People who work in hospitals: Medic Alert?

[minkydog]

i cant wear a bracelet... do the nurses/drs here think that a necklace would still be a good idea if i cant wear a bracelet?

my hands and wrists dislocate (i wear several different braces for wrists/arms/hands/fingers), and i have extremely sensitive skin and sensory problems, so i cant do a bracelet (i tried and it either hurt me or i didnt wear it)

i was thinking about getting necklace dogtags with a phone number - my meds change all the time and i am yet undiagnosed on spine problems, so...

I guess i am not quite sure how to get the info i need with me... i am on seizure meds, which i know ER docs are supposed to know... and i have several chronic problems...

So, sorry to hijack the thread, but if a person DOES get a bracelet/necklace, what should we get on it?

My son and my husband both wear medic alert necklaces. Dh didn't want a bracelet and DS would just rip it off (it took us awhile to get him to wear the necklace.) DH's says "Heart/lung disease" and "Pacemaker". DSs says "Last Name/xxx-xxx-xxxx" (his situation is a little different--to complex to put on a little charm.)

 

[Tamarak]

My husbands read

Joseph XXXXXX
WARFARIN TREATMENT
BLOOD THINNER
STOP ANY BLEEDING
Doctor 777-777-7777
Wife - 888 888 8888


I was fearful if he was ever in a accident and a regular person was helping.
A lot dont KNOW what warfarin is - or the urgency he would need to be treated in. I was afraid that in "triage" his injury may "look" minor to a regular person and they would put him to the side not realizing he could easily bleed to death where a normal person would not.

I decided that include the information of "Blood thinner" and STOP any bleeding may save his life in an emergency where medical personal are not there yet.

I know that situation is far fetched...but it gave me a small piece of mind to add it to the bracelet that is meant to save his life.

 

[RNMOM]

I've recently developed the same allergy. I also have asthma and for a week kept using my albuterol thinking it was the asthma but it kept getting worse and worse. Duh! Unfortunately NSAIDS were what gave me the most pain relief for my arthritis.

 

[laurie31]

My husbands read

Joseph XXXXXX
WARFARIN TREATMENT
BLOOD THINNER
STOP ANY BLEEDING
Doctor 777-777-7777
Wife - 888 888 8888


I was fearful if he was ever in a accident and a regular person was helping.
A lot dont KNOW what warfarin is - or the urgency he would need to be treated in. I was afraid that in "triage" his injury may "look" minor to a regular person and they would put him to the side not realizing he could easily bleed to death where a normal person would not.

I decided that include the information of "Blood thinner" and STOP any bleeding may save his life in an emergency where medical personal are not there yet.

I know that situation is far fetched...but it gave me a small piece of mind to add it to the bracelet that is meant to save his life.

Hey, you never know!

We had a patient several years ago (accident victim) who had ITP (a clotting disorder). We would not have known this, except his hematologist was moonlighting in the ER and recognized him as they brought him in from the ambulance. He needed all kinds of tests not normally ordered. We would not have known this in time if his doctor hadn't happened to be there and see him come in. A bracelet would have been a very good thing for him to have had.

I hope your DH never needs his, but it's a good thing just in case!

 

[MouseketeerOvaHere]

Wow, where do these medical personnel work that they aren't looking for necklaces and braclets? We are like ferrets here, anything shiny and we jump on it.

 

[laurie31]

Wow, where do these medical personnel work that they aren't looking for necklaces and braclets? We are like ferrets here, anything shiny and we jump on it.

LOL at your analogy! I have a friend with ferrets and I've got a very amusing visual now!

I guess we're like ferrets too. We're pulling off necklaces, bracelets, earrings, hair barrettes, random piercings, anything that could have metal and mess with a CT scan.

Plus we do gather the patient's belongings - cell phone, wallet, etc. and the contents of the wallet is witnessed by an RN and the chaplain, plus if there is a large amount of cash, we get a security officer to witness as well. The contents are documented, all three of us sign, and security locks it in the safe until family arrive. So yep, we'll take your stuff and keep it safe. But we will also pilfer through it, trying to find anything at all that would help us take care of you, and in some cases figure out who you are.

 

[Disney Ella]

I've recently developed the same allergy. I also have asthma and for a week kept using my albuterol thinking it was the asthma but it kept getting worse and worse. Duh! Unfortunately NSAIDS were what gave me the most pain relief for my arthritis.

