Close to 100 brand new vehicles will be seen driving around south Mississippi displaying the Forrest General Home Care & Hospice logo.

The vehicles are being leased by the company to provide their employees with brand new, reliable transportation that will save on the wear and tear of using personal vehicles.

Motorists will notice these vehicles driving through the areas of Hattiesburg, Lumberton, Columbia, Tylertown, Prentiss and Picayune.

Eleven of the vehicles are going to be stationed in Pearl River County, three of which will be used for hospice and the remainder will be used for home care.

The 2014 Nissan Sentra SV’s were given to the staff Thursday, and for some it was the first time they had the opportunity to sit in a brand new vehicle, much less drive one, said Forrest General Home Care & Hospice Director Melita Miller.

Miller said their staff traveled 2.4 million miles, covering 11,000 square miles, throughout 20 counties last year, Miller said.

Local Home Care and Hospice registered nurses Hayley Wells, Emily Lee and Ruby Digiovanni are excited to have a brand new work vehicle, which will not only allow them to reduce the wear and tear on their personal vehicle, but allow them to store work related equipment in one place.

Digiovanni said she has logged thousands of miles a day when she used her personal vehicle for work; now work vehicles will travel those miles.

At times, the nurses were spending more than $200 a month on gas and maintenance, Wells said.

Wells is looking forward to having a dedicated work vehicle so her personal vehicle can have more room for personal stuff.

“This is going to be really good to keep my (work) supplies and equipment in this car,” Wells said.

In addition, the nurses will no longer have to pay out of pocket for work fuel expenses before being reimbursed.

“I’m just glad we’re getting them during the summer when gas prices will go up,” Digiovanni said.

The leased vehicles come with insurance, a maintenance plan and registration, while a fuel card will keep track of fuel expenses and log their mileage, according to a press release from Forrest General.

Miller estimates Forrest General Home Care and Hospice employees were reimbursed $1 million for mileage and maintenance last year; she expects this fleet to reduce that expense by half.

The staff will use the vehicles to provide home care to patients with the aim of making them independent again and to hospice patients to provide end of life care, among other services Miller said.