Found on the Web.....
A simple critique of two of the most used iPhone ICE applications puts smart-ICE up against iEmergency+.
What I see is that there is no comparison in the quality of the product and ease of use by the iPhone user and paramedic........ who probably have never used an iPhone.
The advantage is clearly to smart-ICEtm!
smart-ICEtm
The smart-ICE application has a world wide recognized symbol for ICE, that uses eye catching safety colors as it's icon. You may first see this icon on the patients phone as part of it's wallpaper to alert EMS that the smart-ICE product is inside, or to provide a contact number for who has the code to unlock the patients phone.
It lists on the first page, when opened, a list of tabs to access Personal Information, Current Medical Problems, Medical Devices and Deficits, Medical History, Emergency Contacts, Expressed Wishes and Preferred Hospital.
All of these tabs open to provide information in an organized, detailed, and intuitive fashion for someone wanting critical information in an emergency. For example, Current Medical Problems are selected from a large list of approximately 200 common medical problems and medications are chosen from a long list of the most prescribed medications.
Both of these fields have an option to add something that is not on the list!
Details such as drug dosage, quantity, last filled, end date and a comments field, are all the things that could be needed by a paramedic in an overdose.
Medical Devices and Deficits provides information on medical devices that could make a difference in an emergency situation. Not all could be listed, but the notes section in Current Medical Problems will allow anything to be documented.
The Medical History tab allows you to document all of your past medical problems, surgeries, hospitalizations and immunizations, along with a notes section for items not covered.
Emergency Contacts provide unlimited entries for Emergency Contacts, Health Care Power of Attorney, Attorney (living will/DNR), Family Physician, Specialist and Next of Kin. All of these are selected directly from your contacts list and provide up to three phone numbers each that are dialed when touched by the paramedic.
The next tab contains your expressed wishes and allows you to list the person to contact to enforce that wish. Special wishes not listed can be added also! The last tab is the preferred hospital, which provides the medic crew with some guidance on your wishes should your insurance limit you to a certain network.
All of these items are quickly and easily set up by any iPhone user and more importantly, intuitive enough that a paramedic could actually find out something about you!
Most importantly, and the most often overlooked, lifesaving feature is the Alert EMS button on the main page. When selected, it will call the emergency (911) number that you selected in the set-up phase.
After the call, the phone is placed in an "Alert Mode" and will sound an audible sound every two minutes until reset by the user or EMS personnel. This will insure that if you used your phone to call 911, they will find your phone and all of your medical information.
iEmergency+
The name in of itself does not attract a medic to the application. The cute little ambulance and the word ICE, suggests it could contain some information, but the color does not attract me to the application and it could be lost among the rest of the applications.
It also has a wallpaper feature.....I wonder where they got the idea?
The main page opens to a My Info page and only provides for putting in your name, where's the rest of my info?
Oh, It lists three contacts also!
The next tab, if you notice it at the bottom of the page, is the Contacts page. It contains a confusing format for adding additional contacts, medical contacts, and INSURANCE INFORMATION. (How does INSURANCE INFORMATION fit into contacts? This would frustrate an emergency provider in search of critical medical information!)
Back to the bottom again, the Medical history tab leads you to a page that has Medical Information, with a multiple selection list of date of birth, Blood type, Weight, height, medical history and notes.
All of these require that you key in what you want them to see, there are no lists to select from.
If you figure out how to put the information in, consider how the paramedic will read it and if they can identify you as the user of the phone, or did you borrow someone elses? Probably the most important thing to understand it that it will be veiwed as medical history, not current medical problems!
To it's credit, it does have a HELP page......itt lists a few instructions and then goes into a sales pitch for the other applications made by the developer. (That is just what a paramedic is wanting to view when he is trying to save your life!)
The choice is yours!
ICE4SAFETY comments.......
We felt that this information was very helpful when you make your choice as to what particular type of smartphone App to purchase and how helpful it might be WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST!
The writer was correct - the choice IS yours......
