| What kind of information do the cards contain? | | | | Does it serve the purpose for which it was |
| First of all, no two college emergency cards are | | | | designed? |
| exactly alike. Some ask a few basic questions, | | | | That depends on the form's availability and the |
| giving you a space or two for your most | | | | needs of the students. For a non-residential |
| important emergency contacts, one space for | | | | community college, limited information might be |
| primary care physician information, your insurance | | | | sufficient. If a student is injured at a community |
| number and a very basic medical, allergy and | | | | college, the injury would probably occur during |
| vaccination history. Other forms are several | | | | regular school hours and the college would be able |
| pages long, capturing everything there is to know | | | | to locate and transmit emergency information to |
| about your medical history, multiple emergency | | | | a hospital as soon as they are notified about the |
| contacts and information on every doctor your | | | | accident. But if a student becomes ill or is injured |
| child has ever seen. | | | | during night classes, having the student's |
| Whether the information on the card is effective | | | | emergency information filed away in a closed |
| for the student, really depends on the type of | | | | administrative office wouldn't be much help. |
| emergency. If the student has broken his arm | | | | For a residential university, a traditional emergency |
| and is alert and talking, then having his regular | | | | contact card and basic medical information form |
| doctor's and insurance contact information at his | | | | might not work at all. Students are on campus |
| fingertips, along with a list of allergies, is probably | | | | twenty-four hours a day, with most medical |
| enough. | | | | emergencies occurring after school hours. |
| But let's say that a student is hit by a car, or | | | | Unless the university has administration or security |
| based on recent events, a stray bullet. If she's | | | | personnel available twenty-four hours a day, with |
| fighting for her life, her ER doctor needs to know | | | | access to the student's emergency information, it |
| everything she can about that student, from her | | | | could take hours to locate and send a student's |
| medical history to prescriptions she's currently | | | | emergency information to a hospital. And if the |
| taking that could interfere with her treatment. | | | | emergency occurs after school hours, or worse, |
| When a hospital has to locate a medical history on | | | | over the weekend, hours could easily turn into |
| a student who's in critical information, but can't | | | | days. |
| reach the only emergency contact on their | | | | RAs - Your Student's Link To Safety? |
| contact card, having alternate contact numbers at | | | | That's why some schools have decided to give |
| the hospital's disposal, could literally mean the | | | | resident advisors the emergency contact |
| difference between life and death. | | | | information for the students on the dorm floor |
| Where are the cards kept and how easily they | | | | they supervise. RAs copy or print the information |
| can be retrieved? | | | | and carry it around with them in a notebook in |
| Many universities split their emergency cards into | | | | their back pocket. |
| two forms. The first form has the student's basic | | | | While there is a good chance an RA might find |
| "in case of emergency" information and contacts, | | | | out about an accident or illness before the |
| which is usually kept in the registrar's or | | | | administrative office does, leaving such a crucial |
| admissions office. | | | | job to someone who is still a student themselves, |
| The second form details the student's medical | | | | seems questionable. |
| history and is kept in the university health center. | | | | Who's to say if the RA will even be in dorm when |
| Other schools have emergency contacts on an | | | | an emergency occurs. Or if an accident takes |
| online system and the paper-based medical | | | | place at a party or during a mass casualty |
| history filled away in an administrative office. | | | | situation, the RA could be right in the middle of |
| That's fine if the student is dropping by the health | | | | the action himself and just as injured as the |
| center for a routine medical problem. But if a | | | | students in his care. One other problem with this |
| student is taken to a hospital in an emergency, | | | | system is the idea of carrying around other |
| hospitals can't access or use that information, until | | | | student's vital information in a notebook, which is |
| the school sends it over. The school might not | | | | easily lost and completely unsecured. |
| even know that the emergency or illness has | | | | Do emergency cards work in a mass casualty |
| occurred. Once they're aware of the situation, | | | | situation? |
| they'll have to locate and pull the information, then | | | | When natural disasters and mass casualties occur |
| send it over to the hospital. Realistically the whole | | | | at a university, students may have to rely on |
| process could take hours - hours which that | | | | their own resources to survive, until disaster |
| student might not have. And if an emergency | | | | personnel arrive at the site or until emergency |
| occurs after business hours, a hospital might not | | | | plans can be activated. That makes perfect |
| be able to access and use that emergency | | | | sense. In a sudden emergency, universities must |
| information, until the campus administration office | | | | do what they can to secure all of their students |
| opens, the next business day. | | | | as well as the campus, faculty and staff. |
| How current is the information? | | | | As much as they try, what a school can |
| How often do university students update their | | | | realistically do in a crisis, depends on the nature of |
| emergency contact cards and medical | | | | the crisis. In a mass casualty emergency, disaster |
| information? Once a semester? Once a year? | | | | personnel or the records themselves, might not |
| Never? That depends on the university. In today's | | | | even be physically available. Think about the Union |
| world, things change quickly. Just think about your | | | | University tornado, where entire buildings were |
| own life. How often do you have to update your | | | | destroyed. Or Hurricane Katrina, where buildings, |
| Outlook or cell phone contacts? If you're anything | | | | (along with the records within them), were not |
| like us, we update them every few weeks. For | | | | only badly damaged but uninhabitable for weeks |
| college students, the world moves at an even | | | | or months after the disaster. |
| faster pace. | | | | Even in an emergency like the Virginia Tech or |
| From potential emergency contacts (parents, | | | | NIU shootings, personnel are so busy dealing with |
| relatives and roommates) to their own medical | | | | the situation, that they might not have the |
| history, recent illnesses or prescriptions, things can | | | | resources to locate and transmit their injured |
| literally change every day. Unless a student has | | | | student's emergency information to a hospital. |
| immediate access to his emergency information | | | | So, do emergency contact and health information |
| whenever he need to update it, the information | | | | cards work? In short, no. |
| on it could be hopelessly out of date. Updating | | | | Standard emergency contact cards are |
| information on the fly is something normal | | | | yesterday's answer to a world that is changing by |
| emergency contact cards just aren't set up to do. | | | | the minute. |