In rural Hawkins County, Tennessee, a reliable hospital is 30 to 45 minutes away from the nearest hospital, which often leaves patients with sepsis, a life-threatening medical emergency. Paramedics in Hawkins County have begun administering Zosyn, a penicillin antibiotic that fights bacteria in the body, to treat septic patients in ambulances. The program is made up of a partnership between Hawkins County EMS and Ballad Health, a major hospital operator in the region. The change comes after Sam McMurry, a sergeant with the Hawkins County Emergency Medical Service, observed a trend in patients complaining of general, severe pain all over, and some were later diagnosed with out-of-control infections that had become septic. The county's EMS agency is partnering with the region’s hospital operator, Ballard Health, to make antibiotic treatment available on ambulances for the first time.