I was taking ibuprofen for arthritis in my neck. I've had asthma for 9 years now and just developed this NSAID problem, which my allergist tells me isn't uncommon. She gave me a list of prescription pain relievers I can take, so now I have to ask my doctor for something safe that I can take when my arthritis flares up. I hope one of the alternatives works as well as NSAIDS do.

 

[Poppinsme]

LOL at your analogy! I have a friend with ferrets and I've got a very amusing visual now!

I guess we're like ferrets too. We're pulling off necklaces, bracelets, earrings, hair barrettes, random piercings, anything that could have metal and mess with a CT scan.

Plus we do gather the patient's belongings - cell phone, wallet, etc. and the contents of the wallet is witnessed by an RN and the chaplain, plus if there is a large amount of cash, we get a security officer to witness as well. The contents are documented, all three of us sign, and security locks it in the safe until family arrive. So yep, we'll take your stuff and keep it safe. But we will also pilfer through it, trying to find anything at all that would help us take care of you, and in some cases figure out who you are.

Ditto. Now if its a rolling code and its nightshift and were short of staff.....well FIRST priority is saving the life. Then we tear the clothing apart, get wallet/purse etc. Team effort baby!

 

[Mickey'snewestfan]

i cant wear a bracelet... do the nurses/drs here think that a necklace would still be a good idea if i cant wear a bracelet?

my hands and wrists dislocate (i wear several different braces for wrists/arms/hands/fingers), and i have extremely sensitive skin and sensory problems, so i cant do a bracelet (i tried and it either hurt me or i didnt wear it)

i was thinking about getting necklace dogtags with a phone number - my meds change all the time and i am yet undiagnosed on spine problems, so...

I guess i am not quite sure how to get the info i need with me... i am on seizure meds, which i know ER docs are supposed to know... and i have several chronic problems...

So, sorry to hijack the thread, but if a person DOES get a bracelet/necklace, what should we get on it?

If you get a "real" Medic-Alert necklace/bracelet (e.g. from the Medic-Alert company) there will be a number on it. If you call that number they'll give them all your info -- Dr.'s numbers, medications, etc . . . , and you can update that info as often as you want.

I'd put the most important things -- e.g. seizure disorder, takes XXX, please call for information on other conditions. Or something like that. We did a variation of that when DS was little, listing the 2 meds that had the most likelihood of life threatening complications, and the fact that he was NPO, and then a request to call for more info.

 

[minkydog]

I was taking ibuprofen for arthritis in my neck. I've had asthma for 9 years now and just developed this NSAID problem, which my allergist tells me isn't uncommon.

Hmmm, maybe there's some connection there. I have asthma too and I had an anaphylactic reaction to Advil about 5 years ago. Have you ever had experience with a doctor not believing that you are allergic to NSAIDS?

Last year I herniated a disc(the third time) and had to go to the ER. All I could take was Tylenol and I was in a lot of pain. I told them ER doc and nurse that I had had a previous anaphylactic reaction to Advil and the doctor smirked and said,"Well, it's pretty unusual to be trulyallergic to Advil. You probably just had a nervous stomach." Erk. No, we had to call 911 to the New Orleans airport to treat me for hives, wheezing and shortness of breath. By the time they got there I couldn't tell them where I lived or what I had taken. So, yeah. Anaphylaxis at its best.

I dunno, maybe they thought I was drug-seeking or something

 

[Disney Ella]

My doctor said it is a common problem in asthmatics and the information I read online said that around 20 percent of people with asthma eventually develop this problem. It is more common if you also have nasal polyps. I have only had mild symptoms with ibuprofen - chest tightening, a little trouble breathing and a weird, uneasy feeling, nothing like the cases I've read about online. Those people have had severe asthma attacks or an anaphylactic reaction. My doctor said that the problem is that once you've had a mild reaction, you are more likely to have a more severe reaction. One of the people who work in her office had had only mild reactions to ibuprofen and ended up intubated in the hospital after continuing to take ibuprofen. I would have thought that the ER staff would be experienced with this and wouldn't have doubted you, particularly in light of your previous symptoms. My doctor knew exactly what I was talking about as soon as I mentioned ibuprofen.