WARREN COUNTY, Ohio — A new 911 simulation program at the Warren County Career Center is helping students learn how to be dispatchers, our news partners at WCPO reported.
Abby Trusty, a student in a criminal justice program at the career center, said she chose the program because she wants to make a difference.
She and many other students are hoping to become police officers, but in Ohio, you have to be 21.
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The new 911 simulator is giving these students a criminal justice career option while they wait to be eligible for the police academy.
The instructor or the student will choose a scenario for the simulator and make the call. Then, the student will answer and practice asking questions and putting the right information into the system to help first responders.
“Some of the calls are very stressful, like sometimes you don’t know exactly what to say on the spot,” Trusty said.
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Trusty said running these practice scenarios and getting feedback from people working in the field helps her feel more prepared. People giving feedback said the program will help the field, too.
“It’s going to drastically determine the turnover rate,” said Keith Phillips, the communications supervisor for the Lebanon Police Department.
Those in the field say it’s facing a worker shortage.
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“We’re having a hard time finding people who are wanting to work and not only wanting to work but have the ability to handle the traumatic types of calls that we take on a regular basis,” said Samantha Hall, the dispatch/911 training coordinator for Warren County Emergency Services.
Hall said they are down four employees in Warren County, which causes those who are employed there to work 16-hour shifts at times. But Hall said that for all the challenges, there are some big benefits.
“It’s incredible the impact that you have on people’s lives every single day,” Hall said.
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