Happy Dispatcher Week – Thank You!
Hey everyone!
As we head into another National Dispatcher Week – and a week that positive attention is focused on our profession – it is time to recognize each other, and ourselves, for the amazing things dispatchers do on a daily basis.
California Public Safety Dispatchers are the best trained in the country. While POST requies 24 hours of CPT credit – I have found that most Dispatchers seek out much more training than that each year. With budget cuts and agencies not having the money they once had for training, more and more dispatchers are attending training on their own time, and on their own dime. A tribute to professionalism.
Every day, you do more with less. With budget cuts and the current economic situation, Dispatchers are being called on to do more every single day – and we always step up to the plate and take on the task. There may be grumblings about doing more for less, but the truth is most of us actually LOVE the work we do day in and day out. A tribute to commitment.
Every single day – whether you know it or not – you affect someones life in a positive manner. Maybe it’s the nothing call, the common call…the boring ‘my neighbor is playing loud music call’…but when you take the time to be empathetic, professional and care about the customers problem – you make a difference.
Every day – you are the first person on scene of any critical incident. Not every call is the dramatic – we know in some agencies there can be hours of the routine calls before the big one hits – but California dispatchers are always ready, and rise to the occasion, and strive to exceed the needs of the people they are dispatching to the crisis.
We may not always hear thank you, not from the citizens, not from officers or fire fighters, not from command staff or chiefs – and we are ok with that because we don’t do it for the publicity or the awards – we do it because we truly want to help, to make a difference. We do it, and we do it well, because it is the right thing to do.
Hopefully this week, those who don’t remember the voice on the radio, or the voice on the phone, take a minute to share their gratitude with you. This week is about calling attention to a profession of people who, for the most part, would rather be heard than seen. We are absolutely ok being the voice they rely on in a crisis.
On behalf of the California Emergency Dispatcher Association Executive Board, I want to be one of the hopefully many that take the time to thank you this week. I wish I could do it personally, but hopefully you will recognize the sincerity behind the message. You are the first line of defense, the calming voice in times of hysterical confusion, the calming influence in every situation you handle. You are the ones that the public seeks for assistance, that the officers, firefighters, EMT’s rely on day in and day out. Your professionalism, dedication and sacrfice is unmatched and often unnoticed.
This week – this week is about you, and all you do. Be good to one another, other agencies, yourself. If your agency does something to recognize your good work, embrace it. Take time to celebrate what you do – we all know the stats, not everyone can do it. We are a rare breed.
So, from our association to you, thank you! Thank you this week, and every week of the year. You are the glue that holds it all together in the time of crisis. You are the unseen voices trying to keep the fine line of calm when things have gone horribly wrong. You are Public Safety Dispatchers!
Kurt
