Marion County Public Safety Communications recently earned fire and medical re-accreditations from the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED). Only 21 of 3,600 centers in the world have both fire and medical accreditations
While many dispatch centers are accredited in fire or medical call-taking procedures, Marion County’s Communications Center (696 NW 30th Ave., Ocala), is recognized by IAED as an Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE), one of only 21, dual-certified centers around the globe.
“Having this caliber of dispatchers and call takers working behind the scenes in emergency situations is something the community can be proud of,” said Marion County Public Safety Department Director and Fire Rescue Division Chief, Craig Damien.
“They receive more than three months of training and their work is constantly reviewed and critiqued, because how they respond at the other end of the line in any given situation can mean life or death,” added Damien.
Obtaining the re-accreditation is a process that takes several months and requires the communications center to meet the academy’s Twenty Points of Accreditation and demonstrate high levels of compliance and low deviation percentages in the various elements of the call taking process, which ensures that emergency telecommunicators are asking the right questions, providing a high level of medical and emergency assistance via the phone, participate in continuing education and more. The IAED determines whether these and other parameters have been met by reviewing 911 calls and reports at random.
All call takers and dispatchers at the center are trained to handle fire, medical and law enforcement calls, which saves time during emergencies as well as taxpayer dollars.
“Having cross-trained call takers streamlines the initial and vital information gathering process by eliminating the need to re-ask three questions, creating a time savings of 25 to 30 seconds per call,” said Damien. “It’s something we’re proud of – being able to react 20 seconds quicker in an emergency situation is a big deal,” he added.
The current center was established in 2010 and brought 911 dispatchers and call takers from Marion County Fire Rescue and Sheriff’s Office together in the same building. In October 2012, Ocala Fire Rescue joined them in a collaborative agreement that saves $300,000 each fiscal year.
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