County needs vital information program

When paramedics and emergency medical technicians respond to calls for help, they need to know as much information as possible about the people in need of assistance so they can be properly treated.

Knowing if they have allergies, are taking any medications or suffer from any illnesses can affect how a first responder provides care.

Sometimes a spouse or another family member is available to provide the answers.

Sometimes the patient is coherent enough to answer the important questions.

But sometimes, nobody can give the answers that are needed.

That’s a bad situation for emergency responders to encounter, and a bad situation for those in need of help.

We think a new program in Bartholomew County that is designed to give responders the information they need is an idea worth copying here in Jackson County.

It involves a form that is filled out in advance with vital medical information, such as one’s health status or current medications.

This story appears in the print edition of The Tribune. Subscribers can read the entire story online by signing in here or in our e-Edition by clicking here.