What is iB?
Like a virtual medical ID bracelet, iB is a HIPAA-compliant Web service that allows its members to share vital health information during emergencies with participating Emergency Medical Service (EMS) providers. In the event of a medical emergency, responding medics within our service area can access the information you have made available. If transport is required, text or email messages will be delivered to your In Case of Emergency (ICE) contacts. The service costs $5 per member, per year.
How iB Works.
- Register online (i.e., contact details, allergies, medications, chronic conditions, insurance, health provider contact, ICE contacts.)
- Add names, email adresses and mobiles phones numbers of ICE contacts.
- Member receives membership card in the mail that contains unique PIN.
- Login to your new account and activate your PIN.
- Snap-off fob and attach to keychain; apply sticker to health ID and place iB membership card directly behind your driver's license.
How Secure is iB?
iB is a voluntary service that puts the patient in control of the information medics can access.
Docvia has invested a great deal into protecting iB member data.
iB requires participating EMS providers to license our iB Medic search engine. The no-cost license is available to all EMS providers that meet our licensing, training and certification requirements. This ensures that only qualified medics are authorized to access your account and only during a medical emergency. When they do, they cannot change the data; it's read-only. Registered members are the only people able to update their iB account information.
iB is HIPAA-compliant and meets or exceeds state and federal patient privacy and security laws. We create audit logs every time your data is accessed. That way, we can guarantee a record of when a patient's data was viewed and by which authorized medic.
Your iB PIN is uniquely yours. After being randomly generated from about 20 billion potential combinations, you activate your PIN when you sign into your account and confirm the number on your iB membership card.
As an additional precaution, licensed EMS providers must verify the employee status of each of their medics. That way, medics that are no longer employed by the EMS provider do not have the ability to conduct iB PIN queries, ever.
