Salem, VA’s Emergency-911 Call Center Implements Delphini as a Safeguard to Improve Accuracy and Give Dispatchers and Supervisors Peace of Mind

Introduction

Like many emergency call centers nationwide, the Emergency-911 Call Center in Salem, Virginia, was struggling with technology budget restrictions, recruiting, dispatcher burnout, lack of accurate responses in critical situations, and issues with managers being out of the loop because they couldn’t be always present on the call floor during a shift. Finding a solution to address all these issues seemed unlikely, much less one that was affordable, until Daniel Hartman, Salem’s E-911 Manager, saw a live demonstration of Smart Response Technologies’ (SRT) Delphini at an APCO conference.

Hartman said, “I was blown away by the technology of this AI cloud-based SaaS platform. I knew immediately that it was the all-inclusive solution I had been searching for to make our team more efficient in all areas. The fact that it was also affordable and easy to install was a huge bonus!”

In April 2023, they elected to purchase and implement Delphini, based on four features that met their immediate needs: (1) affordable assistive technology, (2) precise live radio and 911 call speech-to-text transcription, (3) customized keyword highlighting to emphasize important words, terms, and phrases, and (4) the mobile app.

Just six months later, the E-911 Call Center is achieving 71% improved accuracy, and they foresee the percentage increasing as new dispatchers and call takers train from the beginning using Delphini as a tool to reinforce the development of a radio ear. They appreciate being able to review audio using the playback feature and recognize the benefit of having visual support with the speech-to-text transcription and keyword highlights.

Overall, the team has seen a reduction in burnout, and during annual wellness checks, the E-911 telecommunicators reported a decrease in their stress levels during a shift as well as in their personal down time. They feel a bit more relaxed knowing Delphini has them covered to ensure they provide a more accurate and timely response.

“I think of Delphini as my partner on the job. It’s a safeguard that keeps me and my team efficient, accurate, and strong mentally, which in turn is saving more lives in our community and keeping it safer,” said Hartman. 

Customer’s Challenges/The Opportunity

Salem E-911 had three main obstacles to overcome – budgets, staffing, and time management for managers – the same issues facing most call centers nationwide. Budgets are tight so that effects the purchase of new technology, managers are pulled in many different directions during a shift, and it’s difficult to maintain a fully staffed center when recruiting is challenged to find candidates who are willing and able to endure the mental strain that comes with the job. Additionally, there is dispatcher burnout because of the ongoing pressure to respond quickly and accurately, combined with the stress of constantly speaking with people in emergency situations.

Hartman said, “These non-sworn employees are often times the first links of aid for many persons in an emergency situation and the stress and burnout that comes with that responsibility can be difficult to handle.”

Although Hartman’s team already had “pretty fast” response times, he recognized there were some issues with accuracy that needed to be addressed. Having downtime wasn’t enough for dispatchers to overcome their anxiety with getting it right so Hartman had been searching for a tool to assist his people on the job. But the solution would have to be affordable, easy to use, and easy to train.

Delphini was that solution! The assistive AI cloud-based SaaS platform is affordable, simple-to-use, doesn’t require special hardware, and dispatchers can come up to speed on it in just five days. Plus, the complementary mobile app component keeps managers always notified, informed, and on top of things when they are being pulled in multiple directions.

Why Delphini Was Chosen

Hartman saw a live demonstration of the product at an APCO conference and quickly realized Delphini was unique and something the call center could benefit from. He recognized the huge impact the speech-to-text transcription and keyword highlights could have on improving accuracy, but he was also particularly excited about implementing the playback feature and having access to a mobile app.

“As a manager, I’m frequently scheduled in meetings and working on requirements for the department so I’m not always in the call center monitoring what’s happening. But with Delphini, I never worry about missing something because I can be notified instantly on my cell phone through the mobile app if there’s an urgent situation that requires my attention. And I can always listen to the playback to get the full story and stay caught up with what’s transpired during a shift,” said Hartman.

