PAULDING COUNTY, GA — A metro Atlanta county jail is set to become the first in Georgia to install new inmate heart monitoring devices.

Paulding County Sheriff’s Office has approved the deployment of 62 contactless vital sign sensors at the Paulding County Jail, aimed at improving inmate safety and modernizing operations.

The new technology will be installed in the facility’s medical and intake cells.

Jordan Yuodis with the Paulding County Sheriff’s Office says the goal is to improve inmate safety and respond more quickly to medical emergencies.

“The biggest thing that we wanted to do with this is be proactive and not wait until something happened to figure out a solution,” Yuodis said.

Officials say the Reassurance Solutions XK300 sensors monitor heart rate, breathing, and movement without physical contact or detainee cooperation. When movement stops, the system tracks vital signs and alerts staff in real time through a centralized dashboard.

Yuodis said the devices are especially important for inmates in medical housing.

“Those are individuals who are suffering from any type of actual medical illness,” he said. “Let’s say they were injured prior to their arrest and got a underlying health issue before they were arrested and can be in some kind of mental health crisis.”

The technology could help prevent serious medical incidents or deaths in custody. The $610,000 project is being funded using opioid settlement money.

Paulding County Sheriff Ashley Henson said the effort is focused on prevention.

“We are not waiting for a tragedy to force change,” Henson said. “This is about protecting lives and equipping our staff to respond when seconds matter.”

Officials say the initiative positions the county as a leader in proactive overdose detection and rapid medical response. The initiative was led by Captain Keith Thomas and is part of a broader effort to address health and safety concerns within the jail.