Crisis Communications: Managing a Critical Incident for Public Safety Dispatchers
Description
Course Description
Public safety dispatchers serve as the first line of response to critical incidents, ranging from natural disasters and major accidents to active shooter events. Callers—including other first responders—are often in extreme physiological and psychological distress, experiencing sensory overload and a narrowed state of thinking focused primarily on survival. As a result, they may be unaware of the critical information needed by dispatchers to effectively manage the incident.
In these high-pressure situations, the dispatcher must remain calm, mentally prepared, and capable of making rapid decisions while efficiently allocating resources.
This course is designed to help dispatchers better manage critical incidents through the use of stress inoculation techniques. Participants will review live telephone and radio transmissions from recent major incidents to develop effective questioning strategies, improve response structuring, and evaluate decision-making under pressure.
Through realistic and challenging exercises, participants will experience the effects of constricted thinking from the caller’s perspective and learn how to guide conversations in order to obtain essential information needed to effectively manage the incident.
Learning Objectives
Upon successful completion of this course, participants will be able to:
- Effectively manage phone and radio communications during critical incidents
- Recognize signs of constricted thinking in callers under stress
- Employ appropriate and structured questioning techniques
- Utilize follow-up questions to obtain critical information and support incident management