911 call center dispatchers help us at our most dire moments, and we expect them to do it calmly and professionally. In St. Joseph County, dispatchers will soon get some help themselves.
We rely on calling 911 in an emergency and getting immediate, accurate help. But what happens to the person on the other end of that call, especially after they’ve fielded many other such calls over their shift?
On Tuesday St. Joseph County commissioners approved a request to get 911 dispatchers more support. The request came from Julie Tobey, executive director of the county’s 911 center.
Commissioners authorized the center to contract with licensed clinical social worker Jessica Lala, owner of Resiliency Coaching & Consulting. The contract will cover next year.
Tobey said she’s eager to have Lala available to come in and counsel a dispatcher after they’ve handled an especially stressful situation.
"We are finding that the calls are getting tougher," Tobey told commissioners. "We need to find a way to get help provided to our dispatchers sooner. We are not taking care of ourselves like we should so I'm hoping to provide them with some tools to deal with the stress, and not taking it home, or not bringing home here, and how to separate that."
