Atrium Health Navicent to Provide Ambulance Service to Wilkinson County
Atrium Health Navicent will begin providing emergency medical services (EMS) for Wilkinson County on Jan. 1, 2025. Wilkinson County commissioners voted on Tuesday to approve a proposal from Atrium Health Navicent following a detailed and thorough selection process.
Atrium Health Navicent EMS will provide two 24-hour advanced life support ambulances and invest about $600,000 in new ambulances and equipment to care for Wilkinson County residents. In addition to the capital equipment, Atrium Health Navicent is committed to hiring qualified local residents, where possible, for the 16 needed positions as part of an ongoing economic investment in Wilkinson County.
While Atrium Health Navicent Baldwin in Milledgeville is the closest hospital to Wilkinson County, Atrium Health Navicent EMS will continue to transport patients to their hospital of choice.
“We’re proud to expand access to quality pre-hospital care for Wilkinson County residents as part of a regional strategy to invest in the local economy and improve health equity for rural communities,” said Atrium Health Georgia Market President Delvecchio Finley. “We thank our current, and future patients, and the Wilkinson County commissioners for trusting Atrium Health Navicent as their health care provider.”
Wilkinson County will be the 10th Georgia county served by Atrium Health EMS, which has operated as a hospital-based ambulance service for 124 years. Atrium Health Navicent EMS is the region’s licensed neonatal intensive care transport and a licensed medical first responder while also providing comprehensive nonemergency transport services throughout Georgia.
In addition to providing EMS services in Macon-Bibb County in central Georgia, Atrium Health Navicent EMS serves Baldwin, Jones and Twiggs counties, which border Wilkinson County, and Treutlen County. In its first year providing EMS services in Baldwin County, Atrium Health Navicent EMS purchased four new ambulances and equipment, and provided nearly 11,000 patient transports.
“Hospital-based EMS provides the best opportunity for a seamless continuum of care for patients with medical emergencies, resulting in improved patient outcomes and higher patient satisfaction,” said Bud Owens, Atrium Health’s area vice president of Mobile Medicine and EMS in Georgia and Alabama. “We’re grateful to Wilkinson County for their partnership as we improve health, elevate hope and advance healing throughout central and south Georgia.”
In addition to the new EMS services, Atrium Health Navicent will provide support and educational resources for Wilkinson County’s first responders and public safety agencies through Stop the Bleed training, CPR training and first responder training.
About Atrium Health Navicent
Atrium Health Navicent is the leading provider of health care in central and south Georgia and is committed to its mission of elevating health and wellbeing through compassionate care. Atrium Health Navicent is part of Advocate Health, which is headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, and is the third-largest nonprofit health system in the United States, created from the combination of Atrium Health and Advocate Aurora Health. Atrium Health Navicent provides high-quality, personalized care in 53 specialties at more than 50 facilities throughout the region. As part of the largest, integrated, nonprofit health system in the Southeast, it is also able to tap into some of the nation’s leading medical experts and specialists with Atrium Health, allowing it to provide the best care close to home – including advanced innovations in virtual medicine and care. Throughout its 125-year history in the community, Atrium Health Navicent has remained dedicated to enhancing health and wellness for individuals throughout the region through nationally recognized quality care, community health initiatives and collaborative partnerships. It is also one of the leading teaching hospitals in the region, helping to ensure viability for rural health care for the next generation. For more information, please visit www.NavicentHealth.org.
About Advocate Health
Advocate Health is the third-largest nonprofit integrated health system in the United States – created from the combination of Advocate Aurora Health and Atrium Health. Providing care under the names Advocate Health Care in Illinois, Atrium Health in the Carolinas, Georgia and Alabama, and Aurora Health Care in Wisconsin, Advocate Health is a national leader in clinical innovation, health outcomes, consumer experience and value-based care. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, Advocate Health services nearly 6 million patients and is engaged in hundreds of clinical trials and research studies, with Wake Forest University School of Medicine serving as the academic core of the enterprise. It is nationally recognized for its expertise in cardiology, neurosciences, oncology, pediatrics and rehabilitation, as well as organ transplants, burn treatments and specialized musculoskeletal programs. Advocate Health employs 155,000 teammates across 69 hospitals and over 1,000 care locations and offers one of the nation’s largest graduate medical education programs with over 2,000 residents and fellows across more than 200 programs. Committed to providing equitable care for all, Advocate Health provides more than $6 billion in annual community benefits.