Good Advice........

Okay.....so the above picture doesn't reflect really what is on my mind or what this post is about. I saw it in my photo stash and one thought led to another, and I was reminded of something that got me thinking.

As our little family were pootling along on the motorway the other night, the driving conditions were horrendous. The rain was lashing down. It was dark. The visibility was poor.....really poor.

At one point in the journey, we could make out lots of blue flashing lights ahead of us in the bad visibility. As we drew closer, and traffic slowed right down, we could see 4 fire engines, 5 police cars......and a car so badly smashed into a huge tree up an embankment, it was hardly recognisable.

The mood in our car was one of sombre. I thought how the person in the drivers seat, or car for that matter, would not be going home that night, and by the looks of the car, any other night. I said a little prayer as we drove on by.....there would be someone who would need that comfort that night.

And seeing that sight, made me realise, an action I had taken a few days earlier was definitely the right thing to do.

It's a great idea. One that Paramedics are hoping will really catch on...and an idea that they hope people will circulate through twitter, facebook, blogging etc, to reach as many people as possible.

Okay, it's not the nicest of thoughts.....like knowing you need to write a will. It's not something you really want to think about but you know it's a good idea to do it.

Paramedics going to the scene of any accident, whatever it may be, usually come across a phone belonging to the person who needs their help. They look through the phone to find out who to contact in the emergency.....but more often than not, they have no idea who it is who they should be calling in that persons contacts list. They have asked that as many people as possible take 5 minutes out of their day to do a couple of simple steps. 

Add and ICE (IN CASE of EMERGENCY) to their contacts list. 

e.g.

ICE-1: your partners number

ICE-2: your parents number

...What ever you want and how ever many numbers you want in a list of priority.

It's such a simple idea, but one that can help paramedics locate who to call straight away. In some circumstances, this could make a huge difference. I just know, that if I am ever in a situation where I have paramedics come and attend to me, I would want my family to be alerted straight away.

I thought it was a brilliant idea. It did cross my mind however, that, as great as it was, it was useless to many, who like me, have locks on their phones. No paramedic would be able to get into my phone to even see my ICE in my contacts list.

So, my solution was to take my screen wallpaper into an app that could write text, and put an ICE contact on the picture. Voila. It's not in your face, but I would hope that if my phone was checked, the number would be seen straight away on my phone lock screen. There are always other ways to do the same thing too.

I hope that it won't ever need to be used, but i'm happy i've done it. I do really want to be around to see my homely views and be with my family, but I really do want my loved ones to be near me as soon as they can be if ever anything should happen. Just spending a few moments putting in an ICE contact into your phone can make a big difference.

My hope is that the driver's family was contacted quickly too.

Please spread the word to your friends and family. Although we ALL hope that we will never need it, it really is a good idea to have it in your phone contacts list.

xxx