Dr Sarah Jarvis is the Clinical Director of the Patient Platform, an active medical writer, broadcaster, and the resident doctor for BBC Radio 2.
If you’re heading off on holiday, a medical emergency is probably the last thing on your mind. But mishaps and accidents do happen, and there may be a situation where you’re not capable of telling emergency services or doctors about your medical history. And that’s where a medical ID can be a lifesaver.
What is a Medical ID?
A Medical ID is a small accessory, that provides critical information about your health conditions, allergies, or medications in case of an emergency. This information can be crucial for healthcare providers, ensuring you receive the appropriate care without delay.
Medical IDs come in many forms, such as a necklace, card, or most commonly, a bracelet. There are lots of designs available, so these days they’re often fashion accessories as well as sources of medical information.
Most carry the internationally recognised symbol of healing and medicine (snakes winding around a staff) to make it clear what they are. First responders are trained to look immediately for medical alerts, so they’ll spot them quickly.
Most smartphones now include a feature that lets you create a Medical ID on your device. If healthcare providers don't see a visible Medical alert ID accessory, they will check your phone to see if you have set one up.
Importantly, this applies to every country in the world. In the vast majority of cases, first responders anywhere will check as part of their initial assessment, to see if you have a medical alert in place. They will know that there are special precautions to be taken and will be sure to check the details before they administer any treatment.
What Does a Medical ID Contain?
Some information on medical ID is standard. However, it may change over time, so if your contact details, medical conditions etc change, it’s important that they are kept up to date by getting a new ID.
- Your name, so you can be correctly identified if you’re admitted to a hospital.
- An emergency contact number – this could be a family member or a friend, but it’s important that they’re someone who is easily contacted.
- Any allergies you suffer from. Allergic reactions can be life-threatening, so anyone from first responders to hospital teams must be aware. This should include both drug allergies (penicillin etc) and non-drug allergies (eg latex). It’s also helpful to emergency services to know if you don’t have any known allergies.
- Any emergency medication you carry with you (e.g. an adrenaline auto-injector, GTN spray for angina, inhaler for asthma etc).
- Regular medication you’ve been prescribed.
- Any major medical conditions you have – more on these later.
- You may want to include your blood type, although this isn’t essential. If hospitals need to give blood in an emergency, they’ll always check your blood type anyway. If you need a transfusion before the results are available, you’ll be given blood type O negative, known as the ‘universal donor’ blood type because it doesn’t contain antigens that can be recognised by your body as enemies.
What Type of Medical Alert Should I Get?
There are a wide range of medical alert bracelets and necklaces available. Some, such as MedicAlert, include a subscription to a 24-hour emergency helpline. Here you can store your full digital medical record. That means that if you have a lot of medical information which can’t all be recorded on a bracelet, your medical team can access all your details.
Who Needs a Medical Alert ID?
In theory, anyone could be rendered unconscious in an accident and need medical treatment. If you have a serious allergy, a medical alert is a must – severe allergic reactions should be avoided at all costs. If you do have a potentially life-threatening reaction, knowing your medical history will allow medical teams to administer the correct treatment without any delay.
But lots of other medical conditions can affect your response to treatment. If there’s something your doctor would ask you about if you were admitted to the hospital and were able to tell them, a medical alert means they’ll know it even if you can’t communicate.
Some of the medical conditions where a medical alert alert is particularly important include:
Allergies
Penicillin, latex and Elastoplast are among the most important examples, but there are lots of others. Remember that an allergy is different to an intolerance – for instance, if you feel sick when you take the antibiotic erythromycin on an empty stomach, that’s an intolerance. The distinction is important because, in the vast majority of cases, intolerances are unpleasant but not life-threatening.
Asthma
If you have asthma, there’s a good chance you’re taking ‘preventer’ inhalers which reduce the chance of asthma flare-ups. It’s important to take these regularly, even if you don’t have any symptoms – and it’s more essential than ever if you’re seriously unwell. The same medications can be given by nebulisers if you aren’t conscious and therefore can’t take your inhaler. In addition, if you’ve been exposed to fumes in an accident, it could bring on an acute asthma attack.
Blood Clotting Medications or Disorders
If you’re taking warfarin or one of the ‘DOAC’ blood thinners – apixaban, dabigatran, edoxaban, rivaroxaban – you’ll be more prone to bleeding. The same applies if you have a clotting problem such as haemophilia. Emergency teams need to know about these.
Cancer
If you are or have recently gone through chemotherapy or radiotherapy, this may affect treatments that are suitable for you. You may also need special precautions taken if your immune system still hasn’t recovered. If you’ve had a bone marrow transplant or stem cell transplant in the last 6-12 months, your immune system will still be recovering and you may be more prone to infections.
Diabetes (Especially Type 1 Diabetes)
Medical teams need to know if you’re taking insulin or other glucose-lowering medication which could make you prone to low blood glucose.
Epilepsy
Your medic alert should list the specific type of epilepsy you have, along with the medication you take.
Kidney Disease (Particularly if You’re on Dialysis)
If you have severe kidney disease, being deprived of dialysis could mean toxic waste builds up in your system. It often also means that you have fluid restrictions in place, and it’s key for emergency teams to know about these if you have lost blood.
Transplant
If you’ve had an organ transplant, your team will take precautions to minimise the risk of infection.
Having a medical alert ID can be a critical lifeline in emergencies. By providing essential information about your health, these IDs ensure that medical personnel can quickly understand and address your specific needs.
Whether you’re heading away on holiday or not, a medical alert ID can provide peace of mind, knowing that you have taken a proactive step to protect your health in an emergency.