“These features are especially awesome for supervisors because they give us the freedom to multi-task while eliminating my fear of missing something since I can’t be in two places at once. Delphini is my safeguard.”

Furthermore, Delphini provides the dispatchers and call takers with improved observations leading to more job confidence, better decisions, and quicker actions on the highest priority incidents, which helps them maintain peace of mind both on and off the job, lessening burnout.

Hartman also noted that Delphini is a reliable, easy-to-use AI cloud-based SaaS platform that’s affordable and simple to implement compared to other login recorders. He appreciates that it can run simultaneously with other applications and platforms, which is appealing to his IT support team.

The Results

In less than a year, the E-911 Call Center is achieving 71% improved accuracy, and they foresee the percentage increasing as new dispatchers and call takers train from the beginning using Delphini as a tool to reinforce the development of a radio ear. They appreciate being able to review audio using the playback feature and recognize the benefit of having visual support with the speech-to-text transcription and keyword highlights.

Telecommunicator Charly Jones said, “The keyword alerts are incredibly helpful and have reduced my stress on the job because I don’t work in fear of missing something vital to saving someone’s life, including police officers. Even if their radio communication is muddled and unclear, Delphini picks it up and transcribes it perfectly, especially license plate numbers. I don’t have to ask them to repeat something, which saves valuable response time and allows the police officer to maintain focus on the situation at hand.”

Overall, the call center has seen a reduction in burnout, and during annual wellness checks, the E-911 telecommunicators reported a decrease in their stress levels during a shift as well as in their personal down time. They feel a bit more relaxed knowing Delphini has them covered to ensure they provide a more accurate and timely response.

As a bonus, the police department used Delphini’s pre-event emergency planning feature ahead of the annual Salem fair, one of the top 100 fairs in the country, to create a comprehensive pre-event plan to ensure better coordination and communication between the police and fire departments and public works if needed during a time of crisis. Communities are safer when dispatchers have immediate access to centralized pre-community event plans (marathons, parades, street fairs and festivals, outdoor concerts, etc.) and pre-crisis event plans (active shooters, bomb threats, hostages, etc.), which can be customized in Delphini ahead of time to ensure accurate, swift, life-saving responses. “It’s crucial to public safety to be proactive instead of reactive,” said Hartman.

When asked about SRT’s commitment to customer service, Hartman replied, “SRT is great at taking constructive feedback and revising our custom features as needed. Their team has quick response times and I appreciate their dedication to maintaining an exceptional product. It’s a pleasure working with them.”

Call-to-Action

For a free product demonstration and to find out more about Smart Response Technologies and Delphini, email info@smartresponsetech.com to schedule an appointment with one of SRT’s experts, or visit the website: Smart Response Technologies.

Customer Overview

Emergency-911 Call Center
Salem, VA
Contact: Daniel Hartman, E-911 Manager

The E-911 Call Center in Salem, Virginia is part of the Police Department’s Communications Division and operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week with two supervisors and 14 dispatchers/call takers (known as telecommunicators) working four people per shift. Annually, the call center answers 19,000 911 calls, 44,000 non-emergency assistance calls, and coordinates over 50,000 police and fire events. The busiest hours are 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. and domestic disputes are the most frequent calls in this area, including mental health issues and concerns.

The City of Salem was established in 1802 in the Shenandoah Valley Region situated between the Allegheny and Blue Ridge Mountains on Roanoke River. With an historic downtown, Salem is an independent city surrounded by Roanoke County and encompasses 14.5 square miles.

In 2023, the estimated population is 25,371 with a median age of 40.8 years and an average household income of $90,891. At 95.44%, most Salem residents speak only English, while 4.56% speak other languages. (Source: https://worldpopulationreview.com/us-cities/salem-va-population)

Known as “Virginia’s Championship City,” Salem has a reputation for hosting first-class sporting events, including the NCAA Division III football championship since 1993. The city also hosts the annual Salem Fair, recognized as one of the top 100 fairs and expositions in the country.

