Navigating Emergencies with Tech: Shaun of the Shed's Guide for Blind and Partially Sighted Users

Shaun Preece:
Oh, I am back. Hello and welcome to Shaun of the Shed. I am Shaun Preece. This is my shed. And this is a show where we talk tech, especially technology that can be really useful if you're blind or visually impaired, like me. But hey, if you're sighted, don't run away. Stop. It's interesting. You may find something out.

Speaker 2:
Shaun of the Shed.
An AMI original podcast.

Shaun Preece:
Firstly, how are you all doing? And secondly, let me apologize for not being able to bring you an episode of Shaun of the Shed last month. As some of you may know, I had a little accident. That sounds weird. What I mean is, I was taking the dog out one morning. All of a sudden, in a split second, I found myself on the floor weeping and wailing because I had slipped on the ice and snapped a tendon in my leg. For a long while now, I haven't been able to get up the steps to get in my shed. Wow, have I missed the shed? Every man needs his private space.

That instant actually gave me the idea for this episode. As soon as I hit the floor, I was able to make a call to emergency services. And that's thanks to technology. Now, I know what you're all thinking right now, and saying. You're saying, "Shaun, of course, we know how to make the call to emergency services or even use your voice assistant. 'Hey, whoever, call me an ambulance.'" But there are other ways. Maybe we know how voice assistants are. You say, "Call me an ambulance," and it plays Phil Collins I Can't Dance. And sometimes maybe you are unable to use your phone in that way. Well, there are other ways. Most of us carry a smartphone or wear a smartwatch all of the time. I'm going to show you how you can call for help using your technology.

Now, let's start with the iPhone. So if you grab your iPhone, hold down any one of the volume buttons and the side button, you'll bring up the emergency screen. Now on here at the top, you have a power off for just turning off the phone. Then you have a medical ID button. We'll talk more on that later on. And then the emergency call button. And right at the bottom there's a cancel button.

You may be thinking, "Well, I could be in a situation where I'm panicking so much that I can't actually navigate and tap on what I want." That's not a problem. If you continue to hold down the volume button and the side button for a few more seconds, a siren will sound. I know, scary. And a countdown will begin from five to zero. And as soon as it hits zero and you're still holding down the volume button and the side button, the call to emergency services will be placed automatically. If you let go of those buttons before the countdown finishes, then obviously the call will not be placed. I would definitely say you should take a look at the emergency screen, get yourself acquainted with it just in case you do need it. So that's the iPhone. Very handy.

Next, let's stick with Apple and talk about the Apple Watch, which is actually what I used when I had my little problem. To get to the emergency screen that I just described on the iPhone on your Apple Watch, simply hold down the side button for around three seconds. The side button is directly underneath the digital crown. Pretty much identical. There's a power button, medical ID button, the emergency call button, and a cancel button, but there is also a button called compass backtrack. Now, that's something we may touch on later on, but really it's not that relevant to this conversation, so let's just ignore that for now.

Now, unlike the iPhone, sadly you can't just simply hold down that side button for a further 10 seconds or whatever to place the call automatically. You do have to directly tap on the option you want. It's actually nice and easy, and I've got to say the call quality was absolutely fantastic from the Apple Watch. Even though I was, as I said, moaning and wailing and weeping on the floor, I could hear the emergency operator really clearly and she could hear me crying down the phone to her as well. So it worked really well.

Okay, so let's talk about medical ID, as I've mentioned them before, but not explained what they are. So what are they? Well, you're probably aware of people that have medical ID bracelets. If you're a diabetic, for example, you may wear one so that if you ever find yourself in a situation where emergency responder needs to know about the medication that you're taking or possible illnesses that you have but you're unable to answer any questions, a medical ID bracelet gives that medical person the information that they may need. And it's exactly the same with the medical ID options on these emergency screens that I've showed you so far. It's the digital version of a medical ID bracelet. Cool. So how'd you do it? How'd you set it up?

Well, on the iPhone, if you open the health app, then go up to the profile button in the top right corner, double tap, and then in there you will find a medical ID button. Now in here you can set all the information you need, name, age, date of birth, weight even, although I like to keep that secret, but you can have that in there. And a list of any illnesses or problems that you want to list. For example, in mine I have, I'm Shaun Preece. I'm 49. I suffer from retinitis pigmentosa, which is the eye condition that I have, and I'm a organ donor. Further down on this screen, you can also add emergency contacts. And I really like this.

So I think you can add up to two. This could be your spouse, your parents, your kids, or whoever. But these are the people that will be contacted whenever you make an emergency call using that emergency screen that I showed you previously. So if you continue to hold down the buttons on the iPhone to the end of the countdown, the call to emergency services will be placed, but also the contacts you place in your medical ID will be contacted via a text message and they'll be given your location and your telephone number. So they'll be informed at the same time, which could be exactly what you want. And again, it works the same on the Apple Watch. For any emergency contacts that you set up in your medical ID, they will be contacted when you place an emergency call.

Yes, yes, Android people. I know. I'm getting to it. Please don't flame me in the comments that I'm an Apple fanboy, although I kind of am. There are just so many different versions of Android that is difficult to give a detailed step-by-step guide but can be a little bit generic here. If you're running Android 12 or above, simply press the power button five times. When you do this, the emergency screen will pop up. Now, unlike the iPhone, you don't have to continue to hold down any buttons to place the call. As soon as you press the power button five times, the countdown will begin. Again, it's usually five seconds and when it reaches zero, the call to whatever country you're in emergency services will be placed. Now on the screen, you will also find a cancel button. No matter what version of Android phone you have, there will be a way to instigate an emergency call like that somewhere. So if this doesn't work for you, then get in touch with your manufacturer and maybe they can help.

Now, when it comes to the medical ID on Android, if a medical responder finds you unresponsive, they can simply pick up your Android phone and swipe up from the bottom. When they do this to get to the unlock screen, they can find a medical ID button. This will give them all the information they need. Now to set up your medical ID on Android, you will need to open the app called Safety, or maybe it's called Personal Safety on your phone. Now, if you can't find it in your list of apps, then go to the Google Play Store and search for personal safety and download it. Now, when you have installed that app, open it up and swipe through and you will find the medical ID button. Just like the iPhone you can enter any relevant details.

And there you go. Hopefully, it's something you never need to use, but now you know how to if you do. Anyway, guys, thank you so much for watching. I really appreciate it. Please like and subscribe. I don't know why, but that's what everyone says, like and subscribe. Please like me. I'm needy. Be safe out there. I will see you next time.