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Most instructors agree that, for positions as emergency dispatchers,
the development of the necessary skills must go beyond the study
of skills and procedures as provided in manuals such as the
Emergency Telecommunicator student course manual. Even with
the audiotapes accompanying the manual, students do not have
the opportunity to handle “emergency traffic” and
interact with 9-1-1 callers.
For classroom situations, instructors need to look for equipment
that simulates what an emergency dispatcher will experience
in a typical 9-1-1 call center. There are two basic options:
1) obtaining equipment that has been surplussed or donated by
a call center, or 2) purchasing equipment that has been specifically
designed to train dispatchers. The drawback for the first option
is that it is not designed for training; however, it can still
be adapted to provide the training needed and it is typically
less expensive.
There are a number of options for training simulators. In talking
with instructors in secondary school emergency dispatch certification
programs, we have found that the OMNI-COMM Simulator line of
products offers the best equipment options for in-school programs.
The equipment is also used extensively by call centers for their
own internal training.
THE OMNI-COMM SIMULATOR LINE OF PRODUCTS that SAVE offers consists
of a suite of computer based communicator simulators for training
dispatchers. There is a range of options from the low cost M-2000
trainer to the recently updated E-911 Simulator. All provide
the means to give students hands-on experience using high quality
equipment.
Each in-school program will have to compare its needs to the
range of options. Generally, however, in-school certification
programs will typically want equipment that contains all or
most of the following:
- A
central administration and status monitor that allows the
instructor to do the following: add/modify users (students),
manage network settings, add/modify pager setup, add/modify
phone book setup, add/modify ANI/ALI
- A
911 call simulator with about 10 separate phone lines, TDD
Communication, ANI/ALI window, Audio recorder, Keystroke
recorder, abandoned call return, dial pad, phone book, volume
control, full duplex voice communication.
- A
radio simulator that allows the instructor to define the
scenarios and training level desired and includes the ability
to assign up to 30 radio channels so that instructors and
students are interacting with each other through voice,
text and paging. Plus the simulator should include: an NCIC
Code menu, an audio playback with volume control, keystroke
review, and a training review function.
The
key to the effectiveness of the equipment is the server. The
Omni Server configures each user workstation. The Server has
an ALI/ANI information screen that allows the instructor to
enter various ANI/ALI entries so the data can be tailored to
the student’s own geographic area. Latitude and longitude
can be included for cell phone calls. This helps increase the
student’s familiarity with the local area.
Emergency Communications Simulation Focus, for a moment on the
responsibilities Public Safety Dispatchers must have. Seconds
after receiving an emergency call, life saving assistance is
en route to you or your loved ones destination. Dispatchers
are truly the first responders in any emergency situation. No
hesitation, clear communication and immediate response are the
products of training by simulation. A wide range of possible
scenarios is included with the equipment. This allows practiced
in dealing with the scenarios as often as desired and recorded
for playback and critiquing.
Dispatchers
rely on visual information from their Computer Aided Dispatch
screens, what resources are available to respond, their locations
and status. They learn to distinguish the fear and need in a
callers voice and the sounds associated with the officer or
fireman on the radio. Dispatchers can almost smell the intensity
of each call as they experience it through all their emotions.
Managing
and allocating resources are one of the dispatchers challenging
responsibilities.
With new evolving technologies frequent simulation training
is the only way to keep pace with the growing number of tools
the modern day dispatcher has at their disposal. By continued
training and staying ahead, you can prepare tomorrows dispatchers
for the emergencies and emotions they will face daily.
Classroom
instruction using students as role players allows the trainees
to learn by giving them freedom to create, explore and prepare
for the verity of emergencies they will eventually face. Instructors
may interact or use administrative functions to monitor the
scenarios. All voice calls are recorded in WAV files for convenience
and storage.
Student screen with ANI/ALI Window Student screen with TDD/TTY
Activity
The New E-9-1-1 Phone Simulator provides you with cutting edge
technology; edit functions for creating Virtual Local Communication
Centers also recording capabilities for critiquing emergency
scenarios. Only OMNI-COMM Simulators are designed with the instructor
in mind. We have been developing Communication Training Simulators
for 20 + years for all agencies in Public Safety and Protective
Services.
Phase II Computer Aided Dispatch Simulator
Easy
drag and drop ANI/ALI for instructor Student screen has all
functions accessible.
This product line has been created for easy instructor interface.
