Bartholomew County Celebrates National Telecommunicators Week

Bartholomew County Celebrates National Telecommunicators Week

Each year, the second week of April, is dedicated to the men and women who serve as Telecommunications Officers. In October 1991, Congress made a Formal Proclamation to recognize this week as National Telecommunicator's Week.

Ed Reuter, Director of the Bartholomew County Emergency 911 Center, says he is "very proud of the dispatchers who perform the duties that serve as a valuable link between the twenty-one agencies serving Bartholomew County".  The Emergency Operation 911 Center opened in July of 2001 and since that time, Reuter says dispatchers have processed over 1.6 million telephone calls with over a quarter-of-a-million of those calls being emergency 9-1-1 calls.

Earlier in the week, the Bartholomew County Commissioner's issued a Proclamation to recognize the county's local dispatchers. Reuter speciffically recognizes four dispatchers for their distinguished service.
 
Shannon Stuart has been employed with the County for ten years, 5 of those as a dispatcher. Scott Crase has been a dispatcher for over 3 years. The pair went above and beyond this past February when they received a call from an elderly woman who needed help in removing snow from her drive in order to leave her house for an important doctor's appointment.  After exhausting all efforts to find someone to help this woman, they finally took it upon themselves to go to her house and remove the snow for the snowbound caller.

Vicki Amos, a dispatcher for 13 years, received a call from a elderly woman asking for help to save her husband's life.  Dispatcher Amos provided detailed CPR directions in a very kind and compassionate manner throughout the 9-1-1 call.  While this was occurring she was able to dispatch EMS and fire personnel who arrived within 6 minutes in rural Bartholomew County.  Even though the efforts of the caller, dispatcher, firefighters and EMS personnel were unsuccessful, Reuter says everyone gave a gallant effort to do everything possible to save a life.

Brittney Watson a dispatcher for over 3 years, received a call in November of a 23 year old, who was not breathing.  She gave clear directions that resulted in the victim breathing again.  She was in control and was very calm and compassionate throughout the call.  As Watson provided directions to the caller, the caller was in turn giving directions someone who was performing the CPR. 
 
Reuter says these are just a few examples of events that have occurred over the past year. He noted that these dispatchers are the first, and sometimes the only, point of contact to the public's request for help. Reuter added "On every call they have to be prepared for the unexpected and at times the unimaginable."