Ever wondered how the emergency services could contact a friend or relative if you were found unconscious with only your Smartphone for identification?
You haven't?? Well I have, and thanks to a Facebook Friend in the Emergency Services, now I know what they are looking for and how to setup that information on my smartphone so they can be contacted, even if the phone is locked with a Passcode.
These contacts are known as “Medical Emergency Contacts” and also as “ICE” , short for, “In-Case-of-Emergency” (ICE)
If you have a friend, child or relative that you are concerned about and they have an iPhone, or an Android Smartphone be a good friend and set this up for them as per the instructions below.
Android Phone Instructions
If they have an Android phone follow the instructions here How To Set Up An ICE Contact On Your Android Smartphone
iPhone instructions for iOS 8 and higher
Look for an Application on the iPhone Called simply “Health”
If you've never activated it before, it will look like this,
Click on the “Medical ID” button in the bottom right of the app
Add one or more Emergency Contacts by selecting them from your Contacts list
You can also add important medical information about you, such as your
- Blood type
- Medical Conditions
- Medical Notes
- Allergies and Reactions
- Medications
- Organ donor participation
Now when your phone is locked, and you or someone else clicks on the “Emergency” tab in the bottom left of the iPhone Passcode screen, they will be taken to another screen which now shows a * Medical ID button
Clicking on * Medical ID , displays you Medical ID contacts and allows anyone to phone the persons selected as your medical emergency ID contacts or simply make a call to the Emergency Services.
Thank you Apple for explaining and publicising this option “Not” ….. until today I thought the Health app was to connect your phone to a fitness bracelet only.
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Written by John Kirkby
2 comments to “How to add Medical Emergency Contacts to your iPhone”
Kristy Bernales - September 15, 2015
Thanks for sharing life saving information. I am going to spread it to my friends too.
Laura - September 24, 2015
Thanks so much for citing our blog as a resource for Android ICEing instructions! Appreciate it! Laura