A little first aid idea

I don't usually go backpacking with other people, but am thinking of doing so, and had a thought about medical emergencies. Many people have medical conditions that might affect how we react to drugs, blood transfusions, etc. Being deep in the backcountry exacerbates the problems of pre-existing conditions, drug allergies, and other issues. (Forest Service personnel who come to our aid if we are unconscious need to make informed decisions quickly in order to save your life.) One solution is to share the information with everyone in your party ahead of time. ("Now, I want everyone to know that I have AIDS/a sulfa allergy/alien implants," etc.) But this would be embarrassing and would require everyone to write down the information on everyone else. So why not make it a habit to print off your medical information (including blood type and next of kin), stuff it in a small plastic bag with a secure closure (or laminate it and cut a small hole on one end) and clip it to a zipper on your backpack? Make it a bright color to be recognizable. This could be as routine for everyone on backpacking and climbing trips as packing a compass, and no one need know your little medical secrets unless you become incapacitated on the south slope of Mt. Challenger. What do you think?

add this- if you cycle, put similar info on a sticky label (computer disk etc) and place on your helmet. if you get whacked by a car, at least they'll know what your blood type/allergies are, and if nec, whom to notfy.

OK, Both these Ideas are a step in the right direction.
But what if you fall and your backpack goes flying or your lid pops off when you go down on your bike.
Also, who is going to need this info?
Your rescuers will be stabilizing you and have little need for most of that info. Chances are they won't be giving you meds you are allergic to and they will not be giving you blood or blood products and they will be treating you as if you have alien caused AIDS anyway.
The people who need your medical info the most will be the hospitals who will not see your backpack and mey not see your bike lid.

If you have any medical condition:
Chronic illness, medication allergy, take chronic medications, have any unusual medical condition.

PLEASE GET A MEDICAL ALERT BRACELET!!!!!!!!

An example:
My son fell and broke his elbow.
It was fixed with a number of pins, plates, screws and wires. he has a bracelet to alert medical staff of all of his hardware. Why? Well he can't have an MRI for one.

OK I'll be leaving my soapbox.
Good hiking.

I disagree. As one who leads trips (done so both commercially and for NFP groups), it is the responsibility of the trip leader to know of any major medical conditions of trip participants.

This is part of the pre-screening process. If someone has a bad heart condition or a knee that continually gives out, would you (or the rest of the trip participants) want this person on your 40-mile-backcountry-hot-summer-trip-with-no-roads-in-or-out-wilderness?
Part of responsible planning is to avoid any problems in the first place. Yes, it is tough sometimes to tell someone that this is not the trip for them, but it is in the best interest of all.

I understand that (perhaps) for more minor items, people may have privacy concerns - Your idea (several versions of it floating around over the past 10-12 years) could work well in that situation.

For major medical conditions, that info is necessary. Keep in mind that the participant can refuse to provide info - but they won't be on the trip - They can still do their own trip or whatever else they want to do, on their own, some other time.

FWIW The only thing you can't control here is someone who lies about their health - I have seen people show up at the trailhead so out of shape they were out of breath just trying to get their pack on. This is where a pre-trip meeting comes into place - Really helps you to screen participants.

Good Luck,
Rick

Quote:

I don't usually go backpacking with other people, but am thinking of doing so, and had a thought about medical emergencies. Many people have medical conditions that might affect how we react to drugs, blood transfusions, etc. Being deep in the backcountry exacerbates the problems of pre-existing conditions, drug allergies, and other issues. (Forest Service personnel who come to our aid if we are unconscious need to make informed decisions quickly in order to save your life.) One solution is to share the information with everyone in your party ahead of time. ("Now, I want everyone to know that I have AIDS/a sulfa allergy/alien implants," etc.) But this would be embarrassing and would require everyone to write down the information on everyone else. So why not make it a habit to print off your medical information (including blood type and next of kin), stuff it in a small plastic bag with a secure closure (or laminate it and cut a small hole on one end) and clip it to a zipper on your backpack? Make it a bright color to be recognizable. This could be as routine for everyone on backpacking and climbing trips as packing a compass, and no one need know your little medical secrets unless you become incapacitated on the south slope of Mt. Challenger. What do you think?

What if the leader goes down?

Quote:

I disagree. As one who leads trips (done so both commercially and for NFP groups), it is the responsibility of the trip leader to know of any major medical conditions of trip participants.

This is part of the pre-screening process. If someone has a bad heart condition or a knee that continually gives out, would you (or the rest of the trip participants) want this person on your 40-mile-backcountry-hot-summer-trip-with-no-roads-in-or-out-wilderness?
Part of responsible planning is to avoid any problems in the first place. Yes, it is tough sometimes to tell someone that this is not the trip for them, but it is in the best interest of all.

I understand that (perhaps) for more minor items, people may have privacy concerns - Your idea (several versions of it floating around over the past 10-12 years) could work well in that situation.

For major medical conditions, that info is necessary. Keep in mind that the participant can refuse to provide info - but they won't be on the trip - They can still do their own trip or whatever else they want to do, on their own, some other time.

FWIW The only thing you can't control here is someone who lies about their health - I have seen people show up at the trailhead so out of shape they were out of breath just trying to get their pack on. This is where a pre-trip meeting comes into place - Really helps you to screen participants.

