A state lawmaker will propose legislation for the 2022 session recognizing 911 dispatchers as first responders and supply them help for instances of post-traumatic stress disorder.
Rep. Bill Wesley, R-Ravenna, said he will be sponsoring the Lifeliner’s Act, to help spread awareness of work-induced stress, recognize the symptoms of PTSD, and provide resources for telecommunicators for treatment.
“I am calling this bill ‘the Lifeliner’s Act’ because our dispatchers are sometimes the lifeline between our first responders and the life-and-death situations,” he said. “They are our lifeline in every situation. I am so thankful for the brave individuals that selflessly save others.”
Wesley says he respects 9-1-1 dispatchers for the work they do every day. “As a chaplain over six departments, I hear about the many issues they face. When we think of PTSD, we often assume that people who suffer from it all carry a badge or a gun. In this case, that isn’t true… READ MORE