BRONZE, SILVER, GOLD 1. Health – First Aid
# Explain how to use a mobile phone and a public phone and discuss the steps you would take to make an emergency call.
ICE – In Case of Emergency
Nearly all of us carry a mobile phone with names & numbers stored in its memory but nobody, other than ourselves, knows which of these numbers belong to our closest family or friends.
If we were to be involved in an accident or were taken ill, the people attending to us would have our mobile phone but wouldn’t know who to call. Who is the contact person in case of an emergency?
An initiative conceived by a paramedic in Britain, is trying to solve this problem. The idea is that you store the word ICE in your mobile phone address book, and against it enter the number of the person you would want to be contacted ‘In Case of Emergency’. For more than one contact name ICE1, ICE2, ICE3 etc could be used.
In an emergency situation ambulance and hospital staff can then quickly find out who the next of kin are, and be able to contact them. This could save a life, or put a loved one’s mind at rest. Not only does it help emergency workers identify a person if they come upon them unconscious, it also helps identify the owners of lost cell phones. — Florenz Ronn, ABC
ICE will allow ambulance crews and other personnel to quickly contact a nominated person who can be informed in the event of an incident.
Mobile phone owners should type the acronym ICE followed by a contact name (for example, ICE – mum or ICE – David) into the address book of their mobile phone and save the phone number. They should also agree and inform their ICE contacts of the arrangements.
Reach for your phone now and make that new entry in your contacts list. You never know when you’ll be In Case of Emergency.
And if you don’t carry a mobile phone, how about carrying an ICE card instead?
Mobile Emergency Number
While we are discussing mobile phones, another number for your contact list is the Mobile Emergency Number. The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobile is 112. No cell cover? 112 can be dialled in any area covered by GSM, whether it’s within your mobile phone company’s coverage area or not, and without having to unlock your keypad or key in your security-protection pin number.
Emergency call service
This is an operator-assisted service that connects you to an emergency service organisation such as police, fire or ambulance services in a life-threatening or time-critical situation from any phone at no charge.
Dialing 000 will connect you with emergency services from any fixed, mobile or pay phone.
You should only call the emergency call service in a life-threatening or time critical situation.
