Our APCO PST-1 course finished with great results. When I wrote this article, we had concluded APCO Fire Service Communications and were preparing to test. The students have also continuously trained with and studied the APCO Law Enforcement and Fire Guide Cards and will receive hands-on testing in the near future.
Soon, we will work more intensively on training simulators. The SAVE Corp. simulation software KAUST purchased has proven its worth tenfold. The software allows students to experience answering, creating, dispatching and assigning emergency calls. Along with that, intense APCO Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) training will soon begin.
Read the full story: 9-1-1 Instructor for Hire [ pdf ]
N AN EMERGENCY, THE FIRST PEOPLE TO ANSWER a 9-1-1 call are public safety communications specialists and police, fire and ambulance dispatchers. These well-trained, highly professional individuals send the appropriate type and number of emergency services units in response to calls for assistance and monitor the activity of emergency services personnel at the scene. They work in a variety of settings, ranging from police and fire stations to hospitals or centralized city communications centers.
Read the full story: Case Study: Elgin Community College [ pdf ]
Tim Lambert and Ashley Santiago wait alertly in front of their computer screens.
The phone rings. Santiago answers with the click of a computer mouse.
A voice informs her that there's a suspicious person lurking on a corner in a residential neighborhood. Santiago calmly pumps the caller for more information: "What is he wearing? Is he armed?"
A second later, Santiago is relaying the information to officers in the field, who quickly respond to apprehend the suspect.
In many ways, this episode seemed real. Luckily for the suspect, however, it took place in a classroom instead of on the streets.
Read the full story: 9-1-1 Dispatch Simulator Brings Sense of Reality to Vo-Tech Class
In a growing trend that puts high school students in real-life job-training situations, Hillsborough County School District in Tampa, Florida, has started a new program in three of its high schools. The program marries the OMNI-COMM Simulator System with a new Emergency Telecommunicator course from the National Academies of Emergency Dispatch (NAED) and the National Emergency Number Association (NENA).
In the span of just a few short years, emergency communications has undergone dramatic changes,
says Robert Martin, NAED executive director. With more than a half million 9-1-1 calls being made daily, technological advances have established today's emergency telecommunicator as the first person 'on the scene' of any police, fire or medical emergency.
Read the full story: www.acteonline.org
Sanders Audio-Visual showed their impressive line-up of computer-based training simulators for 911, CAD and radio systems, what they call a Virtual Communication Center. The software is based on actual programs..
Read the full story: www.dispatchmonthly.com
first responder?
Responsibility for human life and property, knowing how to react in emergency situations, and coordinating response logistics are key roles of a first responder.
By Tony Sanders and Rob Martin, Sanders Audio Visual Equipment.
Read the full story: First Responder [ pdf ]