Using Team Work to Overcome Challenges

The Telecommunicators at Forsyth County Emergency Services answer approximately 115,000 911 calls, and 264,000 non-emergency calls a year (2021).  That is around 315 911 calls a day and around 723 non-emergency calls a day.  Just to put things into perspective our day shift has 6 Telecommunicators and the night shift has 4 Telecommunicators.  Teamwork is instrumental in ensuring that our citizens have the highest quality of customer service and ensuring responder safety and hazard mitigation.  Over the past year, our agency has also began a Telehealth Program that provides persons who qualify and have non-life-threatening medical problems with the option of an appointment with a Telehealth medical provider.  Telehealth calls are triaged by our Telecommunicators in the 911 center and the Telecommunicator assists the caller with setting up an appointment.  This is just one manner in which we are trying to assist with an alternative to ambulance transport and long Emergency Room wait times for our citizens.  Again, this requires our Telecommunicators the opportunity to utilize their EMD skills and institute teamwork to expedite Telehealth appointments being set up.  I could not be more proud of the way our team rallies every day to overcome multiple challenges.  I look forward to the celebration of #NPSTW every year, but I am over the moon to show our team how proud everyone is of the services that they provide year-round.