Advanced Life Support Service Launched By Paulding Fire

PAULDING COUNTY, GA — With the launch of a new program, Paulding County Fire & Rescue increased its level of emergency medical care as of this past weekend.

On Saturday, Paulding County Fire Department was upgraded from Basic Life Support (BLS) to the higher Advanced Life Support (ALS) designation following approval from the Georgia Department of Public Health's Office of EMS & Trauma and Paulding County's medical director.

“This is a major enhancement to the way we are able to care for patients who are critically sick or injured. Our ALS teams will respond countywide as 911 calls necessitate, and will carry advanced lifesaving equipment previously not available to PCFD," Fire Chief Joey Pelfrey said in the release. "Paulding County has been licensed as a BLS agency for more than 40 years. Today, we are able to treat patients with a much higher level-of-care in the field with our newly earned ALS license.”

Having an ALS license means the fire department can more quickly treat high-acuity patients with advanced medical tools, drugs and protocols, according to a news release. Examples of advanced life support calls include cardiac emergencies such as chest pain or cardiac arrest, difficulty breathing, respiratory distress or arrest, stroke and seizures.

As part of the program, two ALS rapid-response vehicles will be put in service in two "strategically located" spots: one in the Union community in western Paulding County, and one in the Bentwater/Seven Hills community starting in January. Each vehicle will operate 24/7 and have two state-certified paramedics on board.

“PCFD’s ALS units are not ambulances, nor will they be transporting patients to the hospital. We will continue working with Metro EMS Service, who holds the state-license for emergency transport ambulance service in our county," Pelfrey said. "This is a milestone for our citizens and I’m proud of all of our personnel who strive to provide world-class emergency services in Paulding County."