A new initiative designed to streamline the emergency response process and help citizens more efficiently is underway.
County officials set a June 28 launch for the Henry County Nurse Navigation Program, which they said would provide customized care options to meet the specific medical needs of callers and reduce the need to go to the emergency room. The program directly aligns with the “Committed to Community” rebranding of Henry County Fire Rescue.

“This program will improve access to non-emergent healthcare and the patient experience while decreasing ambulance response times and hospital wait times across Henry County,” according to a county official.

If a caller’s medical complaint is non-life-threatening, which Henry County E-911 operators triage with emergency medical dispatch, the dispatcher may route those 911 calls to a licensed nurse for assessment. The nurse will assess the caller’s symptoms and identify care needs, which could include a virtual visit with a doctor or a referral to an alternate destination to assist in decreasing ER saturation. The nurse will also have access to available healthcare providers in the community and will have the ability to book an appointment.

“We are much more than just a fire department with the services we provide to the community,” said Fire Chief Jonathan Burnette. “This additional service will provide a more appropriate level of care for low acuity type events, thereby reserving ambulances for higher acuity calls.”

“Our dispatchers are the first link to the community in their time of need. Our job is to allocate the most appropriate resources to fulfill that need. This program will provide us another option to accomplish that,” said E911 Director Tamika Kendrick.

Nurse Navigation Program is a service provided through Global Medical Response.