By John V. Wood
The News & Observer
Copyright 2007 The News and Observer
RALEIGH, N.C. — Your husband begins having chest pains, accompanied by numbness in his arm and shortness of breath. You call 911, frantically seeking help.
Paramedics arrive. Do you know what medications your husband is taking? Do you know his Social Security number by heart? Are you prepared to answer questions about his medical history?
Too many people answer no to these kinds of questions, according to North Raleigh resident Vercie Eller. So Eller, a registered nurse who works as a consultant, implemented an idea she’d heard about at a workshop -- a form containing such information as current and past medical conditions, insurance, medications being taken, allergies and information on living wills and “do not resuscitate” orders.
Those who participate in the program must fill out the form, then fold it up and place it inside a glass or plastic pill bottle, along with a current photo. The bottle is placed in the top rack of the refrigerator door.
The question was asked at the forum, “Why the refrigerator?” The response: because everyone has one.
The goal of the project is to help streamline the information-gathering process for emergency personnel.
Right now, the program, which she began 18 months ago, is limited to the Enclave community off Lead Mine Road, where she lives. But she would like to see it become more widespread.
Eller has the support of Raleigh fire and emergency service workers, who participated in a “Disaster Preparedness Forum” last week at Greystone Baptist Church.
EMS: Chaos is typical
“When we arrive on scene, typically what we’re seeing is a panic, just a chaotic environment,” said Six Forks EMS supervisor Simon Capell.
“People usually aren’t prepared for a medical emergency,” Capell said. “We need to be able to go through a systematic process to be able to figure out what’s happening, what’s not happening, and translate that information into medical care. This project would be extremely helpful to us.”
The Enclave Community, a part of Inman Park, is a private residential development with 96 homes off Lead Mine Road near Glenwood Avenue.
Emergency workers know to look for the pill bottles because signs would be posted at the entrance to a subdivision. Also, participants also will have magnets on their refrigerators.
Eller also said the Eckerd’s pharmacy at Stonehenge donated several empty pill bottles to the project. Those bottles were given out to attendees of the forum.
“We want the rest of the people in our community to participate with this project, as well as the entire city of Raleigh. It’s completely voluntary,” said Eller. “Local EMS and fire departments are very interested with people taking part in this project, because it would allow them to save seconds, minutes, even lives.”
Two scenarios in skit
The forum highlighted the benefits of the program with a skit that showed what can happen when medical information is not readily available.
Enclave resident Don Rosenbaum played the husband with chest pains in the skit. Fire and EMS personnel -- including Capell, Raleigh Assistant Fire Chief Larry Stanford and paramedic Amy Clark -- proceeded through two scenarios: one without the program and the other following the project guidelines.
The scenario with the program in place, of course, went a lot more smoothly.
The idea is beneficial both to emergency workers and residents, said Mike Kelly, president of the Enclave Association.
“This project is very important to the Enclave, because we have so many elderly folks who are dependent on others,” Kelly said. “It’s a situation where we feel like we really need to plan ahead and do what we need to do in case of an emergency.”
00: