In Need Of Ride To A Doctor's Appointment? Help Is Available.

ESSEX, CT — If you have a medical or dental appointment but don't have transportation, call Friends In Service Here (FISH) at 860-388-2693, for a free ride.

FISH is a non-profit, all volunteer driving service that provides free transportation to and from doctors’ or dentists’ offices, clinics and hospitals in the area roughly bounded by Guilford, Middletown and New London. The service is available for ambulatory residents of Essex, Centerbrook, Ivoryton, Deep River and Chester who: have been vaccinated for Covid; are willing to wear a mask; and do not have other means of transportation. The service is available five days a week (except holidays) from 8 AM to 5 PM.
Here’s how it works:
• People in need of a ride for medical or dental reasons call the FISH answering service at 860 388-2693. They should contact FISH as soon as they make their medical/dental appointment but no later than noon the day before the appointment and no later than noon Friday for an appointment the following Monday.
• Be prepared to provide the Operator with the following information: the rider’s first and last names; pick-up address and telephone number; covid vaccination status; the date and time of the appointment; the address and telephone number of the facility to be visited; the expected duration of the appointment; the name of the caller if the call is not made by the patient.
• The FISH Dispatcher assigns the case to a driver who is on call for the day of the appointment.
• The driver calls the patient to work out the details of the trip. The driver will call no later than the evening of the day before the appointment. Be sure to check your answering machine if you have been out of the house.