New protocols for emergency medical providers in Mendocino County have been implemented in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, starting with new screening questions asked by 911 dispatchers.
Dispatchers at Howard Forest emergency command center in Willits confirmed this week that according to new protocols established by the Coastal Valleys EMS agency that oversees first responders in Mendocino and Sonoma counties, callers requesting medical aid are now being asked if the patient is exhibiting symptoms of COVID-19.
According to the Centers for Disease Control, symptoms of COVID-19 that people should be scanning themselves for include fever, cough and shortness of breath. Patients meeting the criteria are then deemed Positive EIDS, which stands for Emerging Infectious Disease Symptoms.