Alexandria, VA – Weatherford Communications Center, Oklahoma, recently implemented the APCO Institute Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) Program. The center employs 13 staff members and provides emergency call taking and dispatching for Weatherford 9-1-1, Hydro 9-1-1, Thomas 9-1-1, Blaine County, Colony 9-1-1 and Corn 9-1-1.

The emergency communications center receives between 1,000 and 1,500 calls for assistance per month. With APCO EMD certification, staff is now specially trained to provide medical assistance to callers while emergency responders are en route.

The APCO Institute EMD Program is based on national standards and provides agencies with a systematic way to manage emergency medical service (EMS) resources in an organized and effective manner. APCO’s EMD Program enables trained dispatchers – through the use of guidecards and software – to quickly assess a caller’s emergency situation and to provide consistent, medically approved assistance over the phone while trained EMS responders are on the way.

“Often, the immediate medical assistance that an EMD-certified dispatcher provides can mean the difference between life and death,” says APCO Institute Director Julie Ray. “Since APCO established its EMD Program in 1990, our customers have related countless stories of lives being saved because of the program.”