Medical form essential during hospital transportation

Last year, more than 7 million North Carolinians called 911 for help, many of those calls resulted in an EMS crew going to someone's home.

Posted 9:45 p.m. Sep 2, 2015 — Updated 10:06 p.m. Sep 2, 2015

RALEIGH, N.C. — Last year, more than 7 million North Carolinians called 911 for help, many of those calls resulted in an EMS crew going to someone's home.

When an EMS crews arrive at a home, they're trained to quickly assess the situation and deliver potentially lifesaving treatment, like CPR.

Lili Everett, 73, remembers calling 911 years ago for her late husband, and knows how frantic that moment can be.

“Anything that would help with that situation would be perfect,” Everett said.

Everett’s son-in-law—Jeff Hammerstein with Wake County EMS—is helping Everett and her Timber Spring neighbors, in Garner, to be ready with up-to-date emergency information.

It involves filling out a form, which includes health insurance information, a doctor’s contact number, medical history and a list of current medications.

“With this form we would just simply put it on the refrigerator,” Hammerstein said. “We're going to look toward the refrigerator as sort of an anchor point for finding information.”

WRAL’s Dr. Allen Mask said that the EMS crews can share the information with the hospital when they arrive, which could potentially save the patient or family members with providing all the information.

“Whether you’re in an apartment or in a home, be sure to prepare for the EMT’s arrival by having the porch light on,” Mask said. “And just as important, make sure your front door is unlocked to they can walk right in.”

Mask said it’s a good idea to have all your medications in one place, just in case they need to be transported to the hospital as well. He also added that having extra copies of the form should be available at home, and could be handy for families traveling to the hospital.

When life in in danger, every second saved could be a life saved.

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