Helping to save lives in Portsmouth, brick by brick

Prescott Point neighborhood Women initiates program to assist first responders

Jim McGaw
Posted 7/28/16

PORTSMOUTH — It’s just a simple brick that’s placed outside a doorway, but it will lead first responders to a wealth of information when they arrive to a medical …

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Helping to save lives in Portsmouth, brick by brick

Prescott Point neighborhood Women initiates program to assist first responders

Posted

PORTSMOUTH — It’s just a simple brick that’s placed outside a doorway, but it will lead first responders to a wealth of information when they arrive to a medical emergency.

It’s called the Vial of Life program and it’s being put in place for residents of Prescott Point, a luxury condo/townhouse development off West Main Road near the Middletown line.

Here’s how it works, according to Fran Mellios, co-chairwoman of the neighborhood committee that initiated the program:

A special brick will be placed outside the doorway of each unit “to let the Fire Department know when they come as first responders that we are participating in this activity.”

The presence of the brick indicates that a “Vial of Life,” which resembles an oversized prescription bottle, is in the refrigerator. Each vial will contain a two-sided medical form for each resident of the home. 

“It’s got medical information on it, their past medical history, current medical problems — anything they’d need whether they’re alone or whether a spouse is there,” said Ms. Mellios, noting that even if another person is present, he or she often isn’t in the right frame of mind to give accurate information to rescue workers. 

“You can get very frazzled if there’s an emergency. I’ve been in that situation; I couldn’t even remember how to dial 911,” she said.

Added Linda Lucksinger, the other co-chairwoman, “Especially if your spouse or whomever is on multiple medications and you’re trying to remember, what is it he or she is taking and what is the dosage? It’s all there.”

In addition to Ms. Mellios and Ms. Lucksinger, the other committee members who helped with the project are Barbara Goral, Linda DiNovella and Francine Lucci.

The plan is for every unit at Prescott Point, which is still being developed, to have a brick and a Vial of Life.

“When we’re all built out, we’ll have 59 condos. There are now about 40 occupied, but I think by the end of the year they’ll all be filled,” said Ms. Mellios.

The Vial of Life program got its origins about 30 years ago; Ms. Mellios said it started when a Massachusetts senior center started working with first responders on improving the accessibility of valuable health records during medical calls.

Ideally, the program will eventually expand to other condo associations in town, particularly those with a high percentage of senior citizens. 

“It’s for any age, but you tend to think more of the seniors, where you’re more likely to have an emergency,” said Ms. Mellios, noting that Prescott Point has a female resident in her 90s, but also a couple “in their late 40s or early 50s.”

All donated

For Prescott Point, the Vial of Life program came with no fee attached.

“We didn’t have to pay for anything,” said Ms. Mellios. “We were fortunate to have all the vials donated by Rite Aid, at 2456 East Main Road.”

The labels for the bricks and vials were donated by Is Three Enough Design, owned by Gary Jefferds.

The bricks, from Home Depot, were painted a lighter shade so they blended with the homes’ siding, said Ms. Lucksinger, adding that four coats of varnish were painted over the label.

Gets firefighters’ approval

Deputy Fire Chief Michael O’Brien visited Prescott Point Tuesday morning to learn about the program and was impressed by what he saw.

“We’ve had some similar programs in town before, but nothing recently. I think it’s a good program,” said Deputy O’Brien, adding that first-responders often enter a home during an emergency call with little or no information about a patient’s medical history.

“This is going to make them a little bit safer and allow us to do our job better. There are no negatives,” he said.

Prescott Point, Portsmouth Fire Department, Vial of Life

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Meet our staff
Jim McGaw

A lifelong Portsmouth resident, Jim graduated from Portsmouth High School in 1982 and earned a journalism degree from the University of Rhode Island in 1986. He's worked two different stints at East Bay Newspapers, for a total of 18 years with the company so far. When not running all over town bringing you the news from Portsmouth, Jim listens to lots and lots and lots of music, watches obscure silent films from the '20s and usually has three books going at once. He also loves to cook crazy New Orleans dishes for his wife of 25 years, Michelle, and their two sons, Jake and Max.