911 Application

Hey y'all - just found this board. I've recently interviewed for a 911 call taker position. Am curious if I'm crazy for considering the job or what. Any insight would be greatly appreciated. If you don't wish to post on the board, feel free to use my email. I've read lots of horror stories on the web about 911 call takers and what they have to endure. Is it as bad as I've read??? There are 5 positons available and six applicants that made it through the initial testing and official interview process. This Saturday, I'm sitting in to observe the operation. Am excited to see what all goes on. Would like to hear from those of you with a 911 background. Thanks! Vicki

Vicki, Is it as bad as they say on line. I would have to say yes it is at times. All of the horror stories are just that. Yes there is a lot of stress and the dispatcher is low man on the totem pole in most peoples eyes. Because all they think we do is answer the phone and talk on the radio. Would I give this up, No. Unless I could finally have my surgery and loose enough weight to become an firefighter or paramedic for a good department with a retirement. I hope that all goes well and if you need any help just let me know. I have been doing this for over 6 years and I am the supervisor of my center for 4 of them. Cheze

Maybe it won't be so bad here -- Amarillo isn't that big a place. But still, I've not been hired as yet. I'm still playing the waiting game. Don't know how long it will take them to make their final decisions, but the more I think about it, the more likely I will accept a position if offered. Thanks for responding. If and when I get hired, I'll probably be hollaring at you from time to time. Vicki

HI Vicki.. I have been a 911 dispatcher for a little over 3 years and I enjoy the job way more then I ever thought I would.. As to the craziness, alot depends on where you live, I happen to live and work in a small county, so we don't get the hundreds of horriffic calls everyday,as in say Chicago or NYC, but we do get a major incident I would guess once a month or so, sometimes more, sometimes less... but working as a team, nothing we can't and don't handle.(team is important, we have one shift that is not a team and things aren't always smooth) Then you get the nuts, one guy called 911 and was asking obscene things of me, I kept my head, didn't let him get under my skin and connected him with the correct police dept (of course he hung up, but they went to his residence, and I should be going to court in the near future, as he made multiple calls in 2 days). You need to be able to leave work at work, because it can be stressful.. no matter what size center you work in. Enjoy the observing.. it can be overwheling at first, I never thought I would get it all and was prepared to be fired, or quit every day for the first 6 months, but now I am (relucltantly) an alternate shift supervisor Good Luck

Hey Bri - - I can't see Amarillo being near the chaos as Dallas or Houston, but the thought of the job gives me the jitters. During my interview, Sgt Kuster said "you know Amarillo..........come 9:00 p.m. and they roll up the carpet." She says it's pretty quite on the night shift which is where I'm likely to start out. That or evenings. It doesn't matter though. I gotta get the job first!! I appreciate your response. If indeed I do get the job, I'll more than likely be on this board a little more and hopefully stir up some conversation. Vicki

Vicki, I hope you get the job. My city slows down with the bull calls and starts with the more serious calls during the 4-12 shift until about 4 AM when the bars get out. We service just the City of Poughkeepsie which is 4 square miles and we handle over 40 thousand calls entered into our cad each year. The phone call volume is out of control. Again Good Luck and talk to you soon. Bob

Hey Bob - 40 thousand calls for a 4 square mile area!!! Wow - that's almost unbelievable!! I'm not sure how many square miles Potter & Randall counties are, but it's a whole lot more than Poughkeepsie has. Jeeze............how many dispatchers do y'all have? Amarillo has 3 on nights, 4 or 5 on evenings and I think about the same (4-5) on days. During my interview, they told me how many calls were logged in for the past year, but it didn't stick with me. I do recall it being over 100,000. Anyway.........I got a phone call from human resources this afternoon saying my test scores were high enough (high enough? what was she saying??) that they have a job for me. The next step is taking a polygraph. That'll be this Friday afternoon. Guess the only other thing to pass will be the drug test. Looks like things will work out for the good. I'll keep you posted. Vicki

