Put some ICE on it

In case of emergency, who would you want rescuers to call?

In Britain, promoters of the ICE (In Case of Emergency) initiative are urging cell phone users to place the acronym ICE in their address book to designate people to be contacted in case of emergency.

In a life-or-death situation, EMTs may need to contact someone who is aware of the victim's medical history or treatment status. Paramedics may waste crucial time dialing address book entries searching for someone who can answer the following:
Should we try to resuscitate? Is this person allergic to emergency medicines? Is there a history of heart attacks or high blood pressure? In the case of a traffic accident, is there someone traveling with this person that may need to be rescued as well?

These are just some of the questions that rescuers hope can be answered by ICE designees during an emergency. Participation in the program is simple: attach ICE before the address book entries of people that you want to be contacted during an emergency. For example, instead of "Dad" use "ICE - Dad".

Of course, if your cell phone is stolen, thieves could use this information to uncover information about your relatives or, indirectly, more information about you. Downsides like this are absolutely not going to deter me from using this simple, but potentially very helpful, tactic.

From my year's in the ER, quick access to a person that is able to provide detailed information about a victim is invaluable. This is just another way that current technology can be used to make a major, positive impact on our safety!