When a caller who has set up an account with Smart 911 dials into emergency services, his or her information appears to the dispatcher, along with the information of everyone associated with the account. (Courtesy Jessamine County 911 / February 8, 2012) |
Jessamine County made the smart choice when implementing a new nationwide program geared at providing emergency service personnel with information that could mean the difference between life or death, Jessamine County 911 director Shelby Horn said.
Rave Mobile Safety’s program, Smart911, is a free emergency data-filing system that was implemented in June 2011 in Jessamine along with surrounding counties including Fayette and Franklin.
To date, the company boasts more than 5 million registered members across 20 states, and close to 1,000 of those reside in Jessamine County alone. It’s a small fraction of the overall county if you consider there are 17,482 registered households with two or more people, but a number of which Horn said she is proud and will push to increase.
In 2011, local emergency 911 dispatch fielded 43,920 calls, most of which were not signed up with Smart911 but who could have been better helped had their personal information been made available, Horn said. That is almost one call to 911 per person residing in Jessamine County when matched with the 2010 census of 48,586. In response to the high call volume and the success of the program, Horn said after hours they are working hard to get everyone in the county signed up.
“I cannot say enough about the services (Smart911)" provides,” she said. “There are so many different benefits.”
The service
The main benefit, Horn said, is the ability to give first-responders vital information such as preexisting medical conditions like allergies or if a person may have a physical or mental handicap.
Any person can sign up a phone number, and when he or she dials 911, the dispatcher automatically receives the caller’s information that can then be relayed to a responding emergency unit.
There is no limit to the amount of phone numbers a member can assign to an account. This feature can also aid in notifying family immediately if there is a problem, she said. For example, if a teenager is in a car wreck, the profile can give information on who to contact, such as the mother and father.
“It’s also important because fewer and fewer people use landlines and calls come in from a cell phone nowadays,” Horn said. “Though we can pinpoint the location of the call, it’s much faster and more accurate to get the information this way.”
Another feature allows members to upload photos including the layout of the house, family members, pets and vehicles associated with the property.
The free service is completely dependent on the amount of information the member chooses to supply; there is no set amount or limit. However, it requires an update every six months.
“No information is better than wrong information,” Horn said. “Which is why one of the safeguards requires the six-month update, or it’s deleted.”
It’s for everyone
The target market, GIS addressing coordinator Chris Bowman said, are families with very young, elderly and/or physically/mentally disabled persons.
In the case of a small child, a photo can be used to quickly set up an Amber Alert or for an elderly person, a Golden Alert.
However, Bowman said, there have been success stories outside of that demographic.
“A young girl, maybe 25, just saw the billboard for Smart911 and didn’t think she’d ever use it but said to herself, ‘It’s free and I’m just going to sign up for it anyway,’” he said. “Two weeks later, she called for an ambulance and couldn’t speak, and the call provided all the information about her to the ambulance service.
“And, she wasn’t the target audience, she wasn’t the elderly or the very young. But she wrote us to say how glad she was she signed up for the program.”
That is just one of the success stories and why Bowman said everyone should sign up.
“It costs nothing,” he said, “but it could mean a lot.”
Silent communication
Another feature of Smart911 that can help in a dire situation is the ability to communicate via text with 911 dispatch in the case of an emergency when silence is a necessity, such as a case of a small child who’s alone at home.
“If there is a break-in and the child is under the bed hiding and needs to call 911 but does not want to make a sound,” Jessamine County deputy director Tammy Durham said. “Or, say if a person is stung by a bee and cannot speak; getting their information is critical, but they cannot verbally relay it.”
With regular 911 service, texting is not an option, Durham said.
Secrets are safe
Privacy is also a concern in the modern electronic age, Rave CEO Tom Axbey said, one which he ensures his company takes very seriously. The information provided to Smart911 is unavailable, even to them, unless the user calls in to the 911 dispatch.
“Privacy — it’s very important,” Axbey said. “And it’s very well protected. A third-party firm tests our firewalls every three months, and everything we have is encrypted.”
Axbey also said Rave has a very stringent “terms and conditions” policy developed to ensure maximum protection of all information.
He also urges anyone who signs up to for anything online to become familiar with the “terms and condition” agreement that they click on.
“What most people don’t realize is most of that information is less secure on social networks such as their Facebook page or their shopping accounts; those are more onerous,” he said. “We are much more secure, and the information provided is kept safe until needed.”
