News provided by RapidSOS –
A potentially life-saving partnership between a global public safety technology company and a leading UK medical ID charity will instantly send potentially critical information on any of its members’ medical conditions directly to the NHS’s 999 system – while offering their exact location in an emergency.
Beginning in November, RapidSOS is to provide its service to MedicAlert allowing the integration of more than 43,000 medically-vulnerable people into the country’s emergency response call handling system. This will give police, fire service, ambulance and coast guard crews immediate notifications of any pre-existing conditions, allergies and medication regimes as they make their way to treat people on emergency call-outs.
The partnership – which comes at no cost to the NHS – marks New York-based RapidSOS’s first entry into Europe. In America, RapidSOS’s technology protects over 90% of the US population and its direct data link from connected devices supports more than 250 million calls to first responders each year.
Previously, this information could only be obtained via the MedicAlert dedicated emergency line once emergency personnel were on-scene. In many emergency situations, seconds can make all the difference. Those heading to the scene of a collapse or accident will now be forewarned.