Recognizing County 9-1-1 Dispatchers during Communications Dispatchers Week, April 13-19 Three County 9-1-1 Communications Dispatchers were recognized at an awards ceremony this month, with two being named as Dispatcher of the Year, and another receiving an Outstanding Performance Award. County 9-1-1 Communications Dispatchers are the first public safety personnel to interact with people in need when calling 9-1-1 from areas served by the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office. Communications Dispatchers are often referred to as the “first, first responders,” yet often go unnoticed by the public. They play an essential role by quickly answering and evaluating hundreds of emergency calls daily and dispatching appropriate emergency response from law enforcement agencies, fire departments and emergency medical transport providers within Santa Clara County. The Santa Clara County Communications Department operates a combined (law, fire, and medical) emergency communications center. The 88 County communications dispatchers handle about 1,100 calls per day, over 400,000 calls per year, with 97% of the calls being emergency or urgent in nature. The department has been recognized by the International Academy of Emergency Dispatch as an Accredited Center of Excellence in Emergency Medical Dispatching since 2002 by providing callers reporting medical emergencies with appropriate physician-approved medical instruction while help is on the way.
Posted on: Thu, 17 Apr 2014 17:00:37 +0000