Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE) by International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED)
(Portland, OR) — AMR’s Portland Communications Center received an unprecedented achievement this year with its sixth consecutive award as an Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE) from the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED). AMR’s first accreditation was in 2004. There are just thirty-seven centers internationally who have received six consecutive awards.
Accredited Centers share a common goal of improving public care and maximizing the efficiency of 911 systems. The International Academies of Emergency Dispatch, through its College of Fellows, has established a high standard of excellence for emergency dispatch, providing tools to achieve this high standard at both the dispatcher level through Certification, and at the communication center level through the Accreditation Program. Locally, AMR’s Communications center is currently the only one that holds ACE accreditation in Oregon. “Most people don’t realize that outside of the primary 911 centers, there are secondary Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) directly involved in the delivery of emergency services,” says Chad Neely, AMR Portland’s Communications Manager. See https://www.emergencydispatch.org
The IAED is a nonprofit standard-setting organization promoting safe and effective emergency dispatch services worldwide. Comprised of three allied Academies for medical, fire, and police dispatching, the IAED supports first responder-related research, unified protocol application, legislation for emergency call center regulation, and strengthening the emergency dispatch community through education, certification, and accreditation.
AMR’s Communication Center staff includes dispatchers, call takers, trainers, supervisors, and a director. On any given day, there are ten to twelve people on the floor. AMR also has a team of six dispatchers certified with the Academy as EMD-Q (Emergency Medical Dispatch-Quality Improvement Specialist) They conduct call audits, provide quality assurance feedback to the team, and maintain their own special accreditation. AMR’s Portland Communications Center handles more than 251,000 calls for 911 emergencies and non-emergency medical transportation each year for Clark and Cowlitz counties in SW Washington, Multnomah, Clackamas, Washington, and Josephine County in Oregon. This spring brought a remodel to AMR’s dispatch center. They added four workstations, a dedicated dispatch-training lab, additional office space, and a quiet room where dispatchers can take a well-earned break.
Nationally, Priority Dispatch's EMD (Emergency Medical Dispatch) Certification Course has been the standard for EMD training. The course meets or exceeds all national criteria set by U.S. Department of Transportation, National Association of EMS Physicians, and others. All of AMR’s Communications Center employees complete up to 18 months of on the job training, which includes the EMD certification course, and additional training. AMR’s customized training process meets all credentials needed for employment. https://learn.org/articles/Emergency_Medical_Dispatching_5_Steps_to_Becoming_an_Emergency_Medical_Dispatcher.html
“Congratulations on your center’s recent ACE achievement!,” writes Josh McFadden, Communication Manager, International Academies of Emergency Dispatch….One of my responsibilities is to promote emergency dispatching and the positive things dispatchers do for the communities they serve. I believe it’s important for people to know that if they need to call 911, they’ll contact an accredited center and speak with a certified, highly trained professional to address their needs.”
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American Medical Response, Inc., America’s leading provider of medical transportation, provides services in 40 states and the District of Columbia. More than 28,000 AMR paramedics, EMTs, RNs and other professionals work together to transport more than 4.8 million patients nationwide each year in critical, emergency and non-emergency situations. AMR also provides fire services through Rural Metro Fire Department, www.ruralmetrofire.com, and managed transportation services through Access2Care, www.access2care.net. AMR is a subsidiary of Global Medical Response, www.GlobalMedicalResponse.com. For more information about AMR, visit www.amr.net and follow American Medical Response on Facebook @AMR_Social on Twitter and Instagram. Locally, AMR provides ambulance services in Multnomah, Clackamas and Clark and Cowlitz Counties. AMR and its predecessor companies have served Portland area communities since 1913.