St John Supports ICE (In Case of Emergency) Idea

St John Media Release
15 July 2005

St John Supports ICE (In Case of Emergency) Idea

St John supports the idea for people carrying mobile phones to include ICE contact details in their mobile directory.

Standing for In Case of Emergency, ICE will allow ambulance crews and other personnel to quickly contact a nominated person who can be informed in the event of an incident.

Mobile phone owners should type the acronym ICE followed by a contact name (for example, ICE - mum or ICE - David) into the address book of their mobile phone and save the phone number. They should also agree and inform their ICE contacts of the arrangements.

The ICE idea was first promoted by the East Anglian Ambulance Trust and has achieved more awareness following the tragic events in London last week. A chain email campaign promoting the idea has since made its way to New Zealand.

St John Chief Executive Jaimes Wood says any means that people use to carry relevant information about themselves will be useful in an emergency. Storing the information in mobile phones may be useful in some cases, though it should not be relied on as the only way.

“We anticipate there will be benefits for ambulance and emergency service personnel from ICE number listings in mobile phones but next of kin and other important information, such as medical conditions and medication, should also be included in wallet cards, diaries and other similar personal items.”

ENDS

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