Virginia Dispatch Center Selects Motorola Solutions 911 Phone System
When officials in Stafford County, Virginia, decided to update their emergency phone system, they wanted to lay the groundwork for implementing next generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) capabilities such as text-to-9-1-1 and multimedia. County officials chose Emergency CallWorks CallStation, which is a browser-based platform acquired earlier this year by Motorola Solutions (NYSE:MSI).
After just a few months, Stafford County was already seeing improvement in call taker efficiency and effectiveness. As soon as a call comes in, whether it’s from a mobile device or landline, it is mapped and prioritized so emergency personnel can be on the way within minutes. Previously, call takers had to actually answer the call before obtaining a mapped location.
The Emergency CallWorks interactive map is an important feature for Stafford County due to the diverse makeup of the region. When a major incident occurs on an interstate highway, for example, it could potentially generate 10 or more calls reporting the same event. By glancing at the interactive map, the call taker can now quickly determine the caller’s location before answering, helping to enhance situational awareness and possibly determine if the calls are related.
Emergency CallWorks helps police, fire and other first responders better manage critical incidents by allowing more information to flow from the public to emergency personnel. It combines call taking, computer-aided dispatch (CAD), incident management and mapping systems into a single platform.
“The key things we looked for were features such as the interactive map and the ability to turn on additional features such as text-to-9-1-1, video, pictures and transfer of medical information as they become available,” says Carol Adams, 9-1-1 director for Stafford County. “It may be a few years before NG9-1-1 comes to fruition for Stafford County but we wanted to be ready with a solution that would provide a simple transition at an affordable price with minimal impact on our staff.”
“Stafford County wanted a system that would facilitate the handling and processing of emergency calls that would be easy to use, and simple to maintain and administer,” said Tom Guthrie, vice president, Motorola Solutions Smart Public Safety. “The Emergency CallWorks software supports older systems and facilitates a smooth migration to NG9-1-1 without incurring a major expense."
Stafford County 9-1-1 staff attended the Emergency CallWorks Online University prior to implementing the new software. This enabled call takers, on their schedule, to become familiar with the new system before the in-class sessions with a live trainer, helping to ease the transition.
Stafford County is situated roughly half way between Richmond, Virginia and Washington D.C. The county occupies approximately 270 square miles and is the fifth fastest growing area in Virginia. The Stafford County Emergency Call Center serves more than 130,000 residents, has 21 call-taking positions with six additional seats at a second location and handles more than 52,000 calls annually.
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