This symbol shows rescuers where to find contact phone numbers

ITU standard helps to find emergency contact numbers fast

Rescue workers worldwide can more easily notify next of kin

Emergency workers searching to find next-of-kin contact information for an injured person now have a globally recognized way of doing so, thanks to a new standard from ITU.

If you have a mobile phone, simply enter in its directory the numbers 01, 02, 03, and so on, in front of the names of the people you want contacted in an emergency; for example, “01 father”, or “02 wife”. The name of each person can be written in any script, and so emergency workers in any part of the world can identify contacts in order of priority and notify them.

ICE4SAFETY

ITU will work with non-profit organization ICE4SAFETY to promote this new way of identifying an emergency contact in a mobile handset’s directory. “In Case of Emergency” — or ICE — has emerged in some English-speaking countries as a way for people to list emergency contact numbers in their mobile phones’ directories in the form of “ICE doctor”, for example. However, this precludes people who do not recognize the Roman script from readily understanding what the term “ICE” represents. ITU members expressed the need to identify emergency contacts independent of language.

The new standard, which is a clause to Recommendation ITU–T E.123, internationalizes the ICE concept and recommends the use of Arabic numerals (0 to 9) to denote emergency contact numbers in a handset’s directory. It exploits the fact that even though written scripts differ around the world, these digits are universally recognized.

Malcolm Johnson, Director of ITU’s Telecommunication Standardization Bureau, said “emergency telecommunications are a top priority for ITU. This simple addition to a person’s next-of-kin or nominated contact details has the potential to greatly reduce stress for emergency workers around the world. Anything that can be done to reduce the workload of these remarkably brave people and assist in getting injured people the right care and attention is commendable. We will work tirelessly with ICE4SAFETY and other agencies to promote this concept.”

“We have seen the tremendous benefit of the ICE concept to the emergency services community,” said Mark Balduzzi, Developer of ICE4SAFETY. “ITU’s initiative to internationalize ICE takes the concept one step further, and we wholeheartedly support this.”