In an emergency, time is the single most critical factor of incident response. The speed of emergency response can determine the number of casualties, a victim’s recovery time, and the trauma that bystanders experience.
For these reasons, emergency responders must receive, process, and respond to emergency notifications as quickly as possible. Critical incident mapping reduces response times and aids in school safety planning.
Emergency response times vary:
- Emergency Medical Services (EMS) standards establish a turnout time of four minutes or less for the arrival of a unit with first responder or higher level capability at an emergency medical incident.
- The US national average police response time is 11 minutes.
- On average, it takes police departments 6.7 minutes to dispatch officers to a call.
- The average response time for active shooter incidents is three minutes.
- In rural areas, the average police response time can be as high as 20 minutes.
- Adverse weather conditions, when combined with longer distances and geographical obstacles, can significantly affect response or transport times.
911 Response: a Multi-step Process
Though police response times have improved by 18% over the past decade, the steps involved in dispatching and responding to 911 calls often cause delays. According to the National Police Association, victims and bystanders often hesitate to call 911 in the first place. When they do, 911 calls must be routed to the correct responders.
Many communities have a central dispatcher who connects calls to law enforcement, the fire department, and paramedics. Determining which responders and resources to deploy takes time. Dispatchers must gather information from the caller, whose stress can make clear communication difficult. Erroneous or incomplete information about an emergency can cause delays. Police response times also vary significantly based on the priority level assigned to a call. Overextended and understaffed first responder agencies must often decide how to prioritize calls; these decisions can delay response.
Digital Critical Incident Mapping: Instant, Accurate Information in Emergencies
School safety solutions should help eliminate the lag times associated with the standard 911 call process and shorten the time between an incident and first responders’ arrival. Digital critical incident maps provide the up-to-date, accurate information first responders need to intervene quickly.
The most effective critical incident mapping software provides a dynamic, digital map of a campus, including buildings and the surrounding outdoor areas, using precise geographical information. These dynamic maps are updated in real time, providing first responders with precise location information of emergency incidents, nearby safety assets, and other relevant information.
According to New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy, “We have seen, time and time again, public mass shootings taking place across our country. Providing our law enforcement and first responders with the critical incident mapping data will aid them in their efforts in case of an emergency at a school.” The detailed information on a school’s digital incident maps helps reduce response times in major incidents and everyday emergencies.
Critical incident mapping data should include:
- aerial images of schools
- floor plans, including room and suite numbers
- building access points
- safety asset locations, including AEDs, fire extinguishers, first aid kits, and other equipment
- locations of hazardous materials and utility shut-offs
Critical Incident Maps Aid in Situational Awareness
Situational awareness aids responders in assessing an emergency, defining the problem, and planning an accurate response plan. Visually connecting data to location facilitates our ability to visualize the world around us. The visual data generated by digital incident maps helps increase emergency responders’ situational awareness. With digital incident maps, first responders know exactly where to go. They bypass the time lapses that can occur during the 911 dispatch process and gain immediate insight into the locations of incidents and safety assets.
The most critical piece of information for first responders is location. They must know where the people involved in an emergency are, down to the room level. They must understand the most efficient way to enter the school and how to exit. They must know where to find the safety equipment that empowers them to intervene quickly and effectively.
Safety Blueprint further enhances situational awareness by integrating video technology. Staff members’ CrisisAlert badges can activate on-campus video cameras when an alert is initiated. The combination of CrisisAlert’s precise locating capabilities with CENTEGIX Incident Activated Video grants immediate situational awareness to first responders. They are then appropriately equipped to determine the correct level of response needed for an emergency.
CENTEGIX Safety Blueprint™: Accelerating Emergency Response
CENTEGIX Safety Blueprint is digital critical incident mapping technology for rapid emergency response. The digital maps are integrated with CENTEGIX CrisisAlert™ wearable panic buttons that allow staff to request help from anywhere on campus.
For first responders, one of the most crucial tools for an effective response is the availability of accurate, detailed floor maps of the buildings where the offenders and victims might be located. Safety Blueprint gives first responders access to these maps, so that when they arrive, they know where to find the safety assets necessary for a rapid and effective response.
Time is the most critical factor in incident response. Reduced response times can mean reduced casualties and trauma. CENTEGIX school safety solutions are all designed with a focus on reducing response times:
- Access critical infrastructure and safety assets
- Collaborate with safety experts, emergency responders, and department heads to develop a comprehensive emergency preparedness plan
- Store evacuation maps for ready access
- Plot reunification points
- Familiarize staff with the building’s layout and safety equipment locations
- Inform planning for new construction or temporary buildings
These aspects of safety planning lay the groundwork for rapid response when an emergency occurs. In addition, Safety Blueprint maps can be updated in real time to ensure that first responders have the most accurate information. Chris Farkas, Chief Operations Officer for Hillsborough County Public Schools, says “The minute we receive a map in an architectural drawing or PDF is the minute it is out of date! If I have to call an architect or vendor to update maps, I waste time and money. CENTEGIX’s Safety Blueprint is the best of both worlds: we can make updates in real time, and we don’t have to spend money every time we make a change, like consolidating rooms or adding a mobile classroom. The assessment management and inventory management capability is icing on the cake.”
The CENTEGIX Safety Platform, with Safety Blueprint’s digital critical incident maps as its foundation, helps create a multilayered safety plan that reduces response times and fosters a culture of safety.Contact CENTEGIX today to learn how the Safety Platform and Safety Blueprint incident mapping technology can reduce response times in your school district.
