I.C.E.: In an emergency, who gets the call?

December 19, 11:50 PMSeattle Health ExaminerPatricia S. Guthrie

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I.C.E.:  This ice helps during deep-freeze driving 

Slip sliding down a Seattle side street the other night reminded me of a tip I left out in my Life, Death and Fate stories.
It's called I.C.E. and it could save your life. 
 
I.C.E.:  In case of emergency
 Add the letters ICE  into your cell phone contact list with the telephone number of someone who should be called during an emergency. Someone who knows you and any vital medical and personal information, such as:

• The medication you take
• Your allergies
• Recent hospitalizations, illnesses, etc.
• If you've signed a  DNR order
• If you're an  organ donor
• If you have a   Living Will
• If you have signed a  Power of Attorney

Paramedics, police, fire and other first-responders are trained to look for ICE on mobile phones. It saves valuable time and the hassle of digging through personal effects at the scene of an accident. Of course, the cellular phone has to be found and that's not always easy in a traumatic crash. ICE contacts are extremely valuable to hospital personnel who need to contact relatives of an unconscious patient. 
You can add more than one ICE contact by typing in ICE1, ICE2, ICE3, etc.

No names and numbers but many cell phones 
 The I.C.E. idea is credited to United Kingdom's paramedic Bob Brotchie of the East Anglia Ambulance Service. He became increasingly frustrated not finding identification on critical patients. Additionally, research by Vodafone  showed less than 25 percent of people carried information on who they would like called following a serious accident. After the July 7, 2005 London bomb attacks, the I.C.E. campaign took off, then spread to other countries.
It's used in Canadaand many other English-speaking nations.

No cell phone? Use the Vial of L.I.F.E. 
 Vial of L.I.F.E.:  Lifesaving Information for Emergencies
This is a small form with medical and contact information stuffed into a pill bottle. Kept at home in the refrigerator where first responders know to look, the Vial is most helpful for the elderly and homebound. And it can be easily packed when traveling.

Bartell Drugs sells the Vial of L.I.F.E. kit for $1.
 
More information:
Signing a DNR order:
Being an organ donor:

Vial of L.I.F.E. contacts:
Bartell Drugs
Medic One
Free form and registration