Quote From: ursaarctosAs a paramedic for over 25 years, it seems that "necessary" ID cards relating to medical information come around every few years. So far as I know, none of these "necessary" ID schemes last very long.Unless the ID had some biometric information on it that tied it to a specific individual, it is useless - just like the "in case of emergency" info people are urged to put on their cell phones, the "Vial of Life," et cetera. I cannot make treatment decisions based on what is on the card, because I don't know that the card belongs to any certain person.
Under the provisions of HIPPA, Letterman-Petris-Short Act, et cetera, a hospital/doctor/et cetera cannot even confirm or deny whether a person is a patient without a release from that patient. No one could give out medical information on a specific individual without a release from that person. This would apply to a centralized repository of medical records, too.
So, basically, you have a card with information on it that may or may not relate to a particular person. Since you don't know who the card belongs to - even if you find it in a wallet, et cetera - it would only serve to provide information that can be considered when making treatment decisions. If someone withheld, or gave, care based on a card like this, alone, it would be below the standard of care.
There are a very limited number of things that can be used in the field and in the emergency department to resuscitate a patient. Resuscitation is pretty basic and, if you are crashing, there are not a lot of choices as to what we can use. If a person presents in a coma, they are going to get the same treatment whether or not they have an ID card that says they are a diabetic. That information is helpful, but does not determine what kind of care you give a patient.
Once a person is resuscitated, there are better and more appropriate ways to obtain further information about a person's medical history. Methods that are verifiable and can be trusted.
Yes, people are injured because of incomplete medical information. Unfortuntely, it is, probably, inevitable in a medical care system as complex as ours that there will be some mistakes. Sometimes, it is impossible to wait until you have all the information on a patient before you have to do something.
In addition, putting all this medical information in a depository that is accessable by the web, is a BAD IDEA. Any database that is available over the Internet can be hacked. Once that happens, everything about you is public knowledge.
Actually this person is wrong.That's the difference between a paramedic whose job it is to keep them alive UNTIL they get to the ER and the medical staff who has to actually figure out treatment. My husband is a charge nurse in an er and if they found me unresponsive I would want them to know my blood type and my allergies to certain drugs. My husband supports a medical ID card and ANY DOC or Nurse would obviously take the allergy medicine and the contact information seriously in a wallet or on a person. My husband had a scary incident where a woman was found belligerent and angry at police officers. They spent a long time with her before getting her medical help because they did not recognize her medical problem. Had they known she was having stroke like symptoms, and that she was a diabetic, they would have been able to get her to the hospital sooner. They had no contact information for her that she could give them because of her symptoms. My husband was shocked when she came to the ER and he happened to be in triage. The cops were dropping someone else off when they told him of the situation. My husband indicated that she might have a medical problem. Had the cop not stopped at the ER when he did, that woman would have died. I am sure she feels SHE NEEDED a medical ID card!
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