After experiencing two medical emergencies in his family, technology professional Philip Sencer noticed a major discrepancy in the emergency response process. His solution was to create the Medical Alert Identification System, which provides rapid accesses to an abundance of medical information for emergency medical personnel.
After working in his yard one day, Sencer passed out, and when the paramedics came, he could not answer any of their questions. “I was groggy and disoriented and could not give them any information about me,” he recalled.
A second incident occurred while visiting his daughter in Orlando. “It was 2 in the morning, and she said she couldn’t feel her legs,” Sencer said. “So we called 911 immediately.”
When the paramedics and police arrived, they swarmed her living room and asked a lot of questions. “The first question they asked her was what medications she was taking, and then who her doctor was, and she answered ‘I don’t know’ to every question because she was really in a panic mode,” Sencer said. “When they turned to her husband, he didn’t know, and then they turned to us, her parents who were visiting, and we didn’t know.”
These questions are critical to saving someone’s life, and without a means of providing the correct answers, paramedics spend more time trying to figure out what’s wrong, which is crucial time lost. “I’ve spoken to paramedics and found that a 15-minute window once they arrive is very important to saving someone’s life. The more time they can have the better,” Sencer said.
After those life-threatening experiences, Sencer knew there needed to be a more effective way to communicate with paramedics during an emergency. Especially as the baby boomer generation gets older. It would be a benefit to both patients and caregivers. “My wife and I were caregivers for 12 years, and we know how difficult it is,” he said.
For caregivers, it’s not only emotionally draining, but having to compile all the medical information is time consuming and stressful. With precise planning and extensive research, Sencer created Medical Alert in hopes of potentially saving lives during am emergency.
As owner of the technology firm StarBright Communications, Sencer used his experience in the technology field to develop the system.
The Medical Alert Identification System uses a quick response (QR) code, a barcode that when scanned can send the user to a variety of Internet sources. Spencer’s Medical Alert Identification System assigns a QR code to each client, and when scanned on a scanner, typically any QR code scanner available on smartphones, it goes to that person’s Medical Alert Identification System page.
The page displays the patient’s medical information and is customizable to include medical history, prescription drugs, allergies, emergency contact, insurance information and personal information such as address and primary doctor’s contact.
The QR code can be placed on anything, from jewelry to a magnet. Customers who sign up with Medical Alert receive a Medical ID card, which has their QR code on it. This card can be placed in a person’s wallet for easy access by paramedics.
Customers are able to update their information on their own, at any time.
“I created a secure database where you as a patient, caregiver or loved one can go online with your own login and password, and enter in your information,” Sencer said. “You can list all the key things that people need as you go from physician to physician or in an emergency.”
For more info., visit www.911-ems.com or call (561) 329-5255.
Above: Medical Alert Identification System founder Philip Sencer holds up a medical ID card.
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