Good Luck,
Rick

Quote:

I don't usually go backpacking with other people, but am thinking of doing so, and had a thought about medical emergencies. Many people have medical conditions that might affect how we react to drugs, blood transfusions, etc. Being deep in the backcountry exacerbates the problems of pre-existing conditions, drug allergies, and other issues. (Forest Service personnel who come to our aid if we are unconscious need to make informed decisions quickly in order to save your life.) One solution is to share the information with everyone in your party ahead of time. ("Now, I want everyone to know that I have AIDS/a sulfa allergy/alien implants," etc.) But this would be embarrassing and would require everyone to write down the information on everyone else. So why not make it a habit to print off your medical information (including blood type and next of kin), stuff it in a small plastic bag with a secure closure (or laminate it and cut a small hole on one end) and clip it to a zipper on your backpack? Make it a bright color to be recognizable. This could be as routine for everyone on backpacking and climbing trips as packing a compass, and no one need know your little medical secrets unless you become incapacitated on the south slope of Mt. Challenger. What do you think?

I am a runner as well as an avid hiker. Years ago, LL Bean offered an "E tag", a plastic laminated emergency tag with appropriate spaces for your name, address, vitals, blood type, allergies, medications, etc. This tag has a hole in it that allows you to lace it onto your running shoes/boots. I neither run nor hike without it. Excellent idea.

Glyn -
I consider this a necessity for any and all trips I take with others. I do a lot of work with scouts, and there we *require* a medical history and release form from each and every person on the outing. As trip leader or assistant leader, I always look over these forms. I am continually amazed at how many of the youth (and adults) have medical conditions. Some are allergies (medicines, foods, hayfever, asthma, or bee-stings - amazing number of those), some are heart irregularities (yes, kids as well as adults), some diabetics. Once I was startled to discover that one kid was blind in one eye (hadn't noticed a problem at the weekly meetings, and it didn't really slow him down).

The comment about people not admitting problems is very real. I led one trip where it turned out that one man had fallen off a ladder a few months before and suffered a serious concussion. He said nothing about it, but about a quarter mile up the trail, he almost collapsed. He kept insisting nothing was wrong, but I sent him back with another man when the story came out about the concussion. I suggested that in view of the near-collapse, he should get to the nearest emergency room. It turned out he refused when the guy who took him out headed for the nearest hospital. So he got driven home. About a month later, the guy called me and told me in no uncertain terms that I was to breathe not a word about the incident to anyone. I found out that he called everyone on the trip and told them the same thing. Needless to say, none of us ever invited him on another trip, and a couple of the others backed out of trips when they found out he was planning to go. How would you like to get 2 days out on a backpack and have someone collapse? Yeah, many of us have wilderness first aid certification, but we always hope we won't have to use it. At the very least, it is your individual responsibility to the other members of the trek to let them know in advance.

Some conditions, like diabetes or most allegies, including bee-sting, are manageable, and there always can be emergencies and accidents. But it is very unpleasant to be surprised by a condition that might have been prevented, had the others known so they could take some simple precautions.

You'll need to attend a trip leader workshop to find that out (We have our own bag of tricks) ;)

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What if the leader goes down?

Quote:

I disagree. As one who leads trips (done so both commercially and for NFP groups), it is the responsibility of the trip leader to know of any major medical conditions of trip participants.

This is part of the pre-screening process. If someone has a bad heart condition or a knee that continually gives out, would you (or the rest of the trip participants) want this person on your 40-mile-backcountry-hot-summer-trip-with-no-roads-in-or-out-wilderness?
Part of responsible planning is to avoid any problems in the first place. Yes, it is tough sometimes to tell someone that this is not the trip for them, but it is in the best interest of all.

I understand that (perhaps) for more minor items, people may have privacy concerns - Your idea (several versions of it floating around over the past 10-12 years) could work well in that situation.

For major medical conditions, that info is necessary. Keep in mind that the participant can refuse to provide info - but they won't be on the trip - They can still do their own trip or whatever else they want to do, on their own, some other time.

FWIW The only thing you can't control here is someone who lies about their health - I have seen people show up at the trailhead so out of shape they were out of breath just trying to get their pack on. This is where a pre-trip meeting comes into place - Really helps you to screen participants.

Good Luck,
Rick

Quote:

I don't usually go backpacking with other people, but am thinking of doing so, and had a thought about medical emergencies. Many people have medical conditions that might affect how we react to drugs, blood transfusions, etc. Being deep in the backcountry exacerbates the problems of pre-existing conditions, drug allergies, and other issues. (Forest Service personnel who come to our aid if we are unconscious need to make informed decisions quickly in order to save your life.) One solution is to share the information with everyone in your party ahead of time. ("Now, I want everyone to know that I have AIDS/a sulfa allergy/alien implants," etc.) But this would be embarrassing and would require everyone to write down the information on everyone else. So why not make it a habit to print off your medical information (including blood type and next of kin), stuff it in a small plastic bag with a secure closure (or laminate it and cut a small hole on one end) and clip it to a zipper on your backpack? Make it a bright color to be recognizable. This could be as routine for everyone on backpacking and climbing trips as packing a compass, and no one need know your little medical secrets unless you become incapacitated on the south slope of Mt. Challenger. What do you think?