The "ICE" Idea

By Gary Robertson, PV Emergency Management Coordinator

A recent article from the Toronto Star, "the ICE idea", is catching on and it is a very simple, yet important method of contact for you or a loved one in case of an emergency. As cell phones are carried by the majority of the population, all you need to do is program the number of a contact person or persons and store the name as "ICE".

The ICE idea was conceived by paramedics who found that when they arrived at accident scenes, there were always mobile phones with patients, but they didn't know which numbers to call. They thought that it would be a good idea if there were a nationally recognized name to file "next of kin" under.

The idea is that you store the word "ICE " in your mobile phone address book, and with it enter the number of the person you would want to be contacted "In Case of Emergency  (ICE)". In an emergency situation, Emergency Services personnel and hospital staff would then be able to quickly contact your next of kin by simply by dialing the number programmed under "ICE". For more than one contact name simply enter ICE1, ICE2, ICE3 etc.