medical alert

[melanieann48]

I had a TT about 10 wks ago and have been taking 150mcgs of Levothyroxine  for about 9 weeks, saw the Endo yesterday and he wants to change me to the brand name Synthroid 137mcgs, not sure why but will give it a try.  I am wondering if anyone else wears a medical alert because they no longer have a thyroid and are medication.  Someone told me I should get one.  Comments?

[Sofze]

I have been thinking about it too. I'm a medical student and a doctor who gave us the atls told me i should probably wear it because in case of stress you body might not respond equally (as t4 would naturally rise as needed). And even though it is not an emergency, all the other info can really help. Contact info, blood type and  if bad comes to worse, that u are an organ donor.

[redheadaussie]

It's obviously different in different countries. Funny enough I just asked our paramedic in town about the scar and or the medicalert bracelet, he said that they MUST look for any brand of emergency information, and that the scar is not a big issue, and he remarked how smart it was I put no thyroid on the bracelet. I told him it was due to being in USA and got sick they didn't notice the scar (quite faded now 5 years on) however they still do not regard it as an emergency to need a medicalert here. He explained that if someone is in a coma for a while the thyroid levels (and PTH) are always checked regularly and this will show up. If the patient can talk they will no doubt tell the doctor/nurse they need T4.

Having been in hospital several times for emergencies I know this is fact.
My point is, here in Australia we don't have so many different brands of id. Our paramedics are trained to look no matter what! You MUST be registered for a legitimate allergy etc, which is then in a database.  Having been in several situations requiring an ambulance here, I know I trust them. I wear it in the US but feel less secure there. I have trained my friend to be a parrot and to tell the US paramedics ( let's hope HE isn't unconscious at the same time as me!) my allergies.
Oh and BTW here in AUS there has been a big push to have those plastic bangles saying ALLERGY....but so many places here use them as a promotion for things the ambos here don't rely on them. Only the true SOS, MedicAlert etc ones. Amazing the different rules!

[EMTjjh]

Rescue me ids and laurens hope are two websites that offer medical ids without the monthly charge.  I like Rescue me ids because they have the shoe tags which are hard to miss.  The also offer zipper tags that you can wear on a coat, hang on a purse strap, belt loop or a rearview mirror. Remember more than one id is a great idea, because they can be easily missed.

[EMTjjh]

I am an EMT and we are not trained to look for a specific brand of medical jewelry.  Though the textbooks do mention bracelets and wallet cards more than any other form.  Any brand of jewelry will do as long as it has the star of life symbol on it.  I would suggest having more than one form of ID on you at all times.  A key chain, a bracelet, something on your rearview mirror.  They also make some that fit on your shoelaces for runners and apps for your phones.  The more medic alerts there are & the more visible the better.

Car accidents or any kind of emergency situation can be chaotic and if you just have a card in your wallet it can easily get missed.  Your wallet could be laying 100' or more from your car in the ditch on the side of the road and may never be recovered.  The bracelet could be ripped off during the accident.  Your family may be hurt also, or may not be notified for hours that you are at the ER.  Your wallet could be somewhere in the house, while we find you in the yard or there may be no one to speak for you.  Trust me you can make your life a WHOLE lot easier if you have an engraved bracelet that tells us exactly what meds you take and what medical conditions you have and a phone number for your doctor right on the bracelet.  

If you take any medication on a regular basis get a bracelet period.  It could save your life!

Having said all that, I too, have no thyroid & my parathyroids do not function.  I wear a bracelet, have a keychain, a wallet card, where a shoe id and have a smart phone app.  If I'm in an accident, and say end up in a coma for a few days, the lack of parathyroids will kill me before the lack of thyroid hormone will.  But given enough time, they are both deadly and I will recover much faster if I am properly medicated.  

One last word of advice, don't count on an EMT, nurse or ER doc to notice the thyroid scar and realize you need hormone.  I rotate between three different ER's & an ambulance service, when you have other injuries, it can very easily get missed!

[redheadaussie]

MedicAlert does need a doctor's verification, other brands don't. MedicAlert is often used interchangeably for saying an emergency bracelet or necklace. There are many others on the market that are just bands which have words on them. Paramedics are trained to look for the ones which are registered and have a database which they then look up the patients details. You have to fill in a form which is verified by the doctor, you pay a yearly fee to have your details kept on that database.
Mine has a number and it is valid for all around the world. Many of the ones not verified by a doctor are not in a major database.

No thyroid is not part of any emergency listing.  Mine has that listed on it though. Doctor felt it would be a good thing to do, not that I see it as an issue in an emergency. The pethidine allergy, now that is something I wouldn't wish on anyone! Hee hee

  

[Barb135]

In the US we can order them from the pharmacy and to my knowledge, they don't have to be certified by a doctor.  

That said, thyroid issues would not be considered emergency treatment if you were to fall ill or get into an accident, such as would be if you were diabetic and on insulin shots, had allergies, certain heart conditions or others.  

Keeping a list of medications and your doctor's contact information is good.

[Totie]

Going on 17yrs with no thyroid, & have never had one, nor has doctor ever mentioned one.

[melanieann48]

Thanks for the opinions, you sure hear a lot of different things and I just needed so "expert" advice. Thanks much.

[redheadaussie]

I wear one and I have no thyroid. You won't get one ONLY if you have no thyroid as it is not a life endangering issue if you are in an accident. You will ONLY get one if you are truly allergic to things like I am to Pethidine, Iodine and Codeine. If you have major allergies or are an insulin dependent diabetic, that is the only times they will give you one.

It has to be certified by a doctor.

If like me, you like to go hiking or do extreme sports, it is vital you have one, but ONLY if you have allergies, etc. If a paramedic gave me pethidine/morphine etc due to a busted up leg, I will die.

  I asked about it if someone only has no thyroid and they told me that if a patient where taken to an ED unconscious they would see the scar and in many cases they do a blood test to see the levels of thyroid and will give it intravenously till the patient wakes up.

So technically, No you don't need a MedicAlert bracelet.

[Nat_16]

I don't wear a medical alert because of thyroid.  But, in saying that; I do have all my medications, dosages and time it's taken along with my doctor's contact number on a card in my purse at all times.

[Super_sally888]

I don't wear a medical alert because of the thyroid.  

Missing 1 or 2 days of meds would not be a big deal.  however, it would be a good idea to keep a card listing all your meds, dosages and contact details of your doctor.  make sure someone in your family or close friends also has a copy.

Hope this helps.