911 Dispatchers are our unsung heroes. They help us when we're in need. So what happens when they need help?
A High Point dispatcher had a medical emergency on the job, just as he sat down to assist others with their own. He was just minutes into his shift according to Supervisor Kyle Thaggard.
"He began looking at the pending calls for service and coming up for a plan of action and then suddenly realized he didn’t feel correct," Thaggard said.
The employee was having a serious medical emergency. Thaggard didn't want to specify the emergency or the employee's name for privacy reasons.
"He turned around and asked his colleagues, or made a statement out into the room that said 'I need help.'"
His coworkers in the room rushed to his side.
"One of his colleagues is an EMT and came over and started assessing him and quickly realized he was indeed having a medical emergency."
All the right people were around the 911 dispatcher. They were able to get him to the hospital quickly.
"Because of their swift actions he got the medical attention that he needed in a very, very short amount of time and it probably saved his life."
Thaggard says this certainly doesn't happen every day, but he has learned to expect the unexpected at the 911 center.
"It's not a common occurrence that’s for sure but that’s one thing about this job that makes it very unique we’re always prepared for the unexpected, and this proved that we were ready."