New Portable Digital Medical Storage Device Now Available To Help Prevent Medical Errors

July 22, 2010 - PRLog -- The 1999 Institute of Medicine (IOM) report, To Err Is Human: Building
a Safer Health Care System, found that preventable medical errors caused 44,000 to 98,000 preventable deaths each year, with an associated cost of $17 to $29 billion. Even using the conservative estimate, this placed medical errors among the leading causes of death in the U.S.

Recently, entrepreneur Victor Lee realized that if an individual experienced a medical emergency they could be placed at significant risk if emergency medical personnel were not aware of allergies, medications and medical history information.

Realizing the importance of making this critical information available, Mr. Lee formed a new company, A1 Medical Alert which offers a service to customize a MEDAlert™ device for individuals and families.

MEDAlert™ is a USB personal medical information and alert device that combines emergency medical information with today's technology.  A digital memory chip is used to store an individual’s information on the easy access MEDAlert™ medical history and alert form.  

MEDAlert™ gives emergency service professionals or police officers with a laptop computer instant access to all emergency information simply by plugging in the MEDAlert™ device into a USB slot on any computer.  Emergency contacts, existing conditions, allergies, medications and doctors are instantly available.

MEDAlert™ allows quality of care to be improved, as patients and doctors benefit from immediate access to the patients emergency information, allowing all parties to avoid the sometimes dangerous duplication of medications and other errors associated with incomplete information.

The compact bright red device with the MEDAlert logo alerts medical personnel to special needs and existing medical conditions and can be easily attached to a key chain, purse or lanyard to wear around the neck.

Mr. Lee says “It’s an ideal solution for children, seniors, elderly, travel and disaster preparedness that can save lives.”

A1 Medical Alert services the state of Wisconsin as well as customers nationally via their website.  Additional details may be found on the World Wide Web at: http://www.A1MedicalAlert.com

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About A1 Medical Alert: As MEDAlert professionals, we'll document your critical medical information on a compact digital storage device making your information easily available in case of an emergency. Our goal is to foster and improve patient care, reduce medical errors and assure at least a minimum standard of health information is available when a patient is seen by a first responder or other provider. Your medical history information is an important first step to ensuring an accurate diagnosis and proper care in an emergency.In an emergency, medical personnel have only seconds to diagnose your needs and begin lifesaving procedures. Unfortunately, patients are often incapacitated and cannot communicate their special needs in an emergency and are subject to an increased risk of medical errors. In an emergency, healthcare providers must either start from scratch or act blindly because they don't have the patients medical information, relevant past history, allergies, or medications.