"Public Safety Communications"
9-1-1 Friend Request
October 11, 2010Facebook, Twitter and other Web 2.0 tools have become a component of our daily lives. Social and professional networking platforms are a quick, easy way to disseminate a message — whether that message is about your dinner or the latest vampire movie. But do they fit into the public safety mission? If so, where?
Read full articleNG9-1-1: Managing & Displaying Information
September 21, 2010Earlier this summer, the APCO/NENA Human Machine Interface (HMI) and Display Requirements document for Next Generation 9-1-1 (NG9-1-1) was released for public review and comment. The lessons learned by HMI workgroup during the drafting process may assist those considering how NG9-1-1 will benefit and affect PSAP operations to organize their thoughts and planning.
Read full article9/11 Five Years Later: The Way We Were
September 9, 2010In the September 2006 issue of PSC, Keri Losavio wrote about what happened that day, include the communications challenges that were experienced by responders at the World Trade Center and Pentagon sites.
Read full article9/11 Five Years Later: How 9/11 Altered FDNY’s Emergency Communications
September 9, 2010Chief Jace P. Pinkus of the FDNY addressed how the department’s communications bureau changed in the five years after the attacks on the World Trade Center.
Read full article9/11 Five Years Later: Where We Are Today
September 9, 2010In September 2006 issue of PSC, Steve Souder addressed the questions of how prepared public safety and public safety communications was to respond to another attack as of 2006. He touched on NIMS, interoperability issues and enhanced communications.
Read full article9/11: APCO Members React in the Wake of WTC & Pentagon Attacks
September 9, 2010In public safety communications, we can learn from the past. To mark the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks, we are looking back at what happened and how members of the public safety community coped with the aftermath. Here is PSC’s initial coverage of the attacks.
Read full articleState Training & Certification Survey
September 1, 2010Despite the need, there are no national minimum training standards for 9-1-1 telecommunicators. There’s little consensus on how much training in what subjects is necessary and how—and whether—to fund such training. Each state has taken its own path. This article discusses the results of a national survey to determine what each state requires with regard to training.
Read full articleA Crisis at the Heart of the PSAP
August 26, 2010The following article tells four stories about emergencies that struck at the heart of the comm center, from the perspective of those who were there and most closely affected. These compelling stories remind us that it’s not a matter of if but when an emergency will hit very close to home for comm center personnel.
Read full articleHIPAA Didn’t Kill the Radio Star
August 26, 2010The dawn of the age of HIPAA did not mark the demise of emergency medical dispatch (EMD) as we knew it. Nonetheless, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) did create some confusion regarding our traditional practices of communicating patient information over the radio airwaves.
Read full articleNG9-1-1: Challenges of Mobile Alarm Devices
August 11, 2010Devices designed to automatically signal for help have been available for years. Many of them are programmed to dial a private call center or alarm company that in turn notifies the appropriate PSAP that emergency response is needed. Some devices dial 9-1-1 directly. But until recently, these autodial devices or alarms primarily reported only a fixed, registered location for the person needing assistance.
Read full article