Act Now to Ensure You Stay Connected in a Health Emergency
- Ruth Bernstein, Hearing Access Ambassador
- 5 hours ago
- 2 min read
Sound Advice by Ruth D. Bernstein
Recently, a friend fell on a Sunday in a parking lot and broke her shoulder. Medics took her to the ER at the local hospital, where she spent two nights on a stretcher until they found a room for her. My friend, who lives in New Jersey, is single, elderly, and has one CI. Her second ear does not work at all. I found out about her accident when I shared a pastel drawing I had made in art class on Monday.
I wanted to reach out to her friends and family to get her some help and suddenly realized I had no way of doing that because I didn't have the necessary information. I contacted a few mutual friends in the hope they could help. No luck. That was when I decided to write these New Year's wishes for my readers.
Take These Steps Now, Stay Connected Always
Create an emergency contact list. ApartmentGuide.com has a good resource that explains how to do that on your Android or iPhone and how to create a printable list.
Share the list immediately! Give it to your friends, neighbors and family, the management of the apartment building you live in, your house of worship, community center, and any organization you work for or volunteer at.
Update the list on a semi annual basis. As we grow older, friends, family and situations change.
If you have a life-threatening condition, wear ID that can be seen easily. Although Medic Alert is the best known for this, you can find other sources by Googling medical alert systems.
Make and share the list and have a happy, healthy and safe 2026!
Ruth D. Bernstein Hearing Access Ambassador
Contact Ruth using our Ask the Experts form to share your hearing access tips and advocacy experiences.