ICE details in IOS 8 Apple iPhone

[rik_uk3]

Maybe I'm just old but my pertinent medical information is written on the appropriate page of my passport and on a piece of paper kept with my driving licence counterpart. My GPs number is in there too should some emergency medical staff want a chat.

This system seems a little less invasive and less likely to be abused than some of the high tech options being suggested here.

Hungary issue I.D. cards as do many EU countries

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/National_identity_cards_in_the_European_Economic_Area For one thing I could leave my passport behind when travelling within the EU.

Biometric chips on the card (and I'm very pro a UK wide DNA database) would save time and lives and the DNA database I've no doubt would reduce crime or certainly help solve many and I'd go so far as to add fingerprint I.D. to the card.

I really don't understand the UK 'Luddite's' who are so against I.D. cards given the amount of personal data so readily available to so many UK agencies.

Medical braclets et al are very often ignored by emergency medical services...they can't be sure its 'you' and as for phoning your GP then good luck with that one after hours.

 

[santaman2000]

But a bracelet is the easiest thing for a passer by with no special equipment can read. Even if your not needing an ambulance or other emergency help, the ICE number could be called and that person can come and collect you. ....

Medic-Alert bracelets don't have the phone number for your next of kin (significant other, etc.) They have your primary medical condition (in my case, diabetes) plus your account number and the toll free 800 number to the Medic-Alert Foundation where they can give further details to the first responders.

 

[santaman2000]

Indeed - I'll be damned if someone is going to chip me or make me carry an ID card. Such things have never been necessary in this country, nor are they necessary now.

Nobody's suggesting a mandatory system; cards, chips or otherwise. But those of us with special medical conditions who are members of the Medic-Alert Foundation do indeed carry emergency cards and/or wear the jewelry. The cards only contain the membership number and a toll free number to the Foundation so they can provide instant info to the emergency providers.

All on a voluntary basis. Indeed, you have to pay dues to the Foundation as that's their only source of funding.

 

[British Red]

If it voluntary, then by all means - good idea . I'm all in favour of freedom of choice - just not where small minded bureaucrats want to start demanding "papers please"

 

[sandbender]

"...Hungary issue I.D. cards ...

And they do love their bureaucracy. If there is a hard, awkward method of doing anything that will involve several forms that must be collected at different locations and them approved and stamped at others before being taken to the office that is open for twenty minutes every second Thursday then that is a system the Hungarian civil service will love.

They do have ID cards, but they still suffer from all the problems advocates of an ID card system suggest will be mitigated by its introduction. Probably more so as money better spent on Police training or decent border controls is wasted on a paper pushing exercise.

"...For one thing I could leave my passport behind when travelling within the EU.

But you'd still need to take you ID card, so why not just travel with a passport instead?



I like the idea of smartphone manufacturers providing an easy to access window for peoples emergency data and next of kin, it would be good if they could agree on a format/button style/logo that looked vaguely similar from brand to brand so that an emergency responder could quickly pull up the required page.

 

[Scots_Charles_River]

Medic-Alert bracelets don't have the phone number for your next of kin (significant other, etc.) They have your primary medical condition (in my case, diabetes) plus your account number and the toll free 800 number to the Medic-Alert Foundation where they can give further details to the first responders.

Yes, but it's better than nothing. ICE as well is better.

 

[Scots_Charles_River]

Indeed - I'll be damned if someone is going to chip me or make me carry an ID card. Such things have never been necessary in this country, nor are they necessary now.

If you have a medical condition then you may have a different view. Surely a small bracket notifying a passer by or first responder would help.

 

[British Red]

If you have a medical condition then you may have a different view. Surely a small bracket notifying a passer by or first responder would help.

