USB Flash drives are being touted as the newest way of storing vital personal medical information, such as allergies. Phil Campion, an ex-SAS soldier, dreamed up the idea - which he has dubbed the UTag - while serving in Afghanistan, where he'd sewn a Flash drive containing his ID into his clothes, just in case anything happened to him. The UTag is a memory stick disguised as a dog tag that can be worn as jewellery or attached to a key fob. The robust aluminium casing is stamped with the recognised emergency symbols of a snake on a staff and ICE (standing for "in case of emergency"), enabling emergency services to know instantly what it is.
With both the price and size of Flash drives shrinking dramatically in the past few years, such storage seems like an obvious way to carry important data - such as an allergy to penicillin - around.
Medical "jewellery" at present tends towards 1970s-style frumpiness, and has other limitations. One type opens to yield a minuscule sliver of paper that requires a magnifying glass to read the information on it. The other is engraved with a phone number for a central database which stores your medical data - which costs from £30 for the bracelet, and then £25 or more annuallly for the subscription.
Paramedics have already moved with the times in seeking help. If you've been in an accident, one of the first places paramedics will check for a next-of-kin ICE contact is your mobile phone. But what if the phone's been locked?
A USB Flash drive to store medical data seems like a logical next step - but it's important to ensure paramedics will find it, while making sure the data and the owner are protected.
The UTag's password-protected software interface is designed to work on all versions of Windows from ME upwards and is compatible with NHS systems. The single-view screen that launches needs no scrolling or clicking on additional tabs and holds a surprising amount of information. You can enter basic ID (but nothing that could be used for identity theft), plus details for two ICE contacts, your GP, your health insurance policy and of course information on any medical conditions, disabilities and allergies, including what medication you take. Only the holder can update their details, but emergency services staff can view them on a PC.
For travellers, a bonus is that stored information can be translated into six main European languages simply by clicking on a flag. There's even a hidden, encryptable folder accessible only to the user to store scanned copies of a passport, travel insurance or driving licence.
UTag offers a number of advantages. It is far more flexible than existing options, is relatively cheap at £25 (there's a slimline credit-card version for £20) and can be easily updated. At just 10g, it's lightweight, but is as obvious to paramedics as traditional jewellery - while holding more information than the ICE number on your phone.
