Jessamine County EMS is meeting a community need with its community paramedic program when someone overdoses.

Paramedics aren't the only ones who show up to help.

Our community paramedic program was started due to our county being identified as a as in at risk county.

There were only 220 counties in the nation that were identified as at risk.

And Jessamine County, even though we are a smaller county compared to some, we were still on that list.

We were funded through the Department of Behavioral Health, Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities.

Through the state, they provide our funding for a community paramedic program and our pilot that we're running in this county.

As far as community paramedics go, it's just me.

We do have a peer support and a case manager with the health department who we partner with.

They peer support specialists.

They have lived experience and substance use disorder.

And so they're really invaluable to add to the work that this program's trying to do.

We started officially January 16th when they identified us as at Risk County.

One of the big risks was RV drug use.

So right now we're focused on substance use disorder and mental health disorders and just following up with those patients and trying to navigate them due to resources and care.

We're looking at stimulants, benzodiazepines, opiates, alcohol use disorder and also mental health.

So because because these disorders often coexist with each other, it's often a double edged sword on what's causing the other one.

We've really had to hone in our our response to opioid use disorder that's probably the most prevalent, most dangerous one that we have in this community.

February 1st to March 16 last year, we we had around 101 calls, and this year we've had about 808 all related to substance use disorder within 12 to 72 hours, depending on when the call happens.

I'll try to make a response to that person in that time frame.

And so I'm not responding in an emergency like our our ambulances would say normally.

For me, I'm just kind of trying to go and have a conversation and see see what we can offer and what we can help.

It's usually me and one other person, so either me and a peer support mentor or or a case manager that will go.

I've had a lot of good experiences talking to people.

They've they've been really open to talking about their stories and, and, and their experiences and, and really open to talking about seeking help.

We kind of assess them and the fact of seeing where they're at with where they are in their in their journey.

Because if you try to push them too far, then you're going to push them away.

And if you really come at them aggressively and say, you need to do this, they've already heard all that.

They know what they need to do.

It's just a matter of what they're ready to do.

And so everything is patient led for us.

And I think that's a really important aspect of it in order to be successful.

So far, 13 Kentucky counties have community paramedic program programs.