Those of us in the public safety communications field already know the benefits of  Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) and the challenges posed with its implementation. It’s a complex issue, and success will require the support and collaboration of  the 9-1-1 community, first responders, legislators and, perhaps most importantly, the public.

In order to help educate the public, the National 9-1-1 Program has released a short video that explains the benefits of NG9-1-1 and is targeted to a general audience. The video summarizes the need for NG9-1-1, provides a non-technical overview of the expected benefits, identifies potential challenges in the transition process and serves as a useful tool for introducing NG9-1-1 to those who are unfamiliar with it.

“The national 9-1-1 community identified the need for a tool that provides a quick, non-technical review of NG9-1-1, that could be used to begin conversation about a particular aspect of transition,” said the Nation 9-1-1 Program’s Laurie Flaherty in a release. “We hope that this video will meet that need. It can be used to spur discussion on a number of NG9-1-1 implementation issues in states, counties and cities.”

State administrators, 9-1-1 authorities, and county and municipal 9-1-1 leaders are urged to share the video with others in their community and start the discussion.

The video can be viewed, shared and downloaded at http://www.911.gov/ng911movie.html.  More information, tools and resources, including guidelines for state NG9-1-1 legislative language, the State of 9-1-1 webinar series, and a review of nationwide data collection can be found at http://www.911.gov.