Transplant: Medical bracelet or necklace
Hi all,
I am a kidney transplant patient. Do you have a medical bracelet or necklace? If so, what information did you list, which company did you use, and how did you order it?.... Please give me your thoughts. Thanks!!
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My daughter surprised me with a couple of bracelets from Etsy. There are quite a few sellers on Etsy with a ton of different options, colors, & styles for bracelets and necklaces. No need to limit yourself to one type!
I got my husband a bracelet from Medic Alert Foundation https://www.medicalert.org/ after his kidney transplant. Being able to have an account with them, we can load in his drs, his medications, etc., that is all accessible by first responders calling the 800 number and getting information. I have the same set-up, useful in an emergency.
Another thing that I have done, is that I carry a current list of medications he is on, in my wallet, and he does the same for me both OTC and Rx]. Decades ago, my mother had a mini-stroke while out of town, and had combined all her medications in to one bottle. When we got her to the ER, it was havoc to determine what she was taking, and speak clearly to attending doctors.
Ginger
I bought my husbands at a local jewelers. He had a whole book of options to choose from. Gave me the book and a chair to sit and peruse the choices. I ordered my mother a bracelet that had a little opening and an information sheet that slipped in. I ordered my husband a heavier masculine styled bracelet that was sterling and my older brother a nice gold one on a neck chain of course this was when gold was only 500.00 an ounce. Lol. Great Christmas presents since it was December. Then they all took them back and ordered the engraving.
Hi, I decided on a necklace like a dog tag we had in the military. It was from medalert but I put my :
name, Heart Transplant, Contact Mayo Clinic , ICE (mayo emec number), Med list in wallet.
I also have a med list in my phone but ran out of room. On the med list is my active meds, emergency contacts like my wife and daughter plus any allergies. I update that on a regular basis.
LaurensHope.com…but, there’s a bunch of sites. I just wanted simple, easy to get on/off, and inexpensive, plus some of them limit the number of lines, and I wanted 5 lines. I put:
My name
Immunosuppressed
Liver Transplant
Call Lahey Hospital
the transplant Dept. main phone number
I wear my medical bracelet 24/7 and I decided to get a silver one because it fits with casual and dressy clothes, and still looks great after 12 years! I decided to get my bracelet from the Medic Alert Foundation. I also pay an annual fee to be enrolled in their 24/7 emergency line where my contacts and medical information is readily available to the First responders 24/7. My bracelet information is "Liver & Kidney Transplant - Immunosuppressed - call (Medic Alert Number) Immediately" and XXXXXXXXX (my assigned Medical Alert ID number)
I went with Medic Alert because of my son, a First Responder - Fire Fighter/EMT. When there is an emergency, there is no time to waste, and the Medic Alert bracelet is easily recognized by the EMT's. They do not - will not- go thru your pockets or purse. If I am unconscious or unable to communicate, they are trained to look for that tag.
@gingerw
I don’t have a transplant but I've been a MedicAlert member for over 50 years. I like their document storage service. I don't believe any other medical ID can compare and for my seizures a voice-activated system wouldn't help, Conscious one second out the next.
Take care,
Jake
I wish my transplant team would have given guidance on the topic. I hadn’t heard the benefits of Medic Alert until this discussion.
Wow, thank you so much Mayo Connect family! I really appreciate all your insight and recommendations. Your responses are extremely helpful to me. I am going to move forward and order one asap as a celebration of my one year kidney transplant anniversary!!!
Road ID also provides medical ones.
Personally i like dog tag ones since a bracelet rubbed and caused, eventually, a skin cancer spot!