. I agree with vmgscot above, slap a sticker somewhere readily locatable.
I would hope that when someone is bleeding out, they aren't even looking for a phone or ICE bracelet or any other distraction. Yes in the hypothetical edge case where you have some rare but deadly allergy or condition, it could theoretically be useful for first aiders to know, but even then, far better to have that info written directly on the ICE bracelet than have them rely on finding contact details for your next of kin, managing to actually get in contact with them (possibly no phone signal for MTBers, or the person could just possibly be busy or have their phone switched off) and then finally hope that this contact will know about and accurately convey the information about the rare but deadly allergy or condition.
If you're allergic to band-aids, have a dog-tag that says that, rather than a dog-tag pointing someone down a chain of quests in order find it out.
I would hope that when someone is bleeding out, they aren’t even looking for a phone or ICE bracelet or any other distraction.
Well, of course. Point was, In Case of Emergency you need to make it as simple and obvious as possible.
matt_outandabout has alluded to it. ICE is not just emergency contacts. It's In Case of Emergency i.e also medical details that may be important to anyone acting as an emergency responder and onwards. As an example in my case if someone found me unconscious in a field in the middle of summer I would very much like them to know that I am allergic to bee and wasp stings and should be carrying an epi pen. That knowledge in the thick of it could save my life. Always been covered in all the outdoor 1st aid course and refreshers I have done over the years.
in my case if someone found me unconscious in a field in the middle of summer I would very much like them to know that I am allergic to bee and wasp stings and should be carrying an epi pen.
In that case should the solution not be a medical bracelet which as far as I know (@Drac to the forum!) emergency responders will actively look for ahead of rifling through your pockets?
i have a sticker on the back of the phone that says wife and her number. i can't manage tech
if you go here for very little money you can get items that have a QR code that when scanned link to the online details you have stored.
I have 2 stickers on my motorcycle helmet.
https://www.cerql.co.uk/about-iceqr
I have a small bit of laminated paper in my phone case that I always have on me when I'm riding. Very low-tech but as @Cougar says, it's also very obvious. Name, address, blood group, next of kin.
I wouldn't expect emergency services to go through my pockets while I'm in bits on the ground but at least when I'm at the hospital / morgue, it'll be found and it's obvious what it is without going through all the tech.
Useful reminder to sort something out for the home though - there's nothing here that would indicate any next of kin or emergency contact.
The ICE in the phone would be useful for other people not just emergency responders, a friend I've known for 40+ years I know has a brother & a dad but I wouldn't have a clue how to contact them should she have an accident whilst we were out cycling.
a friend I’ve known for 40+ years I know has a brother & a dad but I wouldn’t have a clue how to contact them should she have an accident
I guess that's a wider problem isn't it.
My mum passed away recently. One of her friends she talked about was "Carol from on the bus" (name changed). Short of catching the bus myself and shouting "Carol?!" I have no notion of who she may be.
Closer to home perhaps: If you or I died tomorrow, who would think to tell STW? My partner knows it from our passing conversations as "the forum" and wouldn't have the first clue. Some people I only know through Facebook or [insert platform here]. What happens if someone's posts just... stop?
I have all my emergency details entered. Was on a first aid course (taken by a guy I used to play rugby with who knew I'd done my fair share of courses). He took my phone and showed the course that as a first responder he could access contacts, medication, health issues etc in a few easy moves.
Both of us were surprised that no one else knew about that function.
Closer to home perhaps: If you or I died tomorrow, who would think to tell STW?
Went through this when my friend passed away last year, did as much as I could to get in touch with as many people as I could for his funeral but I know there lots of people he knew through online gaming that I had no chance of contacting.
Better thought deid than flounced.
Went through this when my friend passed away last year, did as much as I could to get in touch with as many people as I could for his funeral but I know there lots of people he knew through online gaming that I had no chance of contacting.
exactly the point I made earlier. If nobody can get into your phone or emails and you write nothing down , it can make things difficult on passing.
No one can contact your friends for the funeral, cancel direct debits etc. There are ways but I can say it’s not easy.
If someone has an accident while out cycling, why would you want to contact his brother? “Hey, your bro Mike has had an off, can you come and pick him up please? I’ve got a ride to finish”
You do realise that sometimes accidents can be quite bad, right?
e.g. "Hey, your husband seems to have broken his spine. He's being loaded into an ambulance to be taken to the JR - you might want to head there."
And do what? Unless they happen to be a top spinal surgeon they'll only hang around getting worried.
I'm not saying you shouldn't inform next of kin, but it would be way down my list of priorities when someone is lying in a crumpled heap in the middle of nowhere.
Conversely, they might appreciate a loved one for emotional support.
Or slightly more morbidly, "hi, Mrs Biker? Yeah, we're afraid your husband's dead, he had a crash yesterday and didn't make it. We'd have called earlier but it didn't seem important."
It's an odd one I guess. If I'd had a Big One then I'd want people to know and sooner rather than later, and I say that I'm a higher-functioning sociopath which is a joke of course but has an element of truth in it.
As regular readers will know, my mum passed away recently. I got a call, "you need to come now" and I hadn't got to the end of the road before I got a follow-up call saying I was too late. I was angry with myself and at the world at large about that but realistically, what difference would it have made? If she didn't know how I felt by now then I've left it a bit late. I got to the home, not really sure why I was there but not exactly thinking too clearly at this point. They asked "would you like to see the body?" Hell no, why would I want that as my final memory of someone I loved dearly?
Maybe where I'm rolling with this is, it's a very personal thing? It's no-one else's call to make.
If someone has an accident while out cycling, why would you want to contact his brother?
Clearly you've never had the experience of the ambulance having been there & taken your mate* to hospital, whilst the police preserve the scene in case he doesn't make it alive. Phoning his brother and sister so they could get to the hospital asap seemed to be the reasonable thing to do 🤔
*In this instance a motorcycle accident.
thecaptain
Free Member
And do what? Unless they happen to be a top spinal surgeon they’ll only hang around getting worried.I’m not saying you shouldn’t inform next of kin, but it would be way down my list of priorities when someone is lying in a crumpled heap in the middle of nowhere.
Well, in my case, it enabled my wife to cancel the plan of heading to another county with the kids (where we were due to meet several hours later) and instead come and say hello to me before the spinal surgeon did his thing.
It wasn't the first priority, in fact I'd been lying in a puddle for about an hour by that point. But it was still useful for her to know what was going on.
If someone called you and said "<your close friend or relative> has been in an accident", would you really say "well what do you want me to do about it, I'm not a medic! <click brrr>"?
Just set up the emergency settings Medical ID on your phone (instructions here)
First responders will know [how] to look if they're needed. I imagine they 4 places the now look are: neck/wrist/wallet/phone