At our August General Meeting the OC Fire Authority paramedics spoke about the importance of having Medical Info available when they help you after a crash.
The police may want a license for their report or a citation, but EMS needs to know about your health to treat you as well as possible.
ESPECIALLY IF YOU ARE NON-RESPONSIVE & fellow riders need to help you out...
Paramedics will NOT call an 800 number off your Road-ID bracelet or be looking online for a coded ID tag on your shoe, which is why you also need a card containing critical emergency & medical information. (This is OC Fire Authority policy.) The hospital may call that 800 number or look up your web site if you are non-responsive, but a card in your tool bag, and another with your phone and a 3rd with your cash is where emergency responders (and fellow members on the scene) will look for your information.
Without this readily available info on a card, precious aid-time could be lost.
They don't really need you name, but that and an emergency contact person and phone number could be really helpful if you get taken away in an ambulance. Fellow members can call family for you before you even get to the hospital & can track down who to give your bike to...
What they REALLY want to know is how old you are - most of us look younger than we are thanks to active lifestyles, but they have certain standards of care triggered by an injury victim's age - so
They NEED TO KNOW your Date of Birth! (they can do the math & if it sits in you bag for 6 years it will be dated so don't bother putting your age....)
They NEED TO KNOW if you are on any medications that might conflict or be a problem with something they may treat you with - so List every prescription or list "None" so they know what to work with. That may ned to be updated every time you start or stop a treatment.
They NEED TO KNOW if you have any prior conditions that might be important - so hypertension, cardiac history, epilepsy, asthma, recent surgeries... those are the kind of things you really should have on a Medical Alert ID bracelet or dog tag... but also on a card on your person ( &/or bike)
They NEED TO KNOW if you have any medical allergies - or food allergies if it might explain your condition.
Our Vice President Laura Brown and Membership Director Deby Six are working on a BCI business card we can give every member to fill out for yourself; in the mean time, get out a piece of card stock or type something out on a computer & get some emergency ID on you before the next ride! Put one of these red snake stick asterisk symbols on it - that is what emergency personal will look for as they dig through your wallet or tool bag...
Of course, we all hope to ride safely and in good health. But a little information card on your person could make a BIG difference!
