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Medical Alert Bracelets for Duchenne

For several years now, there has been the question of, “Where is the best place to get medical bracelets” and “what should they say?” Finally, I think we have an answer.

“Lauren’s Hope” started out as “You Name It,” and began as a fun little business making personalized gifts for women and children. They were approached by Lauren’s Hope for A Cure to make medical ID bracelets. The medical alert line became so popular, that they changed the name of the company to “Lauren’s Hope.” While they started out focusing on diabetes, Lauren’s Hope quickly learned of the tremendous need for medical alert bracelets for all medical conditions. Today, their products are available for men, women and children of all ages and diagnoses, and their product line consists of everything from bracelets to dog tags to temporary tattoos.

Several PPMD parents strongly endorsed Lauren’s Hope, saying that the company was responsive and easy to work with, the products are durable and the engraving is deep enough to last. We contacted Lauren’s Hope and they have generously agreed to work with our community.

There was much discussion regarding what is most important to engrave. Please keep in mind that the information on the jewelry is primarily for “first responders” (fire department, EMT, etc.) We are recommending that the following information is engraved:

Name, birthdate
Phone number, allergies and medications:
This will indicate that there are either No Known Drug Allergies (NKDA) or that there are Known Drug Allergies (+KDA), and that the patient is on medication (+MEDS)
No inhaled anesthesia

The engraving will look like this:

JOE SMITH 05/23/99

3215609880 NKDA (or +KDA) +MEDS

NO INHALED ANESTHESIA

To order visit LaurensHope.com. The company has generously offered to give our community a 10% discount on all merchandise. The discount code is “DUCHENNE.”

Thanks to Doug Biggar and Ivy Scherbarth for all of their help and expertise!

Kathi Kinnett, Director of Clinical Care
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Staff Comment by Kathi Kinnett on October 16, 2012 at 2:48pm: If it will all fit on the jewelry you have chosen, it's perfect! (If not, you can refer to the info suggested above) Don't forget the code "DUCHENNE" for the 10% discount :)

Comment by Liisa Underwood on October 16, 2012 at 2:40pm: How does this look for engraving:

MMDDYY, First
LastName
+MEDS +KDA
777-555-1212
DUCHENNE MD
ALLERGY: PCN
NO INHALED
ANESTHESIA

Staff Comment by Kathi Kinnett on October 16, 2012 at 1:44pm: Also, Gererdo, I spoke with Lauren's Hope. Yes, they will ship internationally and the fee is still $7.25 for shipping. (They did state that the jewelry sometimes gets help up in customs, so it may take a bit to arrive.) As for translation to Spanish, they said that if you write, in Spanish, what you want the jewelry to have engraved, that they will engrave exactly what you write.

Staff Comment by Kathi Kinnett on October 16, 2012 at 1:39pm: thanks David - you are right. What i most liked about Lauren's Hope was the wide variety of styles and choices. A choice with only 2 lines of engraving probably won't fit the bill. However, 3 lines will allow most of the information. " no inhaled anesthesias" will need to be somewhat abreviated to "no inhaled anesthes" (the first responders will most likely know what that means). If your choice allows 4 or 5 lines, you can put more info on. I hope this helps!

Comment by David on October 15, 2012 at 2:23pm: Great info, but the statement

NO INHALED ANESTHESIA

Does not fit on 1 line.

Staff Comment by Kathi Kinnett on October 10, 2012 at 12:39pm: Andrew - if there is sufficient room on the bracelet, that's a great idea. If not, adding +Meds will alert providers that they need to ask about what meds the patient is on. Thanks for the suggestion!

Comment by Andrew Kerr on October 10, 2012 at 10:01am: I would also suggest adding "Steroid Dependent" if indeed your child is.

Staff Comment by Kathi Kinnett on October 10, 2012 at 9:19am: Mr. Reynoso -

I have e-mailed Lauren's Hope and I will let you know! I also asked if they can translate the information to Spanish.

Kathi

Comment by Gerardo Javier reynoso on October 9, 2012 at 5:35pm: Excelente idea! Como podemos obtenerlas? Estamos en Argentina!

Las playeras también se comercializan?

Staff Comment by Kathi Kinnett on October 9, 2012 at 4:19pm: Ivy -

I guess that would be personal preference. Personally, I think the most appropriate would be the parent/caregiver's contact number. The parent/caregiver could then give the number for the muscle clinic or primary care provider.