When it comes to critical incident preparedness, recognition and debriefing, police departments often forget an important member of the team: the dispatcher.
Very often, a dispatcher is the first (or last) person to talk to a suicidal person, a dying crime victim or a key witness. An experienced dispatcher may notice nuances in a person’s voice or be able to detect stress or deception over the phone, which can be relayed to the responding officers. They may also witness background noises or spontaneous statements that may become key to your case. Make sure your dispatchers receive officer survival and basic investigative training so that they have a better understanding of what they should be asking the caller, what they should be relating to their units, and what they should do if they sense something isn’t right.
Just as important, after a critical incident, don’t forget to involve your dispatchers in the debriefing. As I talked about in a recent article, dispatchers are often left “in the dark” after a crisis. They often get no closure and no outlet to process their role in the incident. Don’t leave them out of this important opportunity to not only vent but to learn and to heal.
Finally, when the chief or sheriff is handing out those commendations and awards, don’t forget the person who took the call, or directed you to the scene, or kept track of you during the entire stand off, or warned you that the situation was deteriorating, or maybe did all of the above and more. Dispatchers are a valuable member of our team; let’s not forget their many heroic contributions to our mission. Make sure they get the recognition they deserve.