Maybe the Greatest Thing Ever Invented

My blood tests this morning to monitor my kidney function went like every other blood sample sucked out of me every week for the past six months – that is, until the supervising nurse spied the green bracelet with the medical symbol on my right wrist. "What is that?" she asked.

What, indeed. I have been meaning to tell you about my Care Medical History Bracelet for the longest time, but it has grown so comfortable on my body that I'd all but forgotten about it until the nurse roused my memory.

Shortly after my kidney transplant last November, my magnificent wife, Karen, realizing that my list of medical advisories, medications and other vital information suddenly increased a dozenfold, went online to http://medicalhistorybracelet.com/, found this brilliantly simple little band and gave it to me as a gift.

The Care device is the next generation, 21st century edition of the medic alert bracelet. It fastens securely around your wrist, but when you pull it apart – Voila! A computer flash drive is contained within.

Plug it into your home computer and, with the aid of some pre-loaded software, you can input every bit of essential information about yourself and your medical condition – medicines, dosages, blood type, primary physicians and specialists, emergency contacts. There's even a place to download a photo to prove it really is you wearing your bracelet.

So if you are involved in a major calamity or trip over a chair in your office and knock yourself loopy, everything any emergency medical technician would need to know about your health is available to them via their nearest computer without you having to mumble a word. And the information is easily updated, making Care a huge upgrade over the traditional engraved alert bracelet.

It only costs about $30, and takes no more than an hour or so to fill in the necessary blanks. (If you've been careful to compile all your data in advance, that is.) In a perfect world, I'm thinking, every man, woman and child would have one of these bad boys strapped on tight. Next step: Computer chips implanted in your ear, just like your Cockapoo!

The Care website says the bracelet is waterproof, but I take it off when I bathe anyway. Can't be too careful where metal and water are concerned. Two drawbacks, though. Far as I can tell, the flash drive software is readable on both Macs and PCs, but you can only input data on a PC. So if you're an Apple addict (like me), you'll probably have to borrow a PC from somebody to create your profile.

Second, and more critical, as my supervising nurse noted today, YOU CANNOT LOSE THIS THING. More than wearing your heart on your sleeve, with Care you literally are wearing your life on your wrist. And since there's apparently no way to lock the flash drive's info (nor would you really want to), the Care Medical History Bracelet could be an identity thief's wet dream.

But the positives far outweigh the negatives, in my view. You just need to take extreme care with Care. And like the infomercials say, "Makes a great gift."