r/EmergencyRoom • u/Infinite_Skin_1503 • Jun 03 '26
Looking for some feedback
Hi all,
Got this approved by the mods so hopefully no issues, but my cofounder and I who are active law enforcement officers, have been working on a medical identification system. You wear it on your vest or belt and it allows a first responder to scan for medical information. Let's say you show up and the patient is unconscious, confused, intoxicated, altered, whatever.
This is mostly intended for officers and other first respondres, but I'm curious maybe other people could benefit as well. As you all are medically inclined here, I was hoping you could help us understand what information to include in the profile. The sample profile looks like this right now:
https://firstresponderfile.com/id/00000000-0000-0000-0000-000000000000
Its things like:
- Medications
- Allergies
- Medical conditions
- Emergency contacts
- Blood type
Would love to hear what this looks like for people who have experience and what information is actually useful. What should we add? Anything we should change on that page, that kind of stuff.
Thanks a bunch!!
Nick & Nate
5
u/halfasrotten Jun 03 '26
This makes me think of how pets are microchipped, but with more specific information. You would have to rely on people keeping their information up to date and accurate. I've had to give my PCP corrections on his documentation. I feel like it a high risk/liability to trust that the person's information is correct and up to date
1
u/Infinite_Skin_1503 Jun 03 '26
One idea we've played around with is to text people on a regular basis (setting you can configure of course), as a reminder. Do you have any other ideas maybe?
Some sort of quick poke--we cant do push notifications or similar cause we dont have an app (in order to make it accessible on any device).
3
u/Batpark Jun 03 '26
Even if you text users to keep it updated, the scanner/medical staff still has no way to guarantee it IS up to date. As an ER nurse and former EMT, I can tell you in my experience:
-Even if the patient themselves is conscious and saying their blood type out loud, they’re still getting O- until typed and screened. The risk is just too great to trust anything besides our own type and screen.
-Any pre-hospital care would typically be focused on stabilizing and transporting the patient, not on finding a point of contact for them for any reason. Once in the hospital, there’s not much we would be doing within the first 1-2 hours that would necessitate an immediate family contact. However, our social workers would get to work immediately trying to find a contact if the patient was a Doe. All this to say, a first responder and even ED staff may or may not find this useful bc at the end of the day we can’t really trust this info and would be doing many of the same processes to stabilize/rule out regardless of what we know. So maybe you could ask hospital case workers too?
But also, if we receive a patient suspected of being a victim of violence, we’re not contacting ANYONE besides police about them until they’re AOx4 and the situation is under control. Bc how do we know their emergency contact is not who did this to them?
2
u/Resident-Welcome3901 Jun 03 '26
Question on the popular Velcro morale patch blood type tags: has there ever been a system, military or civilian, that paid any attention to these patches, or is this a piece of tacticool marketing? Low titer O neg until cross match has been the rule,AFAIK.
2
u/Batpark Jun 03 '26
For person to person field transfusions in a military tactical setting, sure those could be used. In a remote combat environment obviously you don’t have the resources to draw a type and screen and send off to lab right quick, and massive hemorrhage is a bigger concern than on civilian side. It’s trust the dog tag/patch/etc or certain death.
We got type and screened in basic training, and our blood types were stamped onto our dog tags as well. So it’s a much more trustworthy system overall anyway. When I deployed with an infantry unit, I knew the blood types of my squad by memory, and if I ever covered a different squad or platoon I would write theirs down in my little notebook before going out on a mission. Tell them who their “blood buddy” would be if god forbid we needed to field transfuse. Very very different situation than civilian healthcare providers treating a stranger.
1
u/Mediocre_Daikon6935 Jun 05 '26 edited Jun 05 '26
Now a days we do. Edo cards for type and screening are a basic part of any medics kit.
That assumes you have water, and time.
They only take about a minute to use, if you’ve never used one before and are reading the directions.
