ICE Campaign – "In Case of Emergency"
A Cambridge-based paramedic has launched a national campaign with Vodafone to encourage people to store emergency contact details in their mobile phones. Bob Brotchie, a clinical team leader for the East Anglian Ambulance NHS Trust, hatched the plan last year after struggling to get contact details from shocked or injured patients.
By entering the acronym ICE – for In Case of Emergency – into the mobile’s phone book, users can log the name and number of someone who should be contacted in an emergency. The idea follows research carried out by Vodafone that shows more than 75 per cent of people carry no details of who they would like telephoned following a serious accident.
Follow these hints to get the best out of ICE:
- Make sure the person whose name and number you are giving has agreed to be your ICE partner
- Make sure your ICE partner has a list of people they should contact on your behalf - including your place of work
- Make sure your ICE person's number is one that's easy to contact, for example a home number could be useless in an emergency if the person works full time
- Make sure your ICE partner knows about any medical conditions that could affect your emergency treatment - for example allergies or current medication
- Make sure if you are under 18, your ICE partner is a parent or guardian authorised to make decision on your behalf - for example if you need a life or death operation
- Should your preferred contact be deaf, then prefix the number with ICETEXT
For further information see www.icecontact.com