Collect your Lions Emergency Bottle from the Patient Information Centre situated in the entrance of the Witterings Medical Centre.

How the scheme works

A bottle is supplied which contains a pre-printed form and two green cross stickers. The user fills in the form or if that is not possible a family member, friend or carer or member of a Health Team or Doctor could complete the form on behalf of the user. The form contains information that clearly identifies them, this includes a photograph of the patient, basic medical details or information on where prescribed medicines are kept in the house, emergency contact numbers, any allergies etc.

A section of the form also contains useful information if the patient is diagnosed with Dementia or Alzheimer’s in case they may wander off, then there is some information that would be useful to the Emergency Services when trying to locate the patient.

The form is put back in the bottle and then stored in the fridge. One of the green cross stickers is put on the door of the fridge and the other is put on the inside of the front door.

If two people live in the house, then they both fill out a form and both forms are stored in the same bottle.

In an emergency, the presence of the green cross stickers will alert the emergency services to the presence of the Message in a Bottle and they would search for it in the fridge.

The Message will give the emergency services information on any conditions or allergies that the patient suffers from.

If a patient is taken to hospital then the form is taken with them and given to the hospital staff on arrival.

The Message helps the hospital staff find the relevant records and arrange treatment as quickly as possible.

The Lions Clubs promote this scheme because we believe that this gives older or vulnerable people more confidence about their treatment in an emergency.

It also gives peace of mind to relatives and friends that essential information will be available in an emergency situation. A copy of the form is attached with this note.

The form is written in English and should be filled out in English because all the emergency service use English.