Study Shows Satisfaction with 911

EMERGENCY MEASURES ORGANIZATION-Study Shows Satisfaction with 911

A report on the 911 service in the province shows 93 per cent of people surveyed are very satisfied with it. The report also shows nearly 90 per cent of people are highly confident that by calling 911 their emergency needs will be met.

The report was commissioned last year in response to concerns by volunteer fire chiefs in the Halifax Regional Municipality. Conducted by the Halifax consulting firm DMR, it involved about 1,200 interviews with 911 users, call takers, dispatchers and emergency responders such as fire and police chiefs and paramedics.

Kennie MacAskill, Minister responsible for the Emergency Measures Act, who released the report today, said the results are encouraging. He said a number of opportunities for improvements such as the routing of cellular calls, posting of civic address signs and medical response protocols have been identified and will be addressed.

"Obviously, our target is to satisfy 100 per cent of the people who use and provide emergency services," said the minister. "We will do whatever is necessary to achieve that objective. This report will be a helpful tool in identifying and setting priorities for improvement."

The report will now be handed over to the Minister's 911 Advisory Committee for recommendations to implement changes.

The 911 service began provincewide in July 1997. Since then, about 300,000 calls have been handled.

Highlights of the report include:

• the most commonly cited benefit was that 911 is a single, easy-to-remember number to access all emergency services, anywhere in the province

• 93 per cent of users surveyed indicated the system met their expectations

• almost 88 per cent of people surveyed indicated they were "very confident" in 911's ability to meet their emergency needs

• 97 per cent of those surveyed would recommend other Nova Scotians call 911 in an emergency

• emergency responders said the 911 system supports their work in meeting the public safety needs of Nova Scotians; they mentioned 911's ability to identify a caller's phone number and address as a benefit, especially for police who respond to no voice or abandoned 911 calls

• responders reported that 911 call-taking and call-dispatch procedures are highly successful in meeting the needs and expectations of recent users

• responders generally agreed that 911 has made a positive contribution to civic addressing, particularly in rural areas

• both callers and responders reported lower satisfaction levels when reporting an emergency with a cellular phone; responders also expressed concern about dead zones for cell communication

• emergency responders expressed concern about the absence of clearly posted civic numbers, especially in rural areas; many 911 callers surveyed did not seem to be fully aware of the importance of posting a visible sign for emergency response. The report suggests a need for more awareness, standards and public education

• responders raised the issue of problems with street names; the report's operations assessment also mentioned that information in the field is inconsistent with the database

• the report concludes that negative comments in the media have decreased efficiency and effectiveness of the program, and these comments are due to lack of buy-in from various stakeholders such as emergency responders

NOTE: Copies of the report are available at Communications Nova Scotia, third Floor, 1723 Hollis St., Halifax, or by calling 902-424-4492. The report can also be viewed on the Web at: http://www.gov.ns.ca/envi/dept/emo/911/emo_911.htm .