Medical ID is important!!!

A am two weeks, 2 days post op and reluctantly ordered a medical ID bracelet after reading about their importance here. Well, this morning, one of my first outings back into the real world, three blocks from my house, I was clipped by a driver who ran a red light. A few more feet and she would have smashed directly into my door. I went to the ER for a check up since I was so freshly post op and aside from the regular car accident soreness, am okay. I may have felt silly before, but you better believe I feel much more confident in my decision to wear one now. Better safe than sorry. Be careful everyone!

Elle 

Wow.....I'm ordering one as soon as I can afford it. Glad you are ok.

I ordered mine a few weeks ago, should be here soon.  You never know what might happen, always good to be covered. 

By the way, we have the same surgeon.  How's it going so far?

Hurray for Harai! I adore him!!! Things are going well, aside from today. Am having trouble getting protien drink and liquids in, especially when emotionally upset... whereas there was NO trouble with that pre-op! :-) Hope you are doing well. Nice to hear from a local OH friend!

what do you put on the medical id bracelet? and thank goodness you're ok!

Mine says:

(Full Name)
Asthma
RNY Gastric Bypass
No Sugars No NSAIDS
No Blind NG Tube
ICE (phone number)

ICE = In Case of Emergency

Also, to note - do not order a cute, pretty medical ID bracelet. Medical professionals says they are very easy to overlook during emergencies. Go with the plain old metal with a caduceus style. I wear cute bracelets on my other arm when I want to snazz it up :)

You can find some reasonably priced deals for them on eBay and they ship very fast.

I think they are a great idea if you have a medical condition that could render you unconscious (like diabetes, epilepsy, anaphylactic allergies, asthma, RH etc) or that would be vital information in an emergency if you were unconscious!

It is highly unlikely that an NG tube would be passed in an ER situation - while you were unconscious and before a history could be taken from you or your relatives.

No one would be forcefeeding you Ibuprofen or any other NSAID while you were unconscious or before a history were taken.

It is important that you always give RNY in your medical history on visiting any doctor or specialist or obviously in the ER but it would be rare that it would make any difference in your treatment in a life and death situation where you were not able to verbalise.

Nobody should feel that they HAVE to have a Medical Alert bracelet just because they have had WLS ... but if you want to - no harm done!

Just a question and another perspective (so people are not scared into spending money they cannot afford to spend).

Quesation: What were you so afraid could have happened if you HAD been in accident and were not wearing an ID?

Alternate Perspective: The biggest reason that medical personnel would need to know that you have had RNY is to know that you cannot have NSAIDs (whihc they are unlikely to give you). (If you ONLY put that you have had RNY, however, they will NOT automatically know that it means no NSAIDs, so if you are concerned about being given them when you are unable to speak for yourself, make sure you have that put on your ID.)

The only other reason would be to guard against someone attempting to put in an NG tube when you are unconscious or otherwise unable to tell them that you cannot have a blind NG tube (not to be confused with a breathing tube!), so -- from that standpoint -- there is little reason to spend money on a medical alert ID (unless you also have other medical conditions/allergies/etc.) because that is a VERY unlikely scenario.

Many people believe that theactual need for a medical alert ID just because someone has had a RNY is overstated (especially since some of them are quite expensive). Also, ask youself if you are really going to wear it every day for the rest of your life. (Ask others who are a number of years out from their RNYs if they ever bought one or still wear one. Most that I know didn't get one or no longer wear it.)

Lora

 SPEND THE MONEY !!!  Don't be so cheap when it comes to your health... My surgeon told me it was VERY IMPORTANT to have one that said NO BLIND NG & NO NSAIDS.
Be frugal elsewhere and get the bracelet. 

You are entitled to your opinion (and even the cyber-yelling ;) ), but MANY surgeons disagree with yours... and they don't even bother to mention it to their patients for the reasons we have already outlined.

Lora