What happens when you call 9-1-1 in Montgomery County?
First, the call goes to a Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP). For example, if you are in the City of Conroe, the call goes to Conroe Police Department’s (CPD) PSAP. If you are outside the City of Conroe, the call goes to the Montgomery County Sheriff’s Office’s PSAP.
Next, the dispatcher at one of those PSAPs will say: “Police, Fire, or EMS?” If the caller says “EMS”, the call is transferred to the Montgomery County Hospital District’s secondary PSAP.
A highly-trained MCHD Call-Taker will begin to process the caller’s EMS request and dispatch an ambulance.
Montgomery County Hospital District’s Dispatch Center
MCHD’s dispatcher center is referred to ALARM. This is a 24-7-365 operation that processes over 150,000 calls per year. The call takers use a highly-efficient call-taking system called Emergency Medical Dispatch (EMD) to provide lifesaving instructions, over the phone, prior to the arrival of first responders. ALARM operates four shifts and is staffed with a total of 34 employees.
MCHD ALARM is an accredited by the International Academy of Emergency Dispatch (IAED). ALARM is one of only 27 dispatch centers in the world that have achieved both EMS and Fire accreditations.
Accredited centers like ours share a common goal of improving public care and maximizing the efficiency of 9-1-1 systems. The accreditation benefits everyone in Montgomery County and those participating in the dispatch process: caller, family, patient, community, responders, ancillary organizations, quality control, and others.
“Our success as an Accredited Center is because of MCHD call-takers. Their passion for excellence is what drives the MCHD 9-1-1 Dispatch Center to be an Accredited Center for Excellence and provide the best possible pre-arrival care for the residents of Montgomery County.” – Lois Lindgren, Deputy Chief