In Barrow County, local emergency dispatchers are ringing in success with their newly minted Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) system, having recently guided two very different but equally urgent childbirths. The EMD program is a fresh addition, designed to aid 911 call-takers in providing timely medical instructions while they collect essential information for the responding emergency personnel, as detailed in the county's official announcement.
The system was barely out of its debutantes' ball, having been active for just a day when Shift Supervisor Rachel Gyldholm answered a distress call, that call, a Spanish-speaking resident whose sister was in the throes of labor; through the line came Gyldholm's directed instructions in translated waves, leading to the safe home delivery of a baby before paramedics could arrive, this utilizing a translation service that bridges language gaps in emergencies. "These are the moments when the EMD program proves how valuable it really is," Gyldholm recounted the lifesaving immediacy of the situation to Barrow County News.
Cementing the EMD system's role as a guardian angel of Barrow County, another such incident unfolded just weeks later on July 23, with Communications Officer Desire Selimovic stepping up to the plate; she answered a call from an expectant father—his wife in labor in the passenger seat, on their way to the hospital. Selimovic deftly advised the couple to seek refuge in a gas station parking lot and coached the impromptu delivery that followed. "As 911 dispatchers, we’re often the first voice people hear on their worst day, during the most stressful moments of life," Selimovic told Barrow County News.
Jeremy Pickett, Barrow County E-911 Director, expressed immense pride at the exemplary conduct and expertise of his staff during these critical episodes, "I could not be more proud of the men and women of Barrow County E-911," Pickett said his staff are the personification of diligence, compassion, and commitment, ready to serve their community at top capacity daily. And with such outcomes, with both babies reported as stable and thriving, as reported by Barrow County News.
