§ 1027.4. EMS agency dispatch centers.
(a) Certification required. Effective October 13, 2015, an EMS agency that operates an EMS agency dispatch center shall use call-takers and dispatchers who are certified and maintain certification as call-takers and dispatchers by the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency under 35 Pa.C.S. § 5303(a)(6) (relating to telecommunications management).
(b) Costs. The costs associated with the education, certification and recertification of an EMS agency dispatch center’s call-takers and dispatchers are the responsibility of the EMS agency.
(c) Requirements. An EMS agency that operates an EMS agency dispatch center shall:
(1) Establish and maintain policies and procedures approved by the Department to aid in directing the daily operation of the EMS agency dispatch center.
(2) Utilize emergency medical dispatch protocols approved by the Department. Effective July 9, 2014, an EMS agency dispatch center shall use the emergency medical dispatch program used by the emergency communications center of the county in which the EMS agency dispatch center is located.
(3) Require its call-takers to satisfy performance standards that are based on Nationally-accepted emergency medical dispatch standards. An EMS agency dispatch center shall submit these performance standards, and changes, to the Department for approval. At a minimum, an EMS agency dispatch center’s performance standards shall measure a call-taker’s ability to:
(i) Answer the telephone quickly and correctly and verify the location of the incident.
(ii) Obtain a callback telephone number from the person making the call.
(iii) Determine the nature of the incident and select and assign the appropriate EMS response to the incident.
(iv) Obtain all pertinent information quickly and effectively, make updates accordingly and keep the caller on the line until the required information is obtained.
(v) Control the conversation with the caller and exhibit a calm and professional demeanor.
(vi) Demonstrate proper documentation of the information received on call-taker screens or cards.
(4) Require its dispatchers to satisfy performance standards that are based on Nationally accepted emergency medical dispatch standards. An EMS agency dispatch center shall submit these performance standards, and changes, to the Department for approval. At a minimum, an EMS agency dispatch center’s performance standards shall measure a dispatcher’s ability to:
(i) Dispatch the appropriate EMS resources within the prescribed timeframe established by the EMS agency dispatch center’s standard operating procedures.
(ii) Provide pertinent information to the responding units and relay updated information about the incident to the responding units.
(iii) Answer radio transmissions promptly and exhibit a timely response to requests from the responding units as established by the EMS agency dispatch center’s standard operating procedures.
(iv) Speak clearly and maintain a professional demeanor.
(5) Establish a quality assurance review process that is executed with consistency and objectivity in accordance with internal standards developed by the EMS agency.
(i) The EMS agency shall use the quality assurance review process to identify additional or supplemental education needed to improve a call-taker’s or dispatcher’s job performance.
(ii) The EMS agency shall use the quality assurance review process to determine whether any processes of the EMS agency dispatch center require modification or change.
(6) Designate a quality assurance reviewer who shall:
(i) Function at a supervisory level.
(ii) Have a minimum of 3 years of experience in the field of emergency telecommunications.
(iii) Be a member of the EMS agency’s quality improvement committee under § 1027.3(l) (relating to licensure and general operating standards).
(iv) Conduct a random sampling of emergency dispatch calls that will be reviewed every 2 weeks to ensure compliance with the performance standards in this section as well as the standards in the standard operating procedures of each EMS agency dispatch center.
(v) Conduct a monthly quality assurance review of 5% of the total emergency dispatch calls the EMS agency dispatch center processes per month.
(vi) Conduct a quality assurance review, every 6 months, of a segment of each call-taker’s and dispatcher’s radio activity to determine adherence to the standards in this section and the EMS agency dispatch center’s performance standards.
(A) Call-takers and dispatchers shall receive the results of their quality assurance reviews within 5 days of each review.
(B) Actual transcripts or recordings of phone calls made to and from an EMS agency dispatch center are not public records to the extent they are protected under the Right-to-Know Law (65 P. S. § § 67.101—67.3104) and may not be included in the text of a quality assurance review. Actual transcripts or recordings of phone calls may be reviewed by the quality assurance reviewer as part of the quality assurance review.
(vii) Complete a quality assurance review for each segment reviewed on a form approved by the Department. Copies of each quality assurance review shall be retained on file at the EMS agency dispatch center for 4 years.
(7) Ensure that quality assurance actions that are initiated in response to the results of a quality assurance review are documented and placed in the EMS agency dispatch center’s records. Copies of each quality assurance action shall be retained on file at the EMS agency dispatch center for 4 years.
(8) Refer to the PSAP in its area a request for EMS for which it is unable to dispatch appropriate EMS resources within the time prescribed by the PSAP.
(9) Ensure that persons are not denied access to EMS because of the inability or limited ability to communicate in the English language, including hearing impaired or deaf persons.
(10) Ensure that the EMS agency dispatch center’s call-takers and dispatchers are subject to this quality assurance review process.
(11) Ensure that quality assurance reviews are used to support the development and assessment of goals and expectations on each call-taker’s and dispatcher’s yearly performance appraisal.
Source The provisions of this § 1027.4 adopted October 11, 2013, effective April 10, 2014, 43 Pa.B. 6093.
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