Emergency Call Taking and Dispatch Procedure

Purpose. Describes how call takers process emergency calls and how dispatchers select and dispatch resources, control radio networks and maintain the incident log.

1.Answering calls

Calls transferred from the national emergency call service must be answered within ten seconds with the standard greeting. The call taker must confirm the location first, then the nature of the emergency, then the caller's details, following the call taking protocol on the screen. The call taker must stay calm, control the call and give pre-arrival advice from the protocol where it is safe to do so.

2.Location confirmation

The address or location must be confirmed by reading it back, verified against the mapping system, and cross streets or landmarks recorded for rural or unusual locations. A call without a confirmed location must not be closed until every reasonable means of locating the caller has been used.

3.Incident creation and dispatch

The call taker must create the incident in the computer aided dispatch system with the correct incident type so that the pre-determined response is generated. The dispatcher must confirm the response, select the nearest available appropriate resources, dispatch them by alert and radio, and record the times of alert, responding, on scene and under control in the Incident and Dispatch Log.

• Correct incident type generates the correct response
• Nearest available appropriate resource
• Times recorded at each status change

4.Radio control

The dispatcher controls the operational radio channel for each incident, must acknowledge every message, record situation reports and requests, and relay information to the incident controller. Radio discipline must be maintained: short messages, correct call signs and phonetic alphabet, and emergency priority for any mayday or emergency traffic.

5.Automatic fire alarms

Automatic fire alarm notifications must be dispatched to the pre-determined response without waiting for confirmation. The dispatcher must contact the monitored premises where possible to gather information and pass it to the responding crews.

6.Escalation and welfare

The dispatcher must escalate to the shift supervisor when an incident is declared Level 2 or above, when multiple incidents compete for resources, or when a mayday is received. Call takers who handle a distressing call must be offered a break and peer support, and the shift supervisor must record the offer.