Firemen Ask for Solo RVer's Help

In a free seminar put on by the Quartzsite, Arizona fire department for RVers, an interesting--and somewhat 'stop and think about it'--topic was brought up. Almost every year, says the fire department representative, a body is found in the Quartzsite desert, usually of someone who wandered off, got disoriented, and never made it back to their rig. Since solo RVers have nobody "at home" to notice their absence, 'could we please make it easier on the fire department and medical services folks?'

The recommendation was that solo RVers put emergency contact information on their person and in their rigs? One possibility is the so-called "vial of life," something as simple as a jar inside your refrigerator with your personal information inside. At times government officials finally wind up going inside an apparently abandoned RV to try and get the bottom of a missing owner. Too often they're able to identify the owner from vehicle registration information, but just who to contact may not be clear. In one instance the police found a cell phone in an "abandoned" rig and kept it charged up and at the station until a concerned friend called find out why they hadn't heard from their loved one.

Sobering, yes. But loving kindness moves us to do what we can to avoid this problem.

Tel-a-Doc--When You Can't Get to Your Regular Physician

For fulltimers, keeping up with health care often means returning to a "home state" or home base for those annual checkups and consults. But out on the road, far away from the regular physician, things can and do happen. Emergency rooms are frightfully expensive, and even those neighborhood "walk in, we'll see anybody" clinics can run up a big bill, especially when weighed against what may just be a simple problem. Enter http://www.teladoc.com/.

Tela-Doc provides a nationwide network of licensed physicians. You have a problem, you pick up your phone and call in. The company says a licensed doc will call you back, usually with in 30 to 40 minutes--wait more than three hours and the consult fee is waived. Since you pre-register with Tela-Doc, you have a "prior relationship" with the service, and you've already provided medical records that your doctor will look over before calling you. By knowing your previous history, then by consulting directly with you, Tela-Doc physicians can often prescribe treatment and order prescriptions for you to bill filled wherever you are. Of course, if your condition needs "hands-on" care, your doc will advise you to get thee to an ER, urgent care facility, or other center as needed.

What's it cost? Members of the service pay an $18.00 registration fee. When and if a consultation is required, the consult fee is $35.00. To keep your membership active, a single individual pays $4.25 per month; a member plus one dependent pay $5.75 for two per month. If you're interested in enrolling, be sure to review the website thoroughly including the Frequently Asked Questions section.