About.com
By Teri Robert
September 15,2005
Today, I present a Rose of thanks and praise to the MedicAlert Foundation International for their assistance to those caught in the path of Hurricane Katrina. Not only are they answering the huge volume of calls for information they're receiving as a result of Katrina and doing it well, they're offering extra assistance to their members affected by Katrina...
On the MedicAlert Web site, you'll see this message to members affected by Katrina:
"We know you have a lot on your mind right now. We want to ease one of your concerns. Be assured that your medical records are safe and secure with MedicAlert. Please be aware that you can access your records or order a replacement emblem at NO COST to you by calling..."
Nicole Moore of the MedicAlert staff told me, "We have already received numerous emergency calls from victims who don’t recall their medications and dosages. We have also received calls from physicians who need detailed information on the type of pacemaker that someone has."
MedicAlert is a non-profit healthcare information organization founded in 1956. Their services are built around a repository of health information that enables members to manage their personal health records while maintaining security, privacy and confidentiality. MedicAlert is best know for their MedicAlert medical emergency identification emblems -- pendants, bracelets, etc. They've become such a household name that we tend to say MedicAlert for any such product whether it's one of theirs or not.