Dear Public Safety Professional,
Since PowerPhone was founded nearly 40 years ago, we have worked side-by-side with agencies around the world to improve emergency communications. During that time, we have seen not only the birth of an entire profession but the evolution of the emergency call taker as a vital link in the emergency response chain.
In this “new normal” of trying to do more with less, we’ve been working hard to help ease that burden by empowering those who have dedicated themselves to saving lives.
Looking forward. Honoring the past.
As the second generation to lead PowerPhone, I can assure you we take our commitment to our clients seriously. PowerPhone has a long, proud history of moving the industry forward. In addition to being the bellwethers of dispatcher training, having trained more than 500,000 professionals worldwide, our courseware and training principles have become the defacto standard for agencies across the U.S. and internationally. PowerPhone literally invented police and fire protocols and pre-arrival instructions. While EMD protocols originated from a DOT/NHTSA initiative, emergency call handling protocols for police and fire dispatch simply did not exist until PowerPhone created them. We are proud of our role in shaping emergency communications and feel we are uniquely positioned to help you achieve your call taking goals moving forward.
Structured call handling is not the future. It’s right now.
If you’ve been in the industry for any length of time, you’ve witnessed us champion the adoption of structured call handling. Simply, that means your entire team is on the same page no matter the call type. Be it the newest hire or the most seasoned dispatcher, the standard of care is the same. The result is greater consistency, less liability and better protection of your callers, victims, and responders. After 25 years in the business, I can attest that this is not the future. This is now, and we are doubling down on our efforts to help you deploy structured call handling on every call for help.
It’s not just about EMD.
According to the most recent statistics, nearly one third of U.S. PSAPs perform Emergency Medical Dispatch in some fashion. Is that enough? Of course not, but that statistic is a red herring. If your center is dispatching police, fire and EMS, shouldn’t you be applying structured call handling to every call type? We, you, and the community you serve should not accept that a back pain call will be triaged in a structured manner, yet a domestic involving weapons and children will not. Every call, be it for police, fire, EMS, or often, a combination thereof, deserves a thoughtful and structured approach to information gathering. Whether the issue is funding, staffing, or something else, the industry must move to a more consistent method of gathering and relaying emergency call information.
One size does not fit all.
All too often we hear the reason call takers eschew protocols is they are not specific to their local operating environment. We agree! To be adopted and effective, call taking protocols must be localized to the community they serve. A rural agency with a volunteer response contingent has different requirements than a large urban center, yet both can benefit from structured call taking protocols. But the protocols must be specific to their needs. The foundation of our call taking software is based upon the ability to customize the content to your local needs. If you haven’t looked at Total Response, I would encourage you to check it out. We think you’ll like what you see.
Training anytime, anywhere, for one price. Really.
The pandemic and the ensuing “Great Resignation” has raised havoc across industries and 911 is no exception. Staffing is at record lows and turnover remains an ongoing issue. To address these challenges, PowerPhone has made dramatic changes to our training model. Effective immediately, those that deploy Total Response will have access to our entire training library of application, certification, and continuing education training for one flat, annual fee. Additionally, as you onboard new hires, they seamlessly join the training platform. We see this as a tremendous benefit for our customers. No longer will you need to sign up students for training as “one-offs.” Rather, once they join our platform, they (along with any new hires) will have access to the entire library of PowerPhone’s best in class, self-paced training. This is a game changer and I encourage you to reach out to your account manager to learn more.
To sum this all up…
Thank you for reading this and thank you for your ongoing commitment to making 911 better. Our goal is to be a resource for you. Whether it’s complimentary webinars, best-in-class educational programming, amazing call handling tools or access to the industry’s leading group of emergency communications experts, we want to be there for you as we all navigate this “new normal.”
Here is what we will promise you:
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To provide tools that work for you.
The tail will not wag the dog. Our call handling approach and tools will always focus on the best fit for you. Be it ease of use, the ability to localize the protocols or awesome educational content, we promise it will be a best fit for your people and those you serve.
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To strive to get better every day.
This ethos is embedded in our organization. Our founder insisted on it, and it motivates us to this day. Our jobs are too important to settle for anything less. We promise to continue to innovate and challenge the status quo to help you make 911 better.
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We will answer the phone when you call.
Plain and simple, our employees are committed to supporting you. Like you, we have made this not just a job, but a challenging, yet incredibly rewarding career. Let’s work on 911’s toughest challenges and solve them together.
Thank you for your support and for your commitment to public safety.
Sincerely,
Chris Salafia, CEO
