Public Safety Telecommunicator Part-Time (Dispatch)

City of Des Moines•Des Moines, IA

About The Position

This highly responsible position operates an emergency service console, receiving and dispatching emergency and non-emergency calls on an assigned shift. The Telecommunicator promptly, efficiently, and accurately receives, dispatches, and processes calls over 911 and related emergency systems from the public and authorized personnel requiring police and fire responses. Work is ordinarily performed independently under established procedures, with new or unusual problems referred to a superior for guidance. The part-time position augments full-time Telecommunicator staffing by filling vacant shifts to provide minimal coverage. Available hours vary across the 24/7 period according to daily, special, or emergent staffing needs. Shifts are four or eight hours within these scheduled periods: 1st Shift, 10:30 p.m.–6:30 a.m.; 2nd Shift, 6:30 a.m.–2:30 p.m.; and 3rd Shift, 2:30 p.m.–10:30 p.m. Finalists proceed to an onsite CritiCall performance test proctored by the City of Des Moines.

Requirements

High school graduation or GED.
Experience working in a 911 call center or similar work environment.
Successfully complete the State of Iowa Basic 40 Hour Telecommunicator Training within the first year of employment.
Obtain NCIC and Emergency Medical Dispatch certifications during the first year of employment and maintain them throughout employment as a Public Safety Telecommunicator.
Complete CPR and AED training and obtain CPR certification within the first year of employment.
Pass a post-employment-offer physical examination and drug screen.
Pass a background check.

Nice To Haves

Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) certification is preferred.

Responsibilities

Receive calls for police, fire, and emergency medical services through 911 and other telephone lines.
Determine the nature of complaints by asking appropriate questions.
Enter incident location, type, and description into the computer-aided dispatch system (CADS).
Route non-service calls and calls for other agencies to the appropriate local, state, or federal agencies.
For emergency medical calls, use established questioning protocols and provide post-dispatch and pre-arrival instructions.
Send and receive messages through a computer terminal connected to the IOWA/NCIC systems.
Receive service calls from CADS or field personnel and review the status of available police units.
Select appropriate police units and dispatch them by voice radio and/or mobile data computer; update unit status in CADS as changes occur.
Select appropriate fire/rescue stations and transmit information over the fire radio; update unit status in CADS as changes occur.
Perform other related duties as assigned.