We hear it after almost every tragedy: “I never thought it would happen here.”
Despite deep ties to our communities, public safety telecommunicators don’t have the option to share in the shock and numbness universally felt when tragedies test our towns. We train, we prepare, and we perform: especially when it’s hard.
Emergency calls don’t need to have a personal connection to be impactful. Dispatchers’ adrenaline kicks in with every serious call. When it does, excellent training and access to call-handling tools make all the difference.
As an industry we’re getting much better at counseling dispatchers after particularly stressful calls, but what about offering support before and during each call? That’s what our Total Response Call Handling software provides.
Structured Call Handling Establishes Consistent Service
Total Response uses integrated protocols that incorporate emergency medical, law enforcement, and fire safety into every incident type. Each protocol follows a logical flow specific to the complaint, so that call handlers are prompted to start gathering information efficiently. This structured approach to call handling provides more consistent service and ensures that every call is fielded equally from the Dispatcher.
Guided Flexibility Addresses Entirety of Each Incident
Guided flexibility empowers call handlers to go beyond the minimum service baseline by using both their training and their common sense with every call. Every emergency call is different; with Total Response, call handlers can adapt their approach based on the facts of that particular call.
Let’s say you’re handling a call for a Motor Vehicle Accident and one of the cars suddenly flees the scene, instantly changing the nature of the incident. Total Response guided flexibility allows the call handler to jump forward into secondary questions to acquire a vehicle description immediately, with the Dispatcher never skipping a beat.
Unlike rigid protocol systems that penalize call handlers who deviate from the script, Total Response encourages active questioning without restricting the call handler to a static linear flow.
Total Response strengthens Dispatcher’s line of questioning, quickly advises responders of scene conditions, and above all else, helps to keep the caller safe. Our approach has been refined by years of on-the-ground experience with the Public Safety Community.
Detailed Procedures Enable Call Handlers to Scale Response
Over thirty-five detailed procedures provide call handlers a more in-depth Call Handling service when they need it. Procedures cover incidents where responders or callers need more information during a call. Some examples of procedures readily available within the Total Response can be more common like; Vehicle description, burns, control bleeding, or more rare but impactful instances like; suicidal caller, active shooter, naloxone, and more.
Continuous Training and Improvement Grow Agency Standard
Total Response empowers call takers to best help callers and responders.
Call assessment provides the framework for tracking how effectively your agency meets its own established standard. Analyzing this data identifies areas for additional growth and improvement specific to your agency’s needs. Additionally, sharing impactful calls throughout the agency maximizes their learning value, fosters a collaborative work environment, and reinforces agency aspirations to each employee.
New hires using Total Response gain confidence quicker and make fewer mistakes than those who use no Emergency Call Handling software. In addition, supervisors report less “hand-holding” for new dispatchers using Total Response and greater freedom to focus on observing their trainees rather than prompting them through the different call types.
Public safety call handling is a challenging but rewarding profession. Well-trained and fully-supported telecommunicators strengthen any emergency operation by consistently providing detailed and relevant information to responders and preparing callers before the responders’ arrival on scene.
Your team is going to get the job done. That’s why they became dispatchers. Total Response is call handling software that empowers them to get it done safer, more consistently, and with your agency’s full support.
