It’s not easy to live with a medical condition. But the purpose of life is to continue moving, no matter the conditions we live with. Many people live with small and chronic illnesses and go about their lives, trying to live what could be called a normal life.
If you happen to work in hospitality or retail, chances are you’ve had a customer come in who’s wearing a medical alert bracelet. You may not have realized it, but it’s likely you’ve had many customers living with chronic illnesses and medical conditions.
A medical alert bracelet might indicate conditions from diabetes to dementia to heart disease. But whether it’s a type 1 diabetes bracelet or a dementia ID bracelet, you should take notice of a customer’s medical alert bracelet without calling direct attention to it — as you want to remain respectful of a person’s medical condition and anonymity.
However, in the event of an emergency, you should act fast to protect your customer.
There are a few medical conditions you’re most likely to see on a customer’s medical alert bracelet. Altogether, these tend to include the most common medical conditions that Americans face. Here are the most common conditions you’ll see listed on a customer’s medical alert bracelet.
First and foremost, many Americans live with diabetes, whether type 1 or 2. Diabetic jewelry is a first line of defense for many Americans, as it informs others of their condition.
Otherwise, other conditions that are often helped with a medical ID bracelet include dementia, food and drug allergies, heart disease, lung conditions and more.
Allergy bracelets are especially important for customers visiting restaurants, as you can never be too sure of cross-contamination unless it is directly stated while placing an order. And, even if an order is placed, miscommunication could happen while transferring information between the dining room and the kitchen. So it’s important that a customer remains safe and informs people around them of their medical conditions.
More often than not, a person with a medical ID will list their medical condition with an abbreviation, especially if they have multiple conditions. Most medical conditions tend to be rather long, due to their Latin roots, so it’s important to save space on an engraved bracelet.
Here are some of the most common abbreviations you’ll see on a customer’s medical ID bracelet:
Alzheimer’s disease: ALZ
Aortic Valve Replacement: AVR
Arteriosclerotic Heart Disease: AHD
Atrial Fibrillation: A-Fib
Automatic Implantable Cardiac Defibrillator: AICD
Autism Spectrum Disorder: ASD
BiPolar Affective Disorder: BPAD
Blood Pressure: BP
Borderline Personality Disorder: BPD
Crohn’s Disease: CD
Cerebral Palsy: CP
Cancer: CA
Chronic Kidney Disease: CKD
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease: COPD
Chronic Obstructive Lung Disease: COLD
Chronic Obstructive Airways Disease: COAD
Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia: CAH
Congestive Heart Failure: CHF
Coronary Artery Disease: CAD
Coronary Heart Disease: CHD
Cystic Fibrosis: CF
Deep Vein Thrombosis: DVT
Diabetic KetoAcidosis: DKA
Diabetes Mellitus: DM
Down syndrome: DS
Difficulty Of Breathing: DOB
FibroMyalgia Syndrome: FMS
HyperTeNsion: HTN
Hepatitis A Virus: HAV
Hepatitis B Virus: HBV
Hepatitis C Virus: HCV
Human Immunodeficiency Virus: HIV
Insulin-Dependent Diabetes Mellitus: IDDM
Idiopathic Thrombocytopenic Purpura: ITP
Mitral Stenosis; Multiple Sclerosis: MS
Mitral Valve Prolapse: MVP
Small Airways Disease: SAD
SChiZophrenia: SCZ
Ulcerative Colitis: UC
PNC (Penicillin)
MORPHINE
OPIOIDS
SHELLFISH
BEES
NUTS
INSECT STINGS
LATEX
Acetaminophen: ASAP
Antibiotic: ATB
Aspirin: ASA
Cephalosporin: CEPH
Codeine: COD
Corticosteroids: CS
Doxycycline: DOXY
Epinephrine: EPI
Auto-injector epinephrine pen: EPIPEN
Erythromycin ethylsuccinate: EES
Hydrocortisone: HC
Non-steroidal: NSAID
Nitroglycerin: NTG
Phenobarbital: PB
Penicillin: PCN
Tetracycline: TCN
Triamcinolone: TAC
No contrast dye: NO CT
Nothing by mouth: NPO
NO MRI
No chest x-rays: NO CXR
Basic life support OK: BLS
Do not intubate: DNI
Do not resuscitate: DNR
Don’t hospitalize: DNH
Do not attempt cardiopulmonary resuscitation: DNACPR
Intrauterine device in place: IUD
Bilateral total knee replacement: BTKR
Total hip replacement: THR
Total knee replacement: TKR
Coronary artery bypass graft surgery: CABG
