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Show Galmimig dispatchers at the eod of the line are a capable link to enmeirgency life-savers '"A . r i'r'r nv'tiir ' i - A Sue Evans of the Park City Police Department is one of the seven dispatchers that man the department 24 hours a day. ' before a second sentence is uttered. Dispatchers play a vital role, not only because they "patch" or connectthe con-nectthe request for help to the correct cor-rect agency, but also because often they are the stability the person seeking help needs. They are all that is there until the emergency vehicle arrives. "One important aspect of our job is to calm the people at the other end of the line. Often they will be nearly hysterical," five-year veteran dispatcher Kathleen Martinez said. "If we can get them to answer questions, ques-tions, they'll start to calm down." Once the dispatcher gets the information infor-mation on the emergency victim or circumstances surrounding the emergency, she or he must know what to do with it. The training for dispatchers working work-ing in the Coalville office has been upgraded. In 1980, the only training Martinez received was the two weeks she spent on the job with another dispatcher. "Back then, if they thought you could do the job, you were hired. If not, then they would find someone else," Martinez said. Since she was hired, she has had to attend a 40-hour training session with Park City dispatchers and a 16-hour emergency medical dispatcher training course.. The 40-hour course she took is called call-ed the APCO (Associated Public-Safety Public-Safety Communication Officers) course and is offered at the police academy in Salt Lake City. The shorter training is co-sponsored by the Emergency Medical Dispatchers Dispat-chers and the Utah Safety Council. Martinez said that the dispatchers also try to have a training session every two or three months. Dispatchers are kept informed about 911 programs in other areas of the United States by manuals that are circulated by states that have established programs. Dispatchers also have what Martinez Mar-tinez called a "flip-dex" at their fingertips. This device holds cards that describe problems and symptoms symp-toms most commonly seen by dispatchers and are a quick reference source for a job in which speed is essential. Martinez was the graveyard-shift dispatcher when a call was received from the Alamo Draft House in Park City about a man who was knocked unconscious from a fall. The people " at the bar placed the injured party on his side and he began to suffocate. When Martinez was told by the caller the man was turning blue, she was able to advise the caller of the correct steps to take to help him breathe normally again. She did this before the EMTs arrived. Summit County had the 911 service ser-vice installed in July 1985. The main switchboard is in Coalville, from , which all emergency calls are dispatched. If an emergency call from the Park City area is of about a fire or a medical problem, the Coalville dispatcher will alert the proper parties by pushing a button that activates monitors, causing a beeping sound. If the Coalville dispatcher receives a call requiring police help, she will patch the call to the Park City Ci-ty police dispatcher, who has received receiv-ed training similar to their Coalville counterparts. The three largest cities in Summit County Park City, Coalville and Kamas each have two lines feeding into the 911 switchboard. Summit County Sheriff Fred Eley said the busiest time of the year for dispatchers is during the early part of Uie ski season. "Accidents increase during the ski ; season and we really get tested when the 6kiers can't remember where they are or their condo name," Eley snid 911 three numbers. Easy to dial. Easy to remember. And dialing it . may easily save a life. The main 911 office for Summit County is in Coalville. All 911 calls go there first before being passed on to other agencies. The line seldom rings twice. And at the other end of that line will be one of seven possible dispat cherswho are very important people. peo-ple. The dispatcher takes the call, and if a medical emergency or fire is reported, the proper crews will be ' notified with the push of a button |