More than 100 Georgia Guardsmen deploying to long-term care facilities

ATLANTA (41NBC/WMGT) – More than 100 Georgia Guardsmen will be deployed over the next few weeks to long-term facilities in Georgia that have confirmed COVID-19 cases.

Governor Brian Kemp and Georgia National Guard Adjutant General Tom Carden “will send troops to specific locations to implement infection control protocols and enhanced sanitation methods to mitigate COVID-19 exposure among vulnerable residents,” according to a news release from the governor’s office.

“Georgia’s top priority is increasing healthcare capacity to protect vulnerable Georgians, especially those residing in long-term care facilities,” Kemp said. “If we can keep these populations as healthy as possible, we will be able to conserve precious medical supplies and hospital bed space in the coming days and weeks.”

“The Georgia National Guard stands ready to assist any long-term care facility in this time of need through staff training and implementation of infectious disease control measures,” Carden said. “Our training has prepared us to fight this virus, and we are eager to lend a hand in this battle.”

Twenty soldiers are being sent to Pelham’s Pelham Parkway Nursing Home to audit existing sanitation methods, train staff on utilizing more aggressive infectious disease control measures and thoroughly clean the facility. That facility has reported five confirmed cases of COVID-19.

For future missions, only four or five soldiers will deploy to a specific facility.