Many cell phone users already know that they should have an ICE contact in their phone’s address book (for those that aren’t familiar, ICE stands for In Case [of] Emergency). This is frequently recommended by police and emergency rescue workers everywhere, who are now trained to check an accident victim’s cell phone when necessary to find out whom to contact.

The iPhone makes this task easier than most cell phones, since it has ample space for multiple telephone numbers as well as notes.

So for example in my ICE contact, I list several phone numbers – the home and cell numbers for my significant other, as well as the home and cell numbers for my parents, and in the Notes section, I list my Health Insurance carrier, group number, and policy number, as well as their phone number. I also have an instruction in the Notes advising whomever is reading it to try my SO first, then my parents.

I don’t keep my own Contact card from Address Book on my iPhone (I only sync with a Contact Group called iPhone Contacts, which does not contain my own card), so that if I should happen to merely lose my iPhone, or it gets stolen, whomever has it has limited information that could be used by identity thieves, but the ICE contact information at least gives enough assistance that I can receive emergency treatment if needed.