Self-Reliance · Medical Preparedness
Medications, medical devices, documents, and healthcare access — the planning that keeps your household's health needs from becoming health crises when pharmacies close, power fails, or clinics stop accepting patients.
Planning guidance, not medical advice. Work with your doctor, pharmacist, and specialist for your household's specific needs.
Planning guidance, not medical advice
This section helps households prepare for medical continuity during disruptions. It does not provide medical advice, clinical instruction, dosage guidance, or treatment recommendations. Work with your doctor, pharmacist, and specialist for your household's specific medical needs.
What this section covers
The prescriptions that require refills, the devices that require power, and the supplies that require planning before an emergency removes access to normal sources.
What every household member's caregivers, emergency responders, and family members need to know — organized before anyone needs it, accessible when everything else fails.
How care continues when pharmacies close, clinics are overwhelmed, transportation is unavailable, and the people who normally provide support are unreachable.
What this section does not cover
Start here
Every guide in this section references it. Emergency responders and substitute caregivers rely on it. Insurance adjusters, hospital admissions, and evacuation coordinators all need the same information — and the moment they need it is not the moment to find it.
The household medical profile is a single, complete, written record: every household member's diagnoses, medications, allergies, medical devices, insurance, emergency contacts, preferred providers, and legal documents. Built once, reviewed annually, accessible to anyone who needs it.
It is the most important document your household can have ready. Ready.gov cites it as a foundational element of every household emergency plan.
What goes in it — per household member
Current diagnoses and conditions
Every active diagnosis, relevant surgical history, and known allergies. The list a doctor needs to provide appropriate care without your records.
Medications — name, dose, schedule, prescriber, pharmacy
Both brand and generic names. Refill schedule and current supply. The prescribing physician and the dispensing pharmacy. Storage requirements (refrigeration, temperature limits).
Medical devices and power requirements
Device name, model, wattage, daily hours of use. The minimum backup hours needed during a power outage. Supplier and service contact.
Insurance, providers, and emergency contacts
Member ID, group number, and insurance phone number. Primary care physician, specialists, preferred hospital. Emergency contacts with phone numbers.
Legal documents — location noted, not reproduced here
Advance directive, healthcare power of attorney, caregiver authorization, pediatric medical consent forms. Note their location; keep originals in the grab-and-go folder.
All topics
Each area covers planning guidance for one dimension of household medical preparedness. Start with what matters most for your household's specific needs.
Household Medical Profile
The foundational document. Diagnoses, medications, devices, insurance, contacts.
Start here
Medications & Prescriptions
Prescription buffers, refill planning, refrigerated medications, travel access.
5 guides
Chronic Conditions
Planning for ongoing health needs: diabetes, heart disease, COPD, dialysis, and more.
7 guides
Medical Devices & Power
CPAP, oxygen concentrators, nebulizers — backup power, relocation decisions, utility programs.
5 guides
Medical Documents & Records
What to keep, where to keep it, and how to build a grab-and-go medical folder.
3 guides
Older Adults & Caregivers
Medication management, caregiver backup plans, dementia and disruption, mobility and evacuation.
4 guides
Children & Infants
Pediatric medications, infant formula continuity, school medical forms, family evacuation.
3 guides
Mental Health
Psychiatric medication continuity and behavioral health access during disruptions.
2 guides
Medical Go-Bag & Supplies
Medical supplies beyond first aid — what to pack, what to keep at home, what goes in the car.
2 guides
Hygiene & Sanitation
Illness prevention, personal hygiene, and sanitation when water or infrastructure is disrupted.
3 guides
Special Medical Diets
Medical-necessity dietary requirements during emergencies — renal, diabetic, tube feeding, formula.
3 guides
Dental, Vision & Hearing
Spare glasses, hearing aid batteries, dental supplies — the most overlooked medical prep categories.
4 guides
Healthcare Access
Where to get care when clinics close, pharmacies are short-staffed, or transportation is unavailable.
5 guides
Public Health
Household-level public health planning — vaccine records, respiratory illness, boil-water notices.
5 guides
Disability & Access Needs
Planning for access and functional needs — mobility, communication, service animals, backup caregivers.
5 guides
Disaster-Specific Medical
How each hazard type — power outages, floods, wildfire smoke, extreme heat — affects medical needs differently.
7 guides
Where most households should start
Prescription Preparedness
Emergency refill protocols, 30-day buffer strategies, mail-order pharmacy risks, and what to ask your doctor before storm season.
Medical Devices and Power Outages
CPAP, oxygen concentrators, nebulizers — wattage requirements, backup batteries, generator safety, and when to relocate.
Emergency Medical Documents
What records to keep, where to store them, how to build a waterproof grab-and-go medical folder — and why cloud storage alone isn't enough.
Chronic Condition Preparedness
The more your health depends on routine, medication, electricity, or refrigeration, the more a written plan matters. Diabetes, heart, COPD, dialysis, and more.
Free downloads
Household Medical Information Worksheet
Diagnoses, medications, devices, insurance, emergency contacts, and legal document checklist — one form per household member.
Medication List Template
Brand name, generic name, dose, frequency, prescribing physician, pharmacy, refill date, storage requirements. Space for 15 medications.
Medical Go-Bag Checklist
Five-category packing checklist — prescriptions, OTC medicines, devices and chargers, documents, hygiene supplies. No first-aid instruction.
Medical Device Power Plan
Device wattage, daily hours, minimum backup time needed, battery capacity required. Space for five devices.
Connected sections
The six sections most closely linked to medical continuity. Each handles the dimension that belongs there rather than here.
Self-Reliance: Energy
Backup power systems, battery storage, and generator sizing — the power infrastructure that medical devices depend on.
Self-Reliance: Shelter
Generator safety, shelter-in-place planning, and home safety — the household environment that supports medical routines.
Self-Reliance: Water
Water storage, purification, and conservation — the supply side of the hygiene and sanitation picture.
Self-Reliance: Food
Food storage methods, rotation, and preservation — the supply side of medical dietary planning.
Recovery: Emotional
Counseling continuity, grief, trauma support, and community mental health — the therapeutic side of mental health after a disaster.
Skills: First Aid
Hands-on first aid techniques, CPR training, and certification programs — the skills side of emergency medical response.
New to medical preparedness?
Start with the household medical profile. It is the document every other guide in this section references.
Build your household profileKnow what you need?
Browse all sixteen topic areas and find the guides that apply to your household's specific medical situation.
Browse all topics"An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure."
Benjamin Franklin
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