Hilton Head fire rescue changes how it responds to medical calls during coronavirus
Hilton Head Island Fire Rescue is reducing its contact with patients on medical calls due to coronavirus.
Deputy Fire Chief and Fire Marshal Joheida Fister said the department has been changing its policies as coronavirus evolves to keep first responders and patients safer.
The new policy has spurred some rumors, including one that the fire department was not responding to calls to homes of possible COVID-19 patients.
Fire rescue will respond to all medical calls, she said, with these changes to how first responders operate:
The caller will be screened to determine whether a patient on a medical call is experiencing symptoms associated with COVID-19, including cough, trouble breathing and fever.
On all medical calls, only the treating paramedic or the supervisor who arrives first will make initial contact with the patient to assess them. That person will wear the appropriate protective equipment based on whether the patient has symptoms associated with COVID-19.
“Whenever possible, we are asking the patient to come or be brought to the front door,” Fister said. “If the patient is unable to come to the front door, fire rescue will certainly enter the home to treat the patient.”
The new process is to limit contact between first responders and the town’s at-risk population, Fister said.
