I am a member of a couple pacemaker facebook groups and the other day there was a question about emergency medical ID, such as a bracelet or wallet card. At that time I briefly answered the question from a professional standpoint but since it was facebook I didn’t want to go too much into detail since it would be a very long post. So I figured I just write a post in my blog about it with my view of it from both a patient and EMS perspective. 

First of all, if you have any medical condition, not just cardiac related, you need to have some kind of visible ID telling what it is. It helps us out on the scene to quicker get a grasp on what could be wrong. And sometimes the emergency isn’t what pertains to your condition (traffic accident for example) but the information that you have a certain condition could help explain certain symptoms and also when you arrive to the hospital.
Secondly, there is not always you have someone with you that can tell about your conditions and very often they don’t know the information we ask for.  To have a note in your wallet is simply not enough sometimes. Either your wallet is missing or time is of the essence. It is also a privacy issue, we try to avoid going into people wallets to not get accused of something stolen. It is not always we have police on scene and they may have other things. You can absolutely have a note in your wallet with more detailed information but have something easier accessible as well.

So what information do we need on a medical ID? We need your name, year of birth, diagnosis, allergies and if you have any implants such as pacemaker is also helpful. Due to the limitations of space on a bracelet or necklace you might just have to do what is most important. For example, this is my bracelet

I actually got this bracelet before I had my pacemaker implanted therefore that is not on there. And then in my case I have alcohol allergy that is very severe and that is important for EMS to know. This bracelet has helped me multiple times when I have been unconscious and not able to communicate myself. 

What kind of ID should you have then? Here is where I will speak entirely from my own professional view.
When we get out on scene, if it is a critical call, we don’t have time to look for information in wallets or phones. It needs to be easy to see, short and easy to understand. Sometimes we can get to the medical information on the phones, depending on the phone. And very often it is just empty. Just as an example, here is how my ID on my phone looks like, even thou it is very extensive, it gives EMS an idea if they look…

There they have all information they possibly will need on scene, if they look. We can often hand the phone to a police officer or a firefighter and they can try to get into the phone while we are working on you instead. And I also put in my primary language because if I wake up and I for some reason speak another language they know what language to request an interpreter for.
Important! I don’t have an emergency contact listed simply because I don’t have someone to call. I thou highly advise you to put that in here because they can call that person from your phone without having to unlock it!

Now to what kind… Bracelet. That is the absolute best. We will most likely see the bracelet when we start an IV on you or move you. As for a necklace, unless you have an injury around your neck it is easy to miss. It also needs to come off if you need an x-ray of your head and if you have to have a neck collar on it may not be very easy to get off.

There are those bracelets with a USB hub as well. Forget them. There is no hospital that will put an unknown source into their network and risk to infect their entire computer system. And again, there is no time for that. And we in EMS who usually needs it the most don’t have a computer to plug it into anyway. They are totally useless. The same with those with a QR Code reader. EMS, nor the hospitals are set up for it and there is no time for it. Remember, once at the hospital, they most likely can get access to your records in one way or the other if they really have to even if it’s not the same hospital system. 

So to wrap this post up. Yes, if you have a medical condition you need some kind of identification, preferably a bracelet. When you decide what to put on the bracelet, have in mind who needs to see the information. Most likely EMS and the information they need is your name, age, conditions and allergies.
Make sure you have your emergency medical ID up to date on your phone with thorough information.
Always have a list of your medications in your wallet that is up to date. To have it in an app on the phone (MyChart for example) is not enough because we in EMS don’t have access to it and we can’t see your hospital records either in our computer. If you are unconscious we don’t have access to your phone passcode anyway.
If you have a card to an implant, always have that with you. Take a picture of it and have it on your phone easy accessible. Also, give a copy to your husband, coworkers, boss and keep one in the car! We in EMS may not need it but once at the hospital they will need to know what brand of pacemaker for example, when it is implanted, serial number etc etc.  I have a copy in my phonecase so it is always with me. Both my supervisors at work has a copy of it and I have one in my locker so if anything would happen, they know where to get it.

I hope that this helps you a little bit making up your mind on what to put on your ID and why. Don’t hesitate to ask if you have any questions, there is probably something I forgot here.