'We all struggle with PTSD': New law unclear on definition of 911 dispatcher to receive mental health services
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The role of 911 dispatchers is often overlooked when it comes to their involvement with traumatic, life or death situations.
Until this week, they were classified as office workers, leaving them without access to important mental health resources that emergency responders receive.
CBS 2 Investigator Megan Hickey reported from Chicago's Office of Emergency Management with more on the change and what it means.
It's an important step statewide. Before, dispatchers were in the same category as administrative assistants and office clerks.
Now they are considered emergency responders. But critics argue there's still a lot more to be done. They're the voice on the end of the line on someone's worst day of their life. And sometimes, it becomes a dispatcher's worst day, too.
"Shot in the head between the eyes. Both officers unresponsive at hospital."
That's Keith Thornton's emotional voice. He's a former police 911 dispatcher with OEMC. Now, he's a supervisor at a Chicagoland 911 dispatch center.
He's been advocating for making dispatchers "emergency responders" for years. Because, it would allow for greater access for mental health services.
"Having to hear, nonstop, just a wreck, emergencies all day long. We all struggle with PTSD, mental illnesses as well as depression that we go through," Thornton said.
But he said the passage of Senate Bill 3127 that officially went into law this week was a surprise to him. It specifically makes "emergency medical dispatchers" first responders. But he said that doesn't cover everyone.
"We are not emergency medical dispatchers all in totality. We are police call takers. We are fire, and ems," Thornton said.
"It's not entirely clear in how it's written."
Jen McGowan-Tomke of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Chicago agrees there needs to be some additional clarification about which dispatchers this refers to, and discussions about exactly what services are now available.
She points out that federally, dispatchers are still in the category of administrative assistants and office clerks.
McGowan-Tomke and Thornton agree there still needs to be nationwide change in the way dispatchers and their vital, often traumatic jobs, are viewed.
"They are first on the line, the first to hear about a situation that may be evolving and have the same, very similar impacts. Both related to the colleagues they have and the experiences they're hearing from one minute to the next to the next," said McGowan-Tomke said.
CBS 2 reached out to OEMC to ask which employees this new law impacts and how dispatchers go about accessing these new services. The agency issued this statement Friday:
"The City of Chicago Office of Emergency Management and Communications believes that any effort to recognize the critical and life-saving work of any of our 9-1-1 call takers and dispatchers is a step in the right direction. Every day, our 9-1-1 personnel answer and dispatch thousands of emergency calls across the city for traumatic and life-saving incidents. They are the first point of contact for the public when a resident needs police or fire assistance, and the critical work they perform can be overlooked since it occurs behind the scenes. The spirit of the law lends further legitimacy to the critical work that certain 9-1-1 personnel perform every day. The legislation extends certain advantages to emergency medical dispatchers to which we believe they should have access, such as including them in Mental Health Awareness Day, soliciting their perspective and review on various emergency plans and considering their expertise on various alliances and committees. We look forward to incorporating eligible personnel into the defined programs and opportunities, particularly those related to mental health supports. In the future, we would like to see any first responder advantages extended to all public safety telecommunicators, not just emergency medical dispatchers."