Communications Supervisor Jonathan Kurth saved dispatch officer who was choking (WI)

by | Aug 12, 2022 | Comm Center News

Dispatch workers at communication centers can be overlooked to the impact they have in emergency situations. They often help someone on the scene, stay calm and talk someone through life-saving measures.

However, Jonathan Kurth, Marathon County Communications Supervisor, was swift on his feet saving one of his own dispatch operators, who was choking at their desk, according to a Facebook post on Marathon County Sheriff Scott Parks’ page.

READ FULL ARTICLE

Metuchen enters shared service with Rutgers University for police dispatch (NJ)

by | Aug 11, 2022 | Comm Center News

METUCHEN – For Police Chief Arthur Flaherty, a single seat police dispatch was essentially “a bad situation” waiting to happen.

“We have evolved from a town of 12,800 to a town of 17,000 right now,” he said. “We are putting in 240 more condos and a 30-acre park. We are going to be near [a population of] 20,000 in two and a half square miles. It’s dense and with Edison growing exponentially … we’ve gotten very busy.”

The fourth 911 option: Mental health services – EMS1 (TX)

by | Aug 11, 2022 | Comm Center News

In Austin, Texas, when someone calls 911, they hear, “Austin 911, do you need police, fire, EMS or mental health services?” Since February 2021, Austin’s 911 Mental Health Diversion Program now transfers over 600 911 calls per month to mental health clinicians, connecting those in need to the mental health treatment system as opposed to the criminal justice system and freeing up critical emergency resources – implementing this important fourth option to the 911 call triage process.