A simple critique of two of the most used iPhone ICE applications puts smart-ICE up against iEmergency+.
What I see is that there is no comparison in the quality of the product and ease of use by the iPhone user and paramedic........ who probably have never used an iPhone.
The advantage is clearly to smart-ICEtm!
smart-ICEtm
The smart-ICE application has a world wide recognized symbol for ICE, that uses eye catching safety colors as it's icon. You may first see this icon on the patients phone as part of it's wallpaper to alert EMS that the smart-ICE product is inside, or to provide a contact number for who has the code to unlock the patients phone.
It lists on the first page, when opened, a list of tabs to access Personal Information, Current Medical Problems, Medical Devices and Deficits, Medical History, Emergency Contacts, Expressed Wishes and Preferred Hospital.
All of these tabs open to provide information in an organized, detailed, and intuitive fashion for someone wanting critical information in an emergency. For example, Current Medical Problems are selected from a large list of approximately 200 common medical problems and medications are chosen from a long list of the most prescribed medications.
Both of these fields have an option to add something that is not on the list!
Details such as drug dosage, quantity, last filled, end date and a comments field, are all the things that could be needed by a paramedic in an overdose.
Medical Devices and Deficits provides information on medical devices that could make a difference in an emergency situation. Not all could be listed, but the notes section in Current Medical Problems will allow anything to be documented.
The Medical History tab allows you to document all of your past medical problems, surgeries, hospitalizations and immunizations, along with a notes section for items not covered.
Emergency Contacts provide unlimited entries for Emergency Contacts, Health Care Power of Attorney, Attorney (living will/DNR), Family Physician, Specialist and Next of Kin. All of these are selected directly from your contacts list and provide up to three phone numbers each that are dialed when touched by the paramedic.
The next tab contains your expressed wishes and allows you to list the person to contact to enforce that wish. Special wishes not listed can be added also! The last tab is the preferred hospital, which provides the medic crew with some guidance on your wishes should your insurance limit you to a certain network.
All of these items are quickly and easily set up by any iPhone user and more importantly, intuitive enough that a paramedic could actually find out something about you!
Most importantly, and the most often overlooked, lifesaving feature is the Alert EMS button on the main page. When selected, it will call the emergency (911) number that you selected in the set-up phase.
After the call, the phone is placed in an "Alert Mode" and will sound an audible sound every two minutes until reset by the user or EMS personnel. This will insure that if you used your phone to call 911, they will find your phone and all of your medical information.
iEmergency+
The name in of itself does not attract a medic to the application. The cute little ambulance and the word ICE, suggests it could contain some information, but the color does not attract me to the application and it could be lost among the rest of the applications.
It also has a wallpaper feature.....I wonder where they got the idea?
The main page opens to a My Info page and only provides for putting in your name, where's the rest of my info?
Oh, It lists three contacts also!
The next tab, if you notice it at the bottom of the page, is the Contacts page. It contains a confusing format for adding additional contacts, medical contacts, and INSURANCE INFORMATION. (How does INSURANCE INFORMATION fit into contacts? This would frustrate an emergency provider in search of critical medical information!)
Back to the bottom again, the Medical history tab leads you to a page that has Medical Information, with a multiple selection list of date of birth, Blood type, Weight, height, medical history and notes.
All of these require that you key in what you want them to see, there are no lists to select from.
If you figure out how to put the information in, consider how the paramedic will read it and if they can identify you as the user of the phone, or did you borrow someone elses? Probably the most important thing to understand it that it will be veiwed as medical history, not current medical problems!
To it's credit, it does have a HELP page......itt lists a few instructions and then goes into a sales pitch for the other applications made by the developer. (That is just what a paramedic is wanting to view when he is trying to save your life!)
The choice is yours!
ICE4SAFETY comments.......
We felt that this information was very helpful when you make your choice as to what particular type of smartphone App to purchase and how helpful it might be WHEN YOU NEED IT MOST!
The writer was correct - the choice IS yours......
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