Ready for an Emergency?

“The last thing I expected was for my 55-year-old husband to have a heart attack,” Cherolyn Conway says. “We didn’t realize he had any heart issues, but [then] we learned he had 75 percent and 95 percent blockages [in his arteries].”

As her husband, Jack, checked into the ER, Cherolyn had to run back home to get medication information the doctors needed. Finally, with Jack admitted, Cherolyn realized she’d forgotten her own medications and personal items. But she wasn’t about to leave Jack’s side to get them until the test results came back.

Staying organized can be a challenge in the middle of a health crisis. “You’re trying to think of everything you’ll need and gather it while the 911 guys are there. And you’re panicking,” Cherolyn says. “I wish I would have had a list I could just check off to make sure I had everything in those moments when I couldn’t think. I’m working on one now for each member of our family.”

Besides making a list, how can anyone better prepare for a health crisis?

Know the symptoms. As we age, some new aches are normal; others may be warning signs of serious problems. In most medical emergencies, response time is vital to minimize long-term effects on health.

Before a crisis occurs, prepare by learning the symptoms of serious medical conditions, such as a stroke, a heart attack or cancer. Know your family history. Learn about medical problems your parents had and monitor your body for the symptoms. Information can be found on the Internet or in pamphlets from doctors’ offices. Also, if your body starts to feel abnormal, keep a health journal that might help your doctor diagnose a problem early.

Know your insurance. “Jack had three ER trips in less than two weeks,” Cherolyn says. “I can’t even imagine what this will cost us.”

In any hospital situation, costs multiply quickly. When choosing or reviewing insurance, know how much your deductibles will be, what, if any, percentage of a medical bill you will be responsible for, and how much your insurance will cover. You may need a better health-care plan. Before switching to another company, learn how much premiums are raised after the first year, annually and after the first claim.

Besides health coverage, consider other insurance. If you have an accident, do you have disability insurance to help pay bills while you’re out of work? How about life insurance? When you’re healthy, it seems like a needless expense, but the time to get life insurance is before illness strikes.

Another consideration is long-term care or skilled-care center insurance. Skilled-care centers cost an average of $1,800 per month (expenses will increase as care increases), and Medicare doesn’t help until other financial resources are depleted. When Thurman Gardner retired and went on Medicare, he joined a supplemental insurance plan, which paid everything Medicare didn’t cover.

When insurance shopping, check the insurance company’s record through resources such as your state’s insurance complaint index.

Set aside a medical emergency fund. Most people have set up retirement funds by the time they reach middle age, but another thing to consider is a medical emergency fund. Consider creating such an account or earmarking certain stocks to help pay for unexpected medical crises.

And if you foresee that your family might require repeated trips to the ER, check with a local ambulance company. Some have a flat rate for unlimited yearly services.

Explore resources. Julia Rogers was just entering midlife when her father became ill. Julia panicked over the medical equipment expenses her father, a veteran, would need. A friend suggested she contact the local office of the Department of Veterans Affairs. They promptly sent a caseworker to evaluate her dad’s health.

“Next thing I knew, his house was filled with therapists who helped him regain some mobility,” she says. “And they ordered equipment that I had no idea Medicare would provide.” When you face difficulty—from needing help with an ill spouse to getting a wheelchair-bound parent to a doctor’s appointment—chances are there is an organization or agency that can help. Check with your doctor, church or senior associations.

Call on friends. When you’re going through a crisis, don’t handle it alone. Let friends take care of the logistics, such as picking up the mail or groceries or feeding your family. Let them give you emotional support by sitting with you at the hospital. They want to help, so let them, and keep their phone numbers handy.

Get papers in order. What would happen if the one who pays the bills and handles your family’s financial matters suddenly couldn’t do the job? Prepare for this by putting together a hard copy or electronic file that gives detailed instructions about your finances.

Also, address end-of-life issues and finalize legal documents about medical issues, guardianship and estate planning (such as a last will and testament and durable power of attorney for health care). Some companies and churches have staff members who can help, and software or medical caseworkers can also provide assistance.

Be prepared spiritually. “When a life is on the line, all of a sudden everything else seems unimportant,” Cherolyn says. “You basically go through a checklist of the soul to evaluate if God is pleased with where you are in relationship to Him or to see if He wants to teach you something through this experience.”

Just as we can prepare the other areas of our life for an emergency, we can also prepare on a spiritual level. We can take James 1:5 to heart by asking for wisdom and guidance. Memorizing Scriptures about God’s faithfulness and trusting Him through pain and hardships will comfort our hearts.

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Be prepared for a health crisis so you can lessen the severity of the unexpected and recover a little easier.