Trainers can make it as hard or easy on the students by just
increasing the pressure. Through drag and drop functions the
role player can work with several trainees at once.
Administrative functions allow editing of all major resources,
call codes, vehicles dispatch signals i.e. (AIZ) Available in
zone or (ERH) en route to hospital. You can tailor the entire
suite of products to reflect all local maps, addresses, logging
in of call takers and dispatchers. Our unique Student stations
allow trainees to view all that is going on simultaneously,
giving them a unique perspective of each call.
Unique User history Report export to pdf
CAD window supplies resources and code
Print out complete records from onset of the call to the end
of the students training built in pdf exporting makes retrieval
and storage a snap. Call entry window helps students learn local
codes and resource status.
Selecting and training people for Public Safety Telecommunicator
positions is at best very difficult. We do know however that
when a person can experience what happens in the (PS AP) Public
Safety Answering Point – at the Complaint Desk –
or at the Dispatch Console, they and the interviewer are better
able to assess the suitability of job to applicant and applicant
to job. The savings in time and money are quite substantial.
Learning through role playing puts the trainee in a realistic
atmosphere while the instructor has complete control over every
part of the exercise.
SAVE’s OMNI-COMM line of Communication Training Simulators
provides everything necessary for training people in realistic
setting using real emergency scenarios. Mistakes are corrected
as they occur, without mishap. Audio recordings provide for
review and critique of the exercises and are an excellent record
of the trainee’s progress.
People that have received Simulator training know what is expected
of them and have experienced the situations that they will encounter
on the job. Their training is completed in less time and is
far superior to that using conventional method. This means lower
training costs and better employees.Features
Benefits State of the art technology Train with cutting edge
products
- All client / Server based programs Allows for multiple users and special features Leverage training resources Use existing computers with 2000 and XP Pro Pace individual students Build confidence , develop short term memory ANI / ALI Editing Adapt to any location, city, state or country
- Multiple line configuration Multiple trainees, 911 and non emergency lines
- Dial Pad, Phone Book Dial out and call transfer capabilities
If ALI is selected by the instructor, then this will appear in the ALI view. The ALI information is only presented when the call is answered and cleared when the call is hung up. If for some reason that first call has to be put on hold and another call answered the new ALI will be presented and when the caller on hold is re-selected his ALI will come back up. When No line is active, the ALI field is blank.
Additional information is then added to the screen confirming the caller’s location and status. During this exercise, the student not only practices keyboarding but also develops such skills as active listening, taking control of the call, improving short-term memory, enunciation, problem solving, stress management and courtesy.
When the incident is transferred to the dispatcher with a radio simulator, the same skills are developed by working with instructors acting as police, fire and emergency medical personnel.
The student or instructor may terminate a call by clicking the hang-up button. If the student selects another line while in a call, they will be notified they are already in a call. If the instructor terminates the call, the Callback button may be used by the student to ring the instructors console to resume communication. The phone line is automatically selected.
The user may place an active call on hold. The line that was in use returns to a flashing state, to indicate hold. The instructor is notified that they have been placed on hold. The instructor must wait until they are taken off hold, or hang-up. The student, or another, may take the call off hold by pressing the appropriate line.
A student can receive a TDD/TTY call. A line will ring, but when answering it, instead of audio being present, the TDD conversation fields become active. ALI information will appear as normal. Anything received by the student will be in lower case when the student replies to the caller it is in uppercase. The message is sent when enter is pressed. The release button will terminate the call.
The student may make an outbound call. A Non-emergency phone line must be selected prior to dialing. Digits cannot be entered, or preset selected, until first a free non-emergency line is selected. A numeric keypad exists for dialing out to a manually entered number, or alternatively a preset number can be selected from a drop down list. Selecting clear can clear the number field. The student places the call by pressing the Dial button. All phone instructor consoles not in a call will ring.
SAVE Corporation, located in Edgewater Florida, is a national company that has the most expertise and experience serving the secondary and community college market. As such, Sanders provides on site set-up and training for instructor on equipment use.
For information on the uses of the simulators in various environments visit the SAVE website pages entitled Articles
SAVE CORPORATION
www.sandersav@cfl.rr.com
P.O. Box 278 Phone (800) 888-6021
Edgewater, FL 32132 Fax (386) 428-6021
Overview | NAED Training | NAED Certification | APCO Training | APCO Certification | Training Simulators
National Partnership, P.O. Box 1991, Annandale, VA, 22003
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