Yes. But it was not about doctrine or a scriptual query:
It was in 1990 or so, and I was in the connected to the Emergency services (EMT) at the time. During a course we were doing, the identification of patients and their medical conditions in a motor vehicle accident.
Patients with allergies to penicillin, JW's refusing blood transfusions were discussed. I jumped up like a good JW and said that we carry identification cards in our wallets that is a signed legal document. That there could be no doubt of our wishes.
However in the discussion that followed it became clear that in most big motor vehicle accidents, personal belongings get strewn all over, sometimes under seats, or on the roadway and surrounding area. It is not always possible to match the wallet or id card to the patient. An as paramedics we are not going to spend too much time looking for it. I was on enough car wreck scenes to know that in the chaos, I don't care too much about the patients 'stuff'. If its not nearby, I am not leaving the patient to search for it. That is the cops on scene' job.
I wrote to the society to consider getting the JW's to wear a identification bracelet, like the Medic Alert type...this would ensure that our brothers and sisters don't 'accidentaly' get a blood transfusion.
The reply was such a generic, impersonal brush off that I remember thinking, 'Why bother?"I felt that did not really appreciate the seriousness of the issue, but I did not persue it.
Just occurred to me, this may have been one of those 'straws' that broke the camels back...
Agent Smith
