Ready Source of Health Info a Lifesaver

Winnipeg Free Press Community Review, March 13, 2002

by Bob Armstong

A project to provide emergency personnel with potentially lifesaving information is expanding across the city, the province and possibly the nation after being tested last fall in St. Boniface and St. Vital.
Last fall, the Boni-Vital Council for Seniors and the Winnipeg lire Paramedic Service distributed 2,500 Emergency Response Information Kits (ERIK) to seniors in the area. The project was expanded to audiences across Winnipeg with a launch event Feb. 28.
A key part of the kit, designed to attach magnetically to the user’s refrigerator, is a form where seniors can keep information such as the name of their doctor, their medical history any medications they use, and the name of the pharmacy they use, says Karen Irvine, resource co-ordinator with the council.
Keeping information on medications in one highly visible and central location makes it easier for paramedics to respond to health emergencies. Paramedics don’t need to search through medicine cabinets or question neighbours to obtain potentially lifesaving information. Homes participating in the ERIK project are given an identification sticker so that paramedics will know when they come in the door to look for a kit. If you have somebody who’s having a hard time breathing, a hard time speaking or is unconscious, you can spend a long time looking for their medications says Marc Savard, a member of the Winnipeg Fire and Paramedic Service who has been seconded to work on public education projects including ERIK. All Winnipeg fire- fighters and paramedics have now been briefed on ERIK.
ERIK has already proven itself in St. Boniface and St. Vital, says Savard. In fact, he’s had fire and paramedic staff from throughout the city wondering when ERIK will be available in their neighbourhood.
Not only has word spread in Manitoba, Savard says he’s received inquiries from as far away as Prince Rupert, B.C.
the response has been overwhelming says Irvine. It’s come along more quickly than I thought it would
The project grew out of a presentation Winnipeg paramedic Janice Johnson gave at her father’s apartment building, focussing on the need to provide emergency personnel with accurate information on medications and medical history The presentation prompted the Boni-Vital Council and the fire and paramedic service to work together to develop ERIK.
The fire and paramedic service has prepared a how-to presentation on using the information kits.
Seniors associations and fire and paramedic services elsewhere in Manitoba can get copies of the presentation, which outlines how they can assemble their own kits.
Both the Manitoba Pharmaceutical Association and the Winnipeg Fire and Paramedic Service back the project. Pharmacists will help seniors keep their ERIK information sheets updated.
Updating the information is crucial, says Irvine, and seniors are told in the information sessions that they will need to make a commitment to keep the kit current and visible.
Savard recommends seniors have their next of kin fill out the forms, so that in the event of an emergency, they’ll be notified. As well, he notes, many non-seniors who are on medication or have chronic illnesses or disabilities could benefit by keeping important medical information in a central location.
In addition to the information for healthcare providers, the ERIK folder contains advice on calling for emergency assistance. Seniors are reminded to call 911 first, rather than calling a friend or family member, and to identify themselves and state their location right away when the emergency operator answers.
The kit also contains space for a living will and for an organ donor card. The organ donor card is important, says Irvine, because many seniors assume that they are too old to be organ donors. In fact, there’s no upper age limit on donating and the oldest organ donor ever was 102.
For more information, contact the BoniVital Council for Seniors at 255-2061, or your own community’s seniors council.