Hi All, I am a police dispatcher at the 911 center in Rochester NY. I've been doing this for 20 years. Just had my WLS 8 months ago and I my only regret is that I didn't do it sooner. My family vacationed in Pigeon Forge and Gatlinburg two years in a row. We rented a cabin in the mountains of Pigeon Forge the first year and Gatlinburg the 2nd year. It truly is a beautiful part of the country. I loved the mining too LOL! It must be difficult, as a dispatcher, dealing with so many people that are unfamiliar with their surroundings and calling from cell phones.

Hi Ralph, I am a dispatcher here for the local Sheriff's Office. I have been here 15 years.. and will probally stay here until they pry my cold dead hands off the keyboard! lol I had laporscopic surgery and I was out 4 weeks. I could have gone back at 2 weeks but I had the time to use so I just took my sweet old time commin back. Good luck with your banding! - Candie ps there is also a lapband messageboard here too if interested.

Hello fellow Communicators, I am the supervisor of the E911 in our county, Sevierville Tennesssee.We are the gateway to the Smokies and have literally millions of visitors each year and apparently all have a cell phone. I will be the third person in our center to be "banded".We have a staff of 12. As all of you know ,on top of the stress is the dreaded dispatcher a_ _. Both ladies had their surgery about a year and are doing well. I cant wait, hopefully before the end of the year I will be a "bandster". My sister, a nurse, had the surgery on Sept. 3 and immediately was taken off of her insulin. WOW. A dispatchers wife in our center had the band about two years ago and is no longer on an insulin pump! Apnea is my major co-morbidity(I hate that phrase).Anyway, just wanted to say hello to all my partners in crime out there, hang in there if you are just beginning the process, it took me over two years to be approved. Thanks to all of you for what you do!!

Welcome to the losing side. Even dispatching seems better since my WLS on 3/2/04. We have new consoles at the 911 center here in Rochester, NY and we can choose to stand and dispatch or sit. Never thought my back would allow me to stand for so long, but 114 pounds lighter and my back feels sooooooooooooo much better now. God bless and good luck to you--Barb

Hi everyone, I am having the absolute WORST time trying to apply for the Family Medical Leave Act. I can't even get the person to send the paperwork down to my Watch Manager's office. They are telling me that I have to come down there in person to pick it up. Since I am on the midnight shift, I work 9:30pm-6:00am...that means either staying there until after 9:00am and hoping they come into the office on time. We are so understaffed on the Operations floor, that I have been working all of my days off...I'm on day 15 or 16 now. Or, better yet...I can drive back downtown to the 911 Center during the day and then go back home and then drive back to work for my shift. (Anyone ever experience rush hour in Chicago?!?!) Oh, and let me just mention that after talking to the woman who supposedly handles the paperwork I was told, "I'll do my best" when I said I needed the forms TONIGHT when I came in to work?? So apparently they can't be bothered with putting the paperwork in an office that is 1 floor below their offices. Oh yeah, and she said, "we're very busy here, and our staff is short-handed right now"....BUSY?!?! they have no idea what busy is....we work understaffed so much that I dispatch over 300 officers during my shift..and the pdt's are always inoperable....ever have someone come up on the radio and ask, "can you run 10 name checks?"....Oh well, after all Chicago motto is "The City that Works".....ROFLMAO!!!! Anyone out there that can offer advice on getting approved for FMLA? Most info out there is for those working in the private sector, I'd really appreciate advice from others working for municipalites, etc.