That would be my choice - not some mandated scheme. Such schemes already exist in the form of medic alert bracelets - we don't need anything more sophisticated in my view. It was also my choice to refuse the sharing of my medical records from my GP. Its called "civil liberty"

 

[Bindle]

That would be my choice - not some mandated scheme. Such schemes already exist in the form of medic alert bracelets - we don't need anything more sophisticated in my view. It was also my choice to refuse the sharing of my medical records from my GP. Its called "civil liberty"

Summary Care Records are not a way for your GP to randomly share information but more about you getting the right treatment. If you are away from your local area and become ill, it is much more simple for us to be able to get your records via the Smartcard system and not wait until we have to contact your GP. It's not a civil liberty issue.

 

[British Red]

It is much more simple for us to be able to get your records via the Smartcard system and not wait until we have to contact your GP. It's not a civil liberty issue.

It is since I choose not to allow you to do that. They are my medical records and it is my choice. That's how civil liberties work. People don't get to override my decisions "for my own good" (but in reality because its "more simple for us"). I understand the risks - and the decision is mine, not yours.

 

[santaman2000]

If it voluntary, then by all means - good idea . I'm all in favour of freedom of choice - just not where small minded bureaucrats want to start demanding "papers please"

Agreed.

.....But you'd still need to take you ID card, so why not just travel with a passport instead? .....

Yes, but a typical photo ID card (or in this case, a travel card) is much smaller (usually a simple laminated card the same size as an ordinary credit card) and more resistant to weather damage than a passport.They've become very popular here in the countries where they're permitted in lieu of a full passport (basically, for travel solely on the North American Continent)

Yes, but it's better than nothing. ICE as well is better.

I agree completely. It's just not a be-all cure.

 

[Swallow]

Summary Care Records are not a way for your GP to randomly share information but more about you getting the right treatment. If you are away from your local area and become ill, it is much more simple for us to be able to get your records via the Smartcard system and not wait until we have to contact your GP. It's not a civil liberty issue.

So why are there (currently active) petitions out there to put a stop to (currently active) attempts to sell this data to private companies for profit?


That perfectly explains why Red is seeing it as a Civil Liberties issue.

And even if those petitions are successful now the issue will come up again later.

That shows that the disliking of this is not about being Luddite about technology, but the dislike of putting the information into the wrong hands with equal ease to putting it in the right hands.

If knowledge is power, and the argument here is that the technology makes the actions of the Medics more powerful, then you can't have it both ways.

Either the knowledge is power and it has to be given to the correct people and with permission, or it isn't power in which case it isn't much use.

 

[British Red]

There is also the fact the NHS is woefully unprofessional - and indeed negligent - when it comes to Data Protection issues. Since 2011, the NHS has been responsible for an eye watering two million serious breaches of the data protection act. It is not my opinion that the NHS cannot be trusted with opening up patient data. They have proven , literally, millions of times that they can't. They need to take vast amounts of remedial action to bring their existing data management within the law before trying to make patient data more widely available.

For those who lack a technical background and just allow their data to be shared in a lemming like fashion, I suggest reading some of the article about care data and NHS inadequacy in the computer trade papers.

http://www.computerweekly.com/news/2240214646/NHS-England-puts-patient-database-on-hold

 

[rik_uk3]

Its all a matter of personal opinion.

 

[santaman2000]

Its all a matter of personal opinion.

More directly to the point (for those of us with medical problems) it's a matter of risk vs benefit. Just as you and your Dr compare the benefits of a given drug vs the risks of it's side effects before beginning a regimen. Likewise the risks of benefits of emergency personnel having access to your records should be weighed against the risks of the wrong people getting access such as insurance writers (to include life insurance) potential employers, loan officers, etc.

In my case, I'm comfortable with it. But then again, I'm retired and not seeking employment, I'm covered and don't need another insurance policy, and my credit is good. In short, I'm not concerned about others knowing my medical condition.

HOWEVER! I can understand why others might not be comfortable.

 

[Scots_Charles_River]

At the end of the day, the more info about a person on them, will help first responders. That's a fact. Ho hum.....