Guilford County commissioners and Guilford County staff members recently attended a national conference of county officials and, this year, Guilford County brought back several awards – including a very big one for the Guilford County Adult Resource Team.

 That team earned a national award for reducing non-emergency 911 calls by connecting residents with county health and human services staff, as well as with other county staff and services, in order to address their needs better and more efficiently than emergency responders could.

Other Guilford County programs as well got honored for “innovative, effective programs that strengthen services for residents.”

The awards were handed out in late July during the National Association of Counties’ (NACo) annual conference, which was attended by most Guilford County commissioners and County Manager Mike Halford.

Every summer, NACo hands out its NACo Achievement Awards to recognize “exceptional” county government programs and services.

After a non-competitive application process, winning programs are recognized in 18 different categories covering to things like children and youth initiatives, criminal justice, public safety, county administration, information technology, health, civic engagement and others.

This year, Guilford County received awards for programs in community and economic development, criminal justice and public safety, human services – and in the personnel management category as well.

Those winning programs included…

  • Human Services: Guilford County Adult Resource Team (Best in Category). The county’s Adult Resource Team initiative is a collaborative program between Adult Protective Services, Emergency Medical Services and county fire staff. The program was created to offer a stronger line of service “for patients who need resources and care that exceed normal EMS and Fire capabilities, while simultaneously freeing up current EMS and Fire resources so they can handle medical emergencies and fire.”
  • Community and Economic Development: Triad Black Farmers Market. The Guilford County Minority/Women Business Enterprise program – better known as MWBE – worked with community partners to hold the county’s first Triad Black Farmer’s Market. That market was held to support African American farmers and other minority farmers from across the state.
  • Criminal Justice and Public Safety: Behavioral Health Response Team Community Paramedic Program. The Guilford County Emergency Services Behavioral Health Response Team Community Paramedic Program is an initiative designed – in collaboration with the City of Greensboro – to address the special challenges associated with mental health crises and homelessness within Guilford County. In recent years, Guilford County has been creating and implementing a variety of programs meant to address the homeless problem.
  • Criminal Justice and Public Safety: Centralized Records Management in Fire Service. Guilford County Emergency Services initiated a program to centralize the county’s fire records management system across all departments. The program aimed to streamline incident documentation, hydrant and property management, training records, and enable county-wide reporting.
  • Personnel Management, Employment, and Training: Tiered Consolidated Health and Human Services Academies. The consolidated Health and Human Service Academies’ Tiered Academy approach consists of Emerging Professionals Academy, Succession Planning, and Leadership Academy.

The program that got the biggest praise this year was the Adult Resource Team, which is made up of four social workers stationed at Guilford County EMS.

As social workers, they help residents navigate resources, freeing up current EMS and fire services staff to allow them to focus on handling medical, fire, and rescue emergencies.

According to information from the county regarding the award, “Many of the residents benefiting from the Adult Resource Team are low-income, may be experiencing homelessness, and/or have significant socio-economic disparities. They also often lack a family support system that would normally be available for care or navigation of care. Residents, especially those who lack financial resources or the capacity to navigate these challenges, are left without any other option than to call 911. This creates an influx of calls to emergency services. The program is improving services to underserved and vulnerable communities throughout Guilford County and improves the diversity, equity, and inclusion of service lines to the community by having a social worker who can provide follow-up and a connection of resources from a central point of care.”

According to information publicized by the county this week, hundreds of non-emergency 911 calls were reduced to a trickle thanks to the program.

“Factors contributing to high 911calls have included: limited mobility …limited social support, unsafe living environment, and inability to meet basic needs, such as food purchase and/or preparation,” the county stated, adding that social workers have been able to support these callers through case management to secure needed services, reducing the number of non-emergency 911 calls.

Chairman of the Guilford County Board of County Commissioners Skip Alston said that every county resident, regardless of their income or socio-economic status, should have access to essential services.

Alston added that, by working together, Emergency Services and Social Services are bringing resources collectively to form the Adult Resource Team to ensure that the county’s most vulnerable residents get the assistance and resources they need.

“I am proud of our county teams and their innovative works for receiving these national recognitions,” Alston said in the wake of the honors. “These awards serve as a testament to Guilford County’s commitment of providing service and outcomes excellence to our community.”

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