COVID-19 has created more demands on 911 dispatch services than ever before, as ambulatory services fielded an increase in pandemic-related calls. The situation has escalated to the point where some municipalities are directing 911 traffic to 311 centers, which typically take calls for garbage collection or information about city or county services.
Next-generation 911 (NG911) operation centers are now part of a technology ecosystem that allows public safety and law enforcement personnel to correlate 911 and location services data from disparate sources to respond to crises more effectively — and even solve crimes. So, the time is ripe for NG911 centers to become full-blown contact centers.
Historically, 911 has been managed as two queues — a nonemergency queue and an emergency queue. Callers are answered in the order they are received. There is no queuing or skills-based routing in which customers are assigned to agents with the most relevant skills to manage their concerns. An example of skills-based routing would be sending Spanish-speaking customers to agents that can speak Spanish. NG911 operations must integrate more with 311, especially as 311 centers bear the extra load.
Even with the extra calls, the 311 centers are holding up. Why? Because 311 centers are legitimate contact centers. They have skills-based routing and queues based upon the reasons citizens are calling. If NG911 and 311 centers are combined, emergency operation centers can utilize workforce optimization plans to leverage a wider pool of call takers, enabling them to deal with absences due to COVID-19.
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE IS KEY
Artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and a host of other analytical technologies are needed to better serve the needs of the public, as well as call center agents and emergency operators in the field. Call centers with an AI engine can process video and provide better insights about the caller’s situation for first responders on the ground.
Citizens are increasingly dialing 911 from their cellphones with the capability of sending video to emergency operations centers. For example, that means American Sign Language (ASL) can be used for 911. While many 911 callers are already multilingual depending on the location of the region, interpreting sign language is a different skill from speaking English or Spanish. AI can be used to route the call to the appropriate queue with an ASL interpreter.
AI can also help monitor the mental and physical health of call center agents. Accidents or events can be traumatizing, causing dispatchers to be susceptible to PTSD from assisting callers through distressing events. Technology such as speech analytics can help identify call center agents who experience a PTSD-inducing call. For example, if there has been a call about an injury with a child and the call taker has a child, a supervisor can take the agent offline after the call and have them talk with somebody in social services, if needed. Today, these types of AI-based technologies are already in contact centers.
USING FIRST RESPONDER TIME JUDICIOUSLY
The deeper integration of 911 and 311 centers would help dispatchers send the right responder to the right situation at the right time. For example, does a badged police officer need to be sent to a noninjury accident? The police officer is only going to fill out an accident report. But what if the police department can send an insurance liaison, someone inside the police department who is trained by the different insurance agencies, to collect the required information? They can go to the scene, assess the situation and submit the appropriate form. A police officer is not needed for that situation.
In Austin, Texas, non-life-threatening crimes are being routed to 311 centers. Let’s say that a robbery has been committed, but the robbers have left and there are no injuries. A police officer might be sent out later to the scene, freeing up police officers working on incidents that need more immediate attention.
Additionally, more law enforcement agencies are having a social worker go along with police officers for domestic disturbances to help defuse the high emotions that occur during such calls. That requires skills-based routing and skills-based dispatching.
THE TECHNOLOGY IS HERE NOW
On a large scale, NG911 data is being pulled into what now can be described as real-time crime and emergency management centers. State and local governments have full-time operation centers with data coming from multiple channels — NG911, license plate readers, traffic cameras, etc. — all the time. The next step is to infuse contact center technology into 911 and 311 centers for a more cohesive experience for citizens, routing them to the agent that best serves their needs, and more efficiency and mental well-being for law enforcement and public safety workers.
Sponsor Content
