Why Hearing But Not Seeing is So Detrimental for 911 Dispatchers

By Shannon Polito ENP RPL, certified first responder coach, founder of Help for the Headset

You’re just taking phone calls, it’s not like you’re in the field seeing all of this, why would it even bother you? This is a common misperception and misunderstanding of what 911 dispatchers do and experience in our demanding jobs. 

Many believe that because we sit in a building far removed from the sights, smells, and tactile experiences of those in the field, we have no reason to experience stress or psychological trauma. In fact, the research reveals the opposite of this, and emphasizes “telecommunicators are at equal or greater risk for PTSD than firefighters and police officers.”  

The misperception leaves dispatchers feeling as though their experiences are, at the very least, invalid, and at most, they are not real. This also leads to 911 dispatchers being forgotten about when it comes to addressing mental and emotional health needs. 

What the Research Says

Long-standing literature identifies four factors that are linked to reports of stress: novelty, predictability, control, and evaluation. Examination and research suggests people experience more stress when they face new situations that are unpredictable, difficult to control, and involve judgment from others.

According to Dr. Michelle Lily, “These four factors maintain a consistent presence in the 911 environment … when you add in shift-work schedules, mandatory overtime, and persistent under staffing, 911 communication centers can become highly stressed work environments.” 

Research has shown that 17.6-24.9 per cent of 911 telecommunicators met the criteria for probable PTSD. This is a rate that is five to six times greater than the general population, two to four times greater than a sample of firefighters, and overlaps the rate found in police officers. There are many reasons why this is the case, but there are specific contributors in answering 911 calls.

911 Dispatchers’ Experience

What do dispatchers actually experience when they are “only” taking these types of calls?

Sounds of Distress

The first point of contact with 911 during a true emergency is when the situation is at its most heightened. This is when people call 911 screaming, wailing, moaning, and sobbing, and it is up to the dispatcher to determine what is happening and assess what is needed based on each scenario.

Due to the frequently chaotic nature of a true emergency call, it is difficult to discern what is happening with enough clarity to make the next decision to help. Dispatchers often take the first steps in managing critical incidents. They try to calm people down before field responders arrive, making the situation less chaotic.

This does not diminish the experience firefighters find themselves facing when they arrive at a call. There is often a high level of chaos, noise, screaming and crying still occurring. This only heightens the need for accurate and helpful information from dispatch to those in the field.

Firefighters and EMS must have the confidence in those who send them to these scenes that they are safe to enter, and should they find themselves in any danger, their dispatchers will have their backs.  

The Story Doesn’t End

Due to being removed from the scene, many dispatchers do not get the end of the story that started so terrifyingly in their ear. They are left with the initial sounds of pain, anger, grief, and fear rather than any sounds of calm, relief, trust, or hope. The field responders get to have a resolution, whether it is positive or negative.

Our brains are amazing things. They have been created with the strong desire for a beginning, middle, and an end in order to process stress. When they do not receive the end, our brains ruminate on it. They play it over and over again like a broken record in our minds, locking in the psychological trauma injury, since there is no way to close the stress cycle loop.

“Rumination is implicated in PTSD, depression, and anxiety … and becomes a closed cognitive loop that is resistant to change or reprocessing.” 

Even though they experience trauma differently, emergency responders and dispatchers share the same experiences. Both sides often forget this. We should remember that we are all part of the story of every call.

Remembering this and taking the time to talk to each other about our experiences would help us understand each other’s jobs better. This would also create a strong sense of connection and community we cannot find anywhere else.

Imaginations Fill in the Blanks

As humans, we have these amazing things called imaginations. Yet for dispatchers, it is these very things that work against us in many of our scenarios. Due to the reasons listed above, our imaginations are working overtime picturing the pain, grief, gore, death, and life-altering injuries that exist on-scene and in our callers’ future. Even if we later find out the situation was more innocuous than it seemed, the images and emotions we felt have already caused the stress injury.

In a study that looks at the potential consequences and benefits to NG911 video technology, the research found those, “who listened to a story had stronger physiological reactions than participants who watched videos of the same story … which may indicate a greater sense of threat to listeners than viewers.”

Those who were involved in the study were only exposed for short durations, so the findings would be increased exponentially for any 911 telecommunicator. Especially considering the typical 12-hour 911 shift has an estimated 10.5 hours of listening to 40-120 calls with only a six-second resting period, some or most of which might be intense or distressing. Therefore, “by extension, prolonged exposure to distressing audio calls might lead to dysregulation and increasing the likelihood for stress-related disorders.”

We’re All on the Same Team

We have the science, the shared experiences, and the shared challenges, so what now? We break down the invisible wall that keeps dispatch and their field responders from recognizing we are all on the same team. No one fights alone, regardless of what side of the radio you are on. This divide has existed for so long, how do we make this cultural shift? 

Debriefs for Dispatch

Include dispatch in the debriefs of what would be considered the critical incident/traumatic calls. They were there at the beginning and middle, let them be a part of the end. Including them also allows everyone involved to connect and realize they share more than just an employer.

Field Exposure

Have dispatch go out and ride along with their firefighters. This exposure to what those in the field experience not only helps dispatchers understand more fully what they do, it also gives them insight into the personal aspects of the job. Dispatch can share how they experience the job, and firefighters can do the same from their side. This offers new and personal perspectives to both groups. Conversely, have firefighters sit with their dispatchers for longer than required during initial training.

Peer Support Participation

Include a dispatcher on peer support teams and ensure their attendance at meetings and training sessions. This will provide dispatch representation and offer insights from both dispatch and firefighter perspectives.

Team building and training together as a unit. We rely on each other, and yet so often know little about who is providing such important information on both sides of the radio. Humanizing each other builds respect and trust, both of which are imperative in building a strong and resilient team. 

Train Together

We are all in this fight together, and want to help those who need us. We all experience stress and trauma injuries because of our jobs. By learning and working together, we can create a better work environment for our responders. This will help our team work more effectively and efficiently, which will benefit the public we serve.

Shannon Polito has been a dispatcher for 15 years in California. She loves the job itself, but her passion goes beyond helping those who call 911 or call out on the radio. She strives to help those who are wearing the headset, which led to her founding Help For the Headset. In addition, she teaches and speaks at conferences to specifically address areas of health and well-being for emergency dispatchers. She believes that with the right training and information, people will be able to be the best dispatchers they can be by being the best and healthiest people they can be.