PRIORITY DISPATCH
Priority Dispatch
Pharr Public Safety Communications is proud to be the first 9-1-1 center in the Rio Grande Valley to utilize (Police, Fire, and Medical) dispatch protocol systems certified by the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch (NAED).
The Academy began in 1988 as a standards-setting organization for the field of emergency medical dispatch.
The original program, created more than 30 years ago by Dr. Jeff Clawson, was comprised of a set of key questions, post-dispatch, and pre-arrival instructions for medical emergencies that dispatchers could provide over the telephone. High dispatcher compliance to a medically approved, standardized protocol was Dr. Clawson’s concept for managing emergency service resources in critical patient care.
Today, this type of dispatch instruction has evolved into three separate protocols for, Fire, Police, and Medical. The- medical & fire – are based upon time proven methods developed with over 30 years of research, testing, and quality assurance.
Following the Police, Fire, and Emergency Medical Dispatch System protocols, Communicators ask callers a series of questions. These questions are designed to gather specific information which helps assure we are sending the right help the right place the right time.
Training
All Communicators and Communications Supervisors are trained and nationally certified in interrogation techniques, pre-arrival instructions, and call prioritization. The training includes techniques for airway management, bleeding control, CCR, the Heimlich maneuver, childbirth. Communicators also receive instruction for providing help to callers in danger, maybe trapped in a burning building, or a sinking vehicle. These types of instructions improve safety for everyone involved, while allowing for a streamlined arrival interface when help arrives at the incident location.
All training is provided by National Academies of Emergency Dispatch (NAED) instructors.
Continuing Dispatch Education (CDE) insures that staff remain current with procedures, updates to protocols, department policies and ever-changing technologies. CDE is accomplished through a combination of methods including on-duty training via our web portal, instructor lead in-service sessions and partnering with our various public safety partners.
Continuous Quality Improvement
We have established a comprehensive Quality Assurance program which includes the review of a random sampling of telephone calls (9-1-1 calls, emergency calls, and non-emergency calls).
The program is designed to assure that our customers receive the highest level of customer service, and that departmental policies, procedures and protocols are followed.
The Quality Assurance program works in conjunction with our training team to develop continuing dispatch education designed to strengthen and improve the skills and knowledge of our personnel.
Immediate Instructions Provided to the caller
Our department believes that safe and effective emergency services start with a consistent and professional emergency dispatch program. When you have an emergency, you call 9-1-1, but you should not have to wait minutes before you or a loved one is given medical attention.
The use of a nationally recognized, medically-managed and locally supported protocol ensures that each 9-1-1 caller receives emergency medical care that is consistent with current standards of care. Communicators gather information about the problem and are able to provide instructions which have been proven to save lives. We call this a “zero-minute response time”.
For example, a person finding a suspicious package is given specific instructions for their safety and anyone else in the immediate area. Should the caller report they are trapped in a burning building, Communicators also provide potentially life-saving instructions (such as ‘don’t use the elevators’) which can turn a bad situation into something even worse.
The Medical & Fire Dispatch Systems use a protocol (series of scripted questions designed to gather specific information) to determine a priority response level as follows:
- “E” (Echo) Response: Threatening Emergency—patient not breathing (choking, hanging, drowning), person trapped in sinking vehicle
- “D” (Delta) Response: Threatening Emergency—Chest pain, difficulty breathing, unconsciousness, seizures, dangerous bleeding, fire, vehicle crashes
- “C” (Charlie) Response: Life Threatening Emergency—Difficulty breathing, non-responsive, stroke, substance overdose, diabetic problems, serious injury, alarms, wires down, fuel spill
- “B” (Bravo) Response: Situation, Serious bleeding/injury, pregnancy, psychiatric problems, outside gas leak, lightning strike, small outside fire.
- “A” (Alpha) Response: Life threatening situation with a likely for patient transport, citizen assist calls
- “O” (Omega) Response: are calls for such things as accidental poisonings, which may be referred to other agencies, like Poison Control.
Any of the above response modes may be upgraded or downgraded as new information is received. This ensures that the Communicator processing your call is able to change the priority of the call if he or she believes, in their experience, that the situation described is much worse (or much better) than what was suggested by the system.