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Each dispatcher undergoes extensive training to prepare for working under pressure. Not everybody makes it.
In 2022, Durango Emergency Communications reported that 99% of candidates weren’t able to complete the training program.
“My crew is incredibly well-trained and skilled,” said Kati Fox, director of the Durango Emergency Communications Center.
“But in that moment, when you only have your voice to impact a situation where someone’s life is at risk, that’s the very definition of helplessness. And one of the key factors in whether someone develops PTSD from a traumatic incident is whether they felt helpless at that moment.”
Even the best-trained dispatchers feel the weight of the job, especially when taking high-stakes calls for 12 hours a day.
“Dispatch stress is cumulative,” Fox continued. “It’s like ‘you’re okay, you’re okay, you’re okay.’ And then it rises, rises, rises, and you crash. It can be one call that tips you over, or something in your personal life.”
To help with dispatcher mental health, the center offers free therapy sessions, mental health days, incident reviews for high-stakes calls and — most importantly, according to the dispatchers — a supportive work environment.
“I would say the culture here is absolutely amazing. Everybody cares about everybody,” said Hahn, who is in her second year of dispatching.