From “Main Street to the Mountains,” Salem offers the perfect mix of the past and present.

Company Overview

Smart Response Technologies (SRT) is a Veteran-owned small business headquartered in the Dayton, Ohio area creating assistive AI solutions for first responders’ biggest communication challenges. SRT works side-by-side with its customers and collaborates with other cloud native companies to enable more efficient, less stressful 911 workflows. When agencies are strapped for resources, trying to maintain quality of service can be difficult. SRT tackles these challenges with an affordable, resilient, and highly secure, cloud-based SaaS platform. The firm’s cognitive technology quickly activates with no impact to the existing public safety systems and serves as the smart way to support efficient use of resources. Smart Response Technologies

Product Overview

Derived from the Latin root for dolphin, the name Delphini is inspired by the collaborative nature of dolphins. These highly intelligent and conscientious sea animals look out for each other, traveling in pods with very efficient communication techniques to send important messages that ensure survival and security. Scientists believe each dolphin’s mother assigns it a unique signature whistle for identification.

Specially designed with dispatchers in mind, Delphini is an affordable ground-breaking AI subscription cloud-based SaaS platform that provides multiple channel monitoring using a simplified dashboard to deliver real-time updated information through live radio and 911 call speech-to-text transcription, customizable keyword highlights, and live mapping updates. Developed by SRT in cooperation with the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) at Wright-Patterson Air Force Base using a $5M federal investment, Delphini is the patented solution to miscommunication and missed communication, revolutionizing emergency call centers nationwide and eliminating some of the dispatcher stress and burnout.

The platform is proven to increase audio comprehension by 70% and communications effectiveness by 55%, while enhancing accuracy in transcribing and improving the efficiency and timeliness of coordinated responses. As a result, dispatchers gain confidence and competency, which helps to dramatically reduce stress and burnout on the job.

SRT has the exclusive commercial licensing rights to Delphini and markets the product to command & control centers, correction facilities, event management, and courthouse, corporate, and campus security.

Product Features

Delphini is a reliable, easy-to-use assistive AI cloud-based SaaS platform that displays on consoles, tablets, and smartphones, providing the emergency call taker with improved observations leading to more job confidence, better decisions, and quicker actions on the highest priority incidents that shorten response times resulting in the saving of more lives. The patented product features are:

Customizable Keyword Highlights – alerts priority words, terms, and phrases

Live Radio and 911 Call Speech-to-Text Transcription – in both English and Spanish

Multiple Channel Monitoring at once – uses a simplified dashboard

3D Spatial Audio – increases comprehension

Pinpointing – identifies specific location of the incident

Live Mapping Updates – streamlines troubleshooting and management operations

Flag Lines – enables adding of notes for later review

Playback – enables review of past transmissions

Data Rich Symbols – verifies and enhances verbal data

Working in unison, these unique features are eliminating missed communication and miscommunication at emergency dispatch centers nationwide, while helping to solve many of the physical and mental challenges call takers incur on the job.

Implementing Delphini

Delphini is user-friendly and takes approximately one week on average to come up to speed.

The implementation for Salem’s E-911 Call Center was simple. Delphini does not require a software download or special hardware adjustments. It is a cloud-based platform with easy access using a login and password, and it works cooperatively with existing SaaS platforms already installed or available on the call center’s systems.

Once Delphini was initiated at the E-911 Call Center, SRT experts provided access to online video training tutorials and collaborated directly with management through video chats and conference calls to set up their custom keywords and phrases in the live speech-to-text transcription feature. Additionally, SRT provided one-on-one guidance for dispatchers as needed and followed up regularly to answer any questions.

To maintain quality control and ensure call centers are optimizing Delphini’s features, SRT schedules virtual training seminars frequently.