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EMSWORLD.com | OCTOBER 2015 15 ness locations will need an accountability system that identifies all unaffected and ill/injured persons so that authorities can ensure every person is OK, reunified with family or identified at a healthcare facility. This can be challenging in situations like an occupied school that is severely damaged by a tornado, a business where an explosion or fire has occurred, or an office where a white powder incident has scattered employees into the street. These incidents may require EMS tracking personnel to sit with school or business administrators to compare lists and make appropriate notifications. There are medical events where victims must be tracked, usually in association with public health authorities or personnel from a healthcare facility. These may involve food poisoning incidents or exposure to toxins or infectious agents. Out-of-town vehicle crashes with multiple victims require not only accurate tracking but a plan to notify family that may be in a distant location. Collaboration with law enforcement will be necessary for accurate and timely notification. There are incidents where EMS may be asked to identify certain characteristics of victims that have law enforcement implica- tions. It is common for police to ask things like which victim was in the driver's seat when you started extrication. There are also incidents where persons show up at a scene or hospital and say they were involved in the accident when it does not appear that they were. This was also an incident that required rescue personnel to provide the best pos- sible identifications and assist investigators and relief personnel in tracking persons and identifying relationships. It is clear that family reunification is a potential role for EMS per- sonnel. At a minimum EMS must be able to track victims so family knows which hospital to go to or, in the worst situations, where a fatality was taken. When conscious patients request a por- table phone to make their own family con- nection, EMS personnel must find a way for that to occur. Handing a prepaid "safety phone" to a victim might be the most effi- cient method to manage a request. Note that allowing a person to disclose their own medical condition to a family member or friend is not a violation of confi- dentiality laws, in particular HIPAA. Customer Service EMS customer service begins with accurate and timely identification and tracking of victims, which can then allow the beginning of recovery functions. In this incident, the burn and smoke victims were tracked so extended family could understand who died at the scene, which hospitals were treating victims and even which family members were not affected. For More Information Circle 17 on Reader Service Card