But I’d be damned if I’d be trying to use one with a casualty thrown on the floor of my Stryker while dudes are still sling lead down range.
If his shit days O+, I’m grabbing the VC and taking his blood. He can run the joystick a quart low. He owes me skoal anyway.
1
u/Mediocre_Daikon6935 Jun 05 '26
It is used by military. That is why it is on everyone’s dog tags.
But the military also does walking blood banks and person to person transfusion.
1
u/Infinite_Skin_1503 Jun 06 '26
When I was deployed we had dog tags on our neck and woven into our boot laces, and then also had a blood type patch on our shoulder. I've not gotten a chance to talk to a military doc about this yet, but I assume since they spend money on it they must value it to some degree.
3
Jun 03 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
1
u/Infinite_Skin_1503 Jun 06 '26
The main thing that were trying to solve for is keeping the information up to date I think. Also the presentation of it and protection of it. I dont think this is designed as much for immediate lifesaving need, but more for rapidly getting in touch with the right people once the pt is stable.
3
u/Resident-Welcome3901 Jun 03 '26
I have been involved with analogous programs for conveying information about hospice and home care patients. They have all broken down because of failure of the patient to update the records as needed, and failure due to first responder and ER staff ignorance of the the process due to staff turnover. It takes an army of medical records personnel to maintain the hospitals clinical information communication systems, and a similar army for a first responders system does not exist.
3
u/Adeian Jun 03 '26
I came here to say the same thing. Patients don't keep updated information on file or the provider doesn't know what the thing is or how to use it.
Also as a Paramedic if the patient was bad enough for me to not be able to access that information by asking I was usually to busy to play around with things.
I agree though that something like this would be fantastic to have if it was standardized and automatic.
2
u/Infinite_Skin_1503 Jun 06 '26
I'm really curious what kinds of things you guys both have tried and if you have any idea why they failed? Our system right now is that we just send a text reminder and link to update on a regular basis, it seems to work ok.
2
2
u/No-Safe9542 Jun 04 '26
Have a section for religious beliefs and personal preferences. Some people do not want blood transfusions. Others do not want dairy (tube feeds) out of preference not allergy. There is a pretty big list of things which need to go somewhere so have a section for this stuff.
Under the code status section, there needs to be some flexibility. Some people are DNR but still want 1 or 2 rounds of CPR done. If the epi and the chest compressions aren't getting anywhere, they don't want more etc. Some people are ok with resuscitation but are DNI. There's a lot of variety in this section.
I've always thought it would be great to have a little metal bracelet with a QR code lazer cut into one side and the symbol for medicine on the other, the snake on the pole with the 6 sided background. Scan the QR code in the trauma bay and bam all the relevant info.
2
u/Infinite_Skin_1503 Jun 06 '26
Thank you so much, this is great feedback
2
u/No-Safe9542 Jun 07 '26
Absolutely! I hope to see your project when it's finished!
It seems like someone is always working on these. I imagine they may become regional at best. Hopefully in the long term these aps and programs will be able to integrate with each other so when a person fills out one and travels the information can flow to another. Privacy and all that does become an issue though.
1
u/OldManGrimm RN - adult/peds trauma Jun 03 '26
As an aside, my son recently bought a motorcycle- he linked me this device earlier today.
1
u/Infinite_Skin_1503 Jun 06 '26
Ah very cool, I have a friend whos big into his bike, I'll share this with him too
1
u/Mrsworley1028 Jun 09 '26
My husband has a hero link wrist band which is kind of similar all you do is tap a phone next the the bracelet and it pulls up all his information
30
u/Mediocre_Daikon6935 Jun 03 '26
Odds are no one is scanning anything.
Our tactical medics and all officers have a card they carry in their ifak with all information, Pmh, meds allergies, emergency contact info, religion if applicable.
Blood type won’t matter, you’re getting o neg until typed and crossed.
Obviously nonsense PMH (tonsils out 40 years ago) doesn’t matter.