The importance of carrying medical identification

Courtesy of Aging with Grace

Aging with Grace Personal Health Record

Will I have a heart attack today…a stroke…a diabetic coma…a seizure?  Most of us never ask this question simply because we cannot answer it.   Additionally, most of us would prefer to go about our day without such worry.  Asking that question, however, is an important step in moving us toward preparedness for the possibility of some unforeseen medical event. 

In truth, most of us live, work, and play without a thought to the possibility of a catastrophic medical event.  Imagine you are shopping alone in a place distant from your home area and you collapse with a stroke, rendering you disoriented and unable to speak.    Far from home, bystanders call paramedics who take you to an unfamiliar hospital.  As your treatment begins, paramedics and hospital personnel ask questions, trying to gather more information about you, but are hindered by a lack of background information.  Good health care relies on gathering and using information, so the EMT’s search you for identification. 

What do you carry that would help paramedics and emergency personnel understand your unique medical background and help further your emergency care?  How would hospital personnel learn quickly that you have a loving husband and daughter who know everything about you and who need to be with you in this circumstance?   Most of us carry nothing in our wallet aside from a driver’s license that would offer more than our name and address.  Do you have any health problems, medications, allergies, emergency contacts, or health care directives?  Most of this information is crucial to good care and unlikely to be located in our wallet or purse. 

In the absence of such information, hospital personnel are required to make assumptions about you as they look for more information.  Is this patient on blood thinning medication?  “Unknown, so we’ll have to test for that”.  Has this patient had a prior stroke and when did the symptoms begin? “Unknown, and since we don’t know all of this we might be taking extra risk in offering certain stroke treatments”.  This uncertainty leads to delays in treatment, errors in treatment, and changes in treatment based on a lack of knowledge. 

The solution to better preparedness for an unforeseen medical event begins with information.  Carrying personal medical identification is a simple means of ensuring your emergency care is delivered more quickly and with more accuracy.  Although emergency physicians and paramedics are trained to operate with a lack of information, they can deliver better and more accurate care when given the necessary information. 

How would I know what information to carry?  Carrying any information is a good start.  However, a new product on the market was designed around the above scenario and was specifically created to bridge the information gap.  The Aging with Grace Personal Health Record, powered by miCARD^® , an information solution designed by an emergency physician, incorporates a readable medical identification card with online storage of additional medical information, images, and advanced directives. 

The Aging with Grace Personal Health Record is organized around those key pieces of information most necessary in an emergency. It is designed to be noticed in your wallet or purse and displays: emergency contacts, medical problems, surgical history, medical power of attorney, medical devices, critical medications and critical allergies.  Additional information stored online includes advanced directives, EKGs, Lab test results, and personal notes for providers.  Furthermore, the Aging with Grace Personal Health Record  system allows physicians and personal care home staff to communicate observations or concerns to potential receiving hospitals through an online form termed miCARE notes™.  To learn more about the Aging with Grace Personal Health Record, please visit their website at www.agingwithgrace.net or call 800.626.9440.