Well, I kind of have a little different take on this. I started out dispatching at a small PD w/911 back in 1988. I was there for 2 years, took a break and started with state police in 91. First, I have to throw a disclaimer in there: I thought I would be bored working for OSP because I thought it would consist of traffic stops and nothing more. Yes, there are a lot of those, but it's so much more and I do love my job. Every dispatcher that works for us who worked in 911 before, whether a large or small center, all come back saying the same thing.....that they had no idea how busy we could get, nor the calibre of the calls having the same excitement level. As for small PD's, the one thing you need to remember is this: They may roll up the sidewalks at 9pm, but crap still happens at 2am. You may go a month or more between "good" calls, but when a big one happens, and if it is really a small department where you are the only one on duty, you will get nailed to the wall with chaos. One house fire garnered me juggling 3 phones and 4 radios simultaneously because we dispatched police, fire and public works....and all of them wanted attention NOW. As well as everyone and their dog calling 911. I don't say this, though, to scare you. Because there is one thing about this job that some people don't realize. If you are intrigued by it and think you'll like it, the chances are you will eat up all that chaos and get a huge adrenaline rush that will keep you coming back for more. It is GOOD to have feast and famine when you are a dispatcher because those quiet down times are when you get to recharge your batteries for the next wave that hits. For me, there was something inate in me that always made me wonder about the job. I had no clue what it entailed, but I thought I'd like it. I fell in love with the job right away. It was FUN, and I got paid for it. I loved getting all the crazy calls, being asked to think on my feet and challenging myself to perform under seemingly impossible cir****tances. I'm the kind of person who, when I decide to do something and someone tells me I can't do it, well, I will not only prove them wrong, but in a grand fashion. So this always satiated my desire to perform and triumph. The thing is, when you sit along, likely you will see a lot of computer screens (unless there is no CAD at that department), and you will wonder how you can keep it all straight. Just think of it like working on your computer and having several windows open. Each window - or screen - performs a separate function, and no, you don't have to stare at each one intensely ever moment. You eventually find your stride and these computers become an extension of you. So there is a fluidity with it in that sense. And if the crap hits the fan while you're sitting there, you may recoil and think you can't do it. Just remember that this is why there are training periods. You learn to function and your reflexes kick in when you have an idea of how to drive that car. Small departments (in our state at least) tend to give minimal training to dispatchers before they are kicked loose on their own. Having a minimal staff means they have to hurry to get people in there and sitting down, so like with me on my first job, I had 2 weeks of training and I was cut loose. Great when it's quiet, but when I got an mva where ems was asking for the jaws of life, I had no clue what they were talking about. I was frozen in fear because I didn't know what to do. So if you get the job and they hurry you through training, take those quiet times to read everything in the center and ask questions of anyone you can. Know who you can call in a pinch so they can walk you through it, and don't be afraid to tell another dispatch agency you may be working with that you are new and need some help. It's always better to let them in on what the deal is so they can help you through if they can rather than just letting them think that you're inept because your department can't find qualified employees. I always try to give dispatchers from other centers (especially small ones) a break when I talk to them because I remember all too well my 2 weeks of training and how I must have looked and sounded. And lastly, just know that you WILL make mistakes. And you may start off loving the job, but there is a period mid-training, or a few months in, where you think to yourself that you have to be nuts to think you can do this and you fear every call that comes in because you think it's going to require something beyond your skills. Remember this because it is a phase that I have seen every dispatcher I've worked with go through in their training. It's normal and you get over it. Just remember that common sense rules and if you don't know, ask. I've been at OSP for 14+ years now and there are still stupid little things I sometimes have to ask for insight on because I forgot or never encountered the situation before. There is no shame in asking if you don't know. That is different from not being able to retain basic information though. (I *don't* subscribe to the theory that there are no stupid questions. If I tell you the blue button labeled "intercom" is an intercom and I have to tell you that numerous times even though you've used it several times, I would say that is a stupid question.) At some point you learn to stop holding your breath and you are able to relax a little. And when you hit that point, that's when you really start loving your job. If you *like* that sort of thing like I do. I hope that helps a little. The job can be alternately boring as hell and busy as hell. But that's what I love about it. I like responding in the here and now, not to an inbox/outbox! Dina http://www.saveosp.org/

Vicki, just wondering how things are going? Did you get the job???

Mornin' - - yes.........thanks for asking. Found out just a couple days ago. I did indeed get the job. I went to the dept yesterday evening to sit in for a while. I was in awe. The computer system, of course, flipped me out, but if I can master that, I think I'll be ok. I couldn't believe in the short time I was listening in what all happened in our little city. It was amazing! There was a shooting on the north side of town in which they didn't expect the victum to survive - a missing child - a prostitute in the Walmart parking lot - a trucker on a highway that ran a woman off into the ditch after "jacking" with her for a few miles - and just before I left, there was an armed robbery at this guy's house. Being on the outside, people don't realize how much actually goes on in their city. I go in next Tuesday for orientation, then for my physical and lastly to talk with a psycologist. It's now a matter of time, I guess, as to when I start the training. Lauren invited me back to sit in anytime at the call center prior to actually starting the job. Everyone on the evening shift was nothing but nice. Hope the night crew is as friendly. Wish me luck on the computer system!! Vicki