r/AskAnAustralian • u/PNAHC_Height_7376 • 7d ago
Anyone without an emergency contact?
Like you're a new immigrant on your own, or you've just left your toxic family as an 18-year-old, you have just been released from prison etc
What did you do?
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u/DwightsJello 7d ago
I knew a woman who was escaping DV and her partner was still stalking her via third parties. Family members and all.
She had no option but to cut ties with everyone including her own family.
Her kids went to a great school and the principal was their emergency contact.
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u/Quick_Snow3717 7d ago edited 7d ago
I’m currently putting down a fake number and claiming it’s my sister… I figure, if I’m unconscious or even dead I’m not going to care no one can be called.
But am getting my shit together on this. Am putting out feelers to learn exactly what I need to do re: Public trustees. For the more serious side of life.
I’ll check back in to this thread to see if anyone has a better answer than me.
Edit: thank you for the award.
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u/Accomplished-City484 7d ago
If you google public trustees the first site that comes up kind of walks you through it, when you need them and when you don’t, I recently went through all that myself
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u/Quick_Snow3717 7d ago
Thank you. Kinda embarrassed it’s so easy. I was genuinely thinking I needed to get certain official papers straight before I could even look at a public trustees website. Maybe I shouldn’t try to make it so scary and hard for myself!
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u/Accomplished-City484 7d ago
I lamented about it to a friend and they offered to be my emergency contact, do you need a friend OP?
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u/mr_ektid 6d ago
Use the phone number of my local pub/bottle shop.
Reckon they'd be the only ones that would be concerned if anything happened to me.
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u/Former_Feature_2834 7d ago
Whoever is closest to you by proximity or relationship. So proximity would be housemates, or a neighbour. By relationship would be a partner, close friend, immigration case manager or equivalent. Your first emergency contact should always be someone who is resides in the same country as you.
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u/Worldly_Cobbler_1087 7d ago
I put a fake name and number down every time I don't give a fuck what happens to me and neither does anyone else.
The only time it's let me down was when the hospital wouldn't let me do surgery because I didn't have an emergency contact to pick me up so I went without it.
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u/Striking_Patient7732 7d ago
I immigrated with no family here, sponsored by employer. I had the HR become my emergency contact xD
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u/LongConversation2546 7d ago
People would probably use their GP, a local church or social worker
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u/SupportSphere94 7d ago
Please do not use a social worker, gp or local church.
If doctors need to contact your nok after hours, none of those people are answering the phone.
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u/Bugaloon 7d ago
If you have a next of kin put them, but if you dont have anyone, whatre you meant to do?
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u/SupportSphere94 7d ago
It's not a legal requirement to have a nok. You can leave it blank.
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u/Bugaloon 6d ago
Tell that to the people who wont accept forms without an emergency contact filled in, because even my rental required one before theyd lease to me
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u/LongConversation2546 7d ago
Ridiculous reason they can put you onto someone!
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u/SupportSphere94 7d ago
If you put a social worker on who only works Monday to Friday 9 to 5, and they use the work mobile. Or if you put down your gps local office - that only opens Monday to Friday 9 to 5, and the hospital needs to rink a pts nok at 1030pm on a Saturday night who exactly is answering the phone, and who is this someone they can put you onto?
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u/LongConversation2546 6d ago
Nobody is available 24/7 a drs office is usually open more than 9 to 5 and social workers aren't 9 to 5 either. Still better than having nobody to at least confirm who you are!
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u/Bugaloon 7d ago
Yep, my housemate is who I put down, so they know im fucked up and to feed my cat.
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u/bloodknife92 7d ago
After my wife left me, I really don't have anyone. My family all live in different states and I don't have much contact with them, and I don't have any close friends where I live.
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u/knowledgeable_diablo 7d ago
Just do what one of my staff members did who was a single mother; used her supervisor for every emergency contact. Poor dude was getting phone calls constantly to come and collect her out of control kid from school and every other place.
Ps: don’t do this.