I’m an of an evangelist for medical ID. There are a lot of types of medical ID out there at the moment so you’re spoilt for choice!
What medical ID do you wear, if any?
I do a lot of long distance cycling and strongly believe in wearing medical id. Even without a chronic medical condition such as diabetes, it’s important that medical staff have access to essential information (contacts, medical conditions, prescriptions, health insurance, etc.). For many years I wore Medic Alert IDs but found the quality is low, the price is high, and you get tons of junk mail asking for donations. I switched to RoadID several years ago and been very happy. They have a wide assortment of IDs at a reasonable price. I go with the IDs that allow medical personnel access to essential information that you can update as needed on their website.
Thanks for this discussion. My husband, who has Type 1, has always resisted wearing a medical ID, partly on the grounds of the expense. I ordered him one from RoadID, since they are inexpensive. Maybe I can get him to wear it!
I got a 32 GB Mini USB key on amazon. It is smaller than almost any Medical ID bracelet or necklace, and holds TONS of information. You can write up your entire medical history, allergies, Insulin doses, Current medication schedule, past surgeries, Food preferences, Include pictures if you want.
Once it is prepared, put it in MS Word document format (.docx) AND in .pdf format (portable document format) and in .rtf format (rich text file). I affixed a Medicalert sticker to the usb drive to it is recognizable as such.
Any hospital or any computer can plug it in and easily access the info. Look at this one: 32 GB nickle pico USB Drive
Micro usb with all medical info uploaded from any lap top or computer. Small, easy to wear. Inexpensive.
For medical, I still wear a Medic Alert necklace, but I also wear RoadID for quick access to contact info and highlighting that I have T1D. I have an anklet for cycling and several tags on various running shoes.
I suggested using a pico usb key, but the post didn’t show up> is that because I put a link to where it could be seen?
I was wondering what info do you list on the RoadID. I surf quite a bit and am planning on buying the RoadID. Thanks for your post.
More than 50 years ago I joined MedicAlert because of diabetes and although I’ve had to replace the bracelet, I’m happy with it. I keep my information updated through the internet and print out the summary [my full ID, contact family and doctors, all medications, etc.] and carry that in my wallet so it is the first thing seen. On two occasions when I was non-responsive EMS was readily able to “{do the right thing”. I use the I use the MedicAlert facsimile with full printout of my current bracelet as my mobile phone background screen.
I also strongly recommend that you activate the ICE [In Case of Emergency] app on your phone. This app automatically defaults to the first place in your “Contacts”; in it you may enter all relative [health] information about yourself as well as persons to contact, insurance information, etc. Our daughter said as a first responder for a quarter century said it is customary to check the phone of a non-responsive client, once stabilized and often before transport.
The ICE on your phone is a great idea Dennis! I’ve been doing a bit of digging around and we are definitely spoilt for choice on medical ID. A few sites caught my attention: eBay, Etsy, Mediband, RoadID and number of others.
What would you put on your ID? Blood type, contact, next of kin, condition, action to take? Any other important information?
I was diagnosed almost 35yrs ago with T1D and I have almost always wore an ID bracelet. Up until 2 years ago I wore a bracelet and I had tried many different types but really never had a true favorite because they all had one big fault…they would either break or become lost. I saw a young man one day in the Medical Clinic where I work and he had the most amazing tatoo. It was the Medical Alert symbol done in reds for the cross and green for the snake and under the symbol he had tatooed “Type 1 Diabetic”. I wanted a tatoo after that because you can’t break or lose a tatoo. My employer has a “no tatoo seen” policy but I wanted this seen for obvious reasons. I went to my director,who went to her director, who then took it up with the CEO of the hospital where I work. I was asked to present a drawing of the tatoo I would be getting so that they could determine if this was something that could be done in a tasteful manner and truly be considered a replacement for a medical alert bracelet. I now have a medical alert bracelet tatooed on my left wrist and on my inner wrist, I have my name and date of birth. I love it!!! I will never be without my medical alert bracelet again.
I know tatoos are not for everyone, but it is a truly great ideal and it was not painful to get. I would loved to have posted a photo of it for all to see.