Stickers Available To Alert Responders About Individuals With Medical Conditions
The Stone County Sheriff’s Office is distributing these stickers to those who may need them. They alert any emergency responders that individuals in a vehicle or home may not respond to verbal commands due to a medical issue, rather than non-compliance.
July 18, 2019
Isaac Estes-Jones
The Stone County Sheriff’s Office is now distributing a series of stickers to help citizens communicate to first responders and law enforcement when an occupant of a vehicle or home may be unresponsive due to medical conditions.
The stickers, available now, alert officials to the preseance of an individual who is deaf, diabetic, suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia or has autism or special needs.
“Another sheriff I know had done the same thing and it was well received,” said Sheriff Doug Rader. “I thought, ‘what a great tool for citizens and emergency responders to use.’”
These stickers are free to the public and may be placed on the back window of a vehicle or front door of a home to inform responders that an occupant may not respond to verbal commands.
“These stickers were created to help ease some of those and to aid law enforcement, fire fighters, ambulance personnel, and your neighbors to give you assistance should an emergency arise.”
“This wasn’t motivated by a specific incident here or anything like that,” said Rader. “But anything to enhance the relationship of the public to responders is a good idea.”
As one example, however, Rader shared about an occasion where someone with their back to him was not responding to commands. That individual was deaf, Rader said. “We’ve also had pursuits where the driver was having a diabetic reaction,” Rader said.
In other jurisdictions across the country, interactions between people with medical conditions and law enforcement has ended in tragedy, and hopefully these stickers can prevent such an event here.
These stickers are available now through the Stone County Sheriff’s Office in Galena.
They will also be given out at the Sheriff’s Booth during the Crane Broiler Festival on August 23 and 24.
If transportation is a problem, citizens can contact the Sheriff’s Office at (417) 357-6116 and arrangements can be made to mail stickers to those who need them.
Isaac Estes-Jones
The Stone County Sheriff’s Office is now distributing a series of stickers to help citizens communicate to first responders and law enforcement when an occupant of a vehicle or home may be unresponsive due to medical conditions.
The stickers, available now, alert officials to the preseance of an individual who is deaf, diabetic, suffering from Alzheimer’s or dementia or has autism or special needs.
“Another sheriff I know had done the same thing and it was well received,” said Sheriff Doug Rader. “I thought, ‘what a great tool for citizens and emergency responders to use.’”
These stickers are free to the public and may be placed on the back window of a vehicle or front door of a home to inform responders that an occupant may not respond to verbal commands.
“These stickers were created to help ease some of those and to aid law enforcement, fire fighters, ambulance personnel, and your neighbors to give you assistance should an emergency arise.”
“This wasn’t motivated by a specific incident here or anything like that,” said Rader. “But anything to enhance the relationship of the public to responders is a good idea.”
As one example, however, Rader shared about an occasion where someone with their back to him was not responding to commands. That individual was deaf, Rader said. “We’ve also had pursuits where the driver was having a diabetic reaction,” Rader said.
In other jurisdictions across the country, interactions between people with medical conditions and law enforcement has ended in tragedy, and hopefully these stickers can prevent such an event here.
These stickers are available now through the Stone County Sheriff’s Office in Galena.
They will also be given out at the Sheriff’s Booth during the Crane Broiler Festival on August 23 and 24.
If transportation is a problem, citizens can contact the Sheriff’s Office at (417) 357-6116 and arrangements can be made to mail stickers to those who need them.