CHESAPEAKE, Va. — In moments of emergency and crisis, they are the first line of help.
The country’s emergency dispatchers are honored this week as part of a national appreciation week, National Public Safety Telecommunicators Week. However, some in Hampton Roads are tasked with doing more with less.
“You never know what’s going to be on the other end of that call,” said Stephanie Taylor, a dispatch supervisor with the Chesapeake Police Dept.’s Public Safety and Emergency Communications Unit
Decision-makers like Taylor are on critical deadlines, as they are the first line of contact between you and your emergency.
“People are calling on what could be the worst day of their life,” Taylor said.
The work never changes inside the Chesapeake Police Dept.'s Emergency Operations Center, even if the number of call takers does.
Taylor said this department alone is down roughly 20 openings. That's 20 vacancies that lead to less people to handle emergencies, meaning more responsibilities have fallen on a fewer number of people.
In 2021, Chesapeake received 234,000 inbound calls, with 105,000 being 911 calls. It averages roughly 10,000 non-emergency and emergency calls per month.
This isn’t the highest number of vacancies they’ve seen either. Taylor said the department has had as many as 30 vacancies in the last six months. So depending on the time of day, this shortage could lead to a wait time just because there aren’t enough people to pick up the phone.
According to Taylor, the department has mandatory overtime in place to ensure minimum staffing requirements are met, which she said results in 20 mandatory overtime hours per month. This can lead to longer-than-expected workdays, or people coming in on days where they could've previously been off.
“911 calls are priority, but with less people answering, there could be a hold time on those as well," Taylor said.
So while this week the country honors dispatchers everywhere, remember that many like Taylor might be doing more for us with less.
In Newport News, a spokesperson for the police department said their dispatching staff there currently has five openings as well.
“What we do makes a difference. That far outweighs the stressors of the job,” Taylor said.