In November 1967, the FCC met with the American Telephone and Telegraph Company (AT&T) to find a means of establishing a universal emergency number that could be implemented quickly. In 1968, AT&T announced that it would establish the digits 911 as the emergency code throughout the United States. In many cases, it was also used for non-emergency assistance. It became a natural progression that police, fire, and EMS were dispatched for everything a citizen requested.
With our changing times and requirements, many cities and counties throughout the United States are looking at changing the way they respond to the variety of citizen calls. This change in basic premise looks at tailoring the response to the type of service requested or needed.
- Criteria used to determine if a call is handled outside of the normal call taking process.
- Clearly defined function between call taking and dispatching.
- How is call tracked, by who (i.e., call taker) and for how long?
- New policies and procedures for first responders.
- Compliance with Federal, State, and local ordinances.
- How will the new 988 number change your current policies and procedures?
- Need to look at re-engineering the call taking/dispatching process?
- Developing Inter-local Agreements with any new agency or organization that will become part of this new process.
For additional information, contact Winbourne Consulting at info@w-llc.com.