Why McIntosh County Ambulances Sometimes Go to Brunswick Instead of Savannah (What Families Should Know)

McIntosh County's policy is straightforward: the ambulance takes the patient to the most appropriate facility for their condition. Savannah is not the automatic destination. The decision depends on what care makes sense right then, not where a person's usual doctor happens to be.

When you hear "Savannah hospitals are on diversion," it means those hospitals aren't accepting ambulance patients for certain lower-acuity complaints. McIntosh County has described diversion affecting arrivals for issues like not feeling well for a couple of days, a twisted ankle, or other minor illnesses. Even if an ambulance can physically drive to Savannah, the hospital may refuse that patient for those kinds of complaints. That changes where EMS can reasonably take them.

One of the biggest reasons McIntosh County points to is what happens after you arrive in Savannah. An ambulance can end up out of service for hours while a patient stays on the stretcher in a hallway waiting for a bed. When that happens, coverage back home gets stretched thin because the other ambulance has to cover the whole county alone. If that second unit is already on a call and another emergency comes in, there may be no local ambulance available to respond right away. The county specifically mentions time-sensitive emergencies like stroke and heart attack, where delays matter. An ambulance may have to come in from another county, adding precious minutes before the patient gets care.

• ✓ One transporting ambulance can be tied up for hours waiting with the patient for a hospital bed in Savannah.
• ✓ The remaining ambulance may have to cover the entire county by itself.
• ✓ If that second ambulance is already on a call, there may be no unit available for new medical calls.
• ✓ Time-sensitive emergencies (like stroke or heart attack) can face longer waits if an ambulance has to come from another county.

McIntosh County also points to how quickly an ambulance can return and be ready for the next call. Their estimate: about 14 minutes to be back in service after a Brunswick transport, compared with about 30 minutes after Savannah. Those figures don't include potential traffic issues or delays while waiting for the hospital to accept the patient, which is part of the county's concern.

If EMS tells you, "We cannot take you to Savannah, we need to take you to Brunswick," McIntosh County asks the public to be understanding about why. Even when families prefer Savannah (especially if their doctors are there), the department's policy is to transport to the most appropriate facility for the patient's condition. Diversion and system coverage can limit what's workable in the moment.

1. Ask where they’re transporting your family member. If the crew says Brunswick instead of Savannah, it’s consistent with the county’s approach of going to the most appropriate facility and avoiding situations that take units out of service for long periods.
2. Prepare to meet them in Brunswick if that’s the destination. Don’t assume the hospital will be in Savannah, especially when diversion is affecting ambulance acceptance for minor complaints.
3. Share what’s relevant about the current problem. Keep it focused on what is going on with the patient right now, since that is what EMS uses to choose the most appropriate facility.

Will you take my family member to Savannah? McIntosh County's answer is essentially "yes and no." The department's policy is to transport the patient to the most appropriate facility for their condition. If ambulance personnel say they cannot go to Savannah and need to go to Brunswick, the county asks that you be understanding about that direction.

What does diversion have to do with it, and does this affect coverage in McIntosh County? The county says that over the last few months, all Savannah hospitals have been on diversion and are not taking ambulance patients for minor complaints (feeling unwell for a couple of days, a twisted ankle, or other minor illnesses). The county also explains that even when an ambulance does go to Savannah, it may be out of service for hours with a patient on the stretcher waiting for a bed. That can leave the rest of the county with reduced ambulance coverage.