MedicAlert’s ties to the Lions Club International go back to our inception within the UK, 55 years ago in 1964. It is thanks to Lions Clubs that awareness of MedicAlert increased as the original and most trusted provider of the full medical ID service within the UK and the ROI, leading to us becoming a registered charity.

The support didn’t stop there. In fact, Lions Clubs across the UK still support MedicAlert today by sponsoring our Early Start Programme.

Recognising John

John Sutherland, part of the Lions Club in Easingwold, has been instrumental in the success of our Early Start Programme, coordinating fundraising across the UK to provide children with free MedicAlert membership, a sponsorship without which these children may otherwise not be able to afford our service.

At the Lions Multiple District Convention in Swansea last weekend, John Sutherland was presented with the International President’s Leadership Medal by the current International President Lion, Gudrun Yngvadottir from Iceland. Whilst John has done many great things in his position with his local Lions Club and as a Past District Governor, a significant reason in awarding the medal was the work he has undertaken over many years promoting MedicAlert within the British Isles and Ireland.

As a past trustee of MedicAlert, John has also embodied the values and aims of the charity to support those with medical conditions and keeping them safe in the case of an emergency situation.

We are grateful to John for his tireless work and dedication in raising awareness about MedicAlert and the Early Start Programme. Without John, many of our younger members would be without our services and would remain vulnerable in an emergency. We send our heartfelt congratulations and thanks to John - and hope you will too!

John with International President Lion, Gudrun Yngvadottir from Iceland

Early Start Programme

The Early Start Programme offers free membership for vulnerable children every year up until their 10th birthday.

Membership provides each child with a personal MedicAlert record that securely stores their information including comprehensive medical history, directives or precautions to ensure no time is lost in an emergency. This full record is only a phone call away via the 24/7 emergency phone line.

Each child also receives their first item of jewellery free of charge. The disc is engraved with their most critical medical information, our emergency phone line and their unique membership number, so that First Responders can access the child’s electronic record when needed the most.

Spaces are allocated on a first come, first served basis to any child under the age of 10 who is living in the UK or ROI, with over 300 children benefiting from the potentially life-saving services every year thanks to the generous fundraising of the Lions Clubs.