NENA NEWS
On November 14, NENA, APCO, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless announced a consensus plan to meet the FCC’s challenge to improve 9-1-1 indoor location accuracy. The industry has long relied on the public safety expertise at NENA and APCO to find solutions to location accuracy challenges. This agreement builds on that long-term partnership and recognizes that improved indoor location accuracy can be achieved through readily available indoor location technologies, which will provide field responders with the information they want and need: a dispatchable location. The proposed solution harnesses the availability of Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® technologies that are already deployed and expected to expand significantly in the near term.
Since 1996, the FCC required a wireless 9-1-1 call to include location information based on outdoor technologies. Increasingly, wireless 9-1-1 calls moved indoors creating challenges for outdoor-based solutions. The FCC called on the wireless industry and public safety community to develop a consensus approach to this important 9-1-1 issue. Through these aggressive and measureable location accuracy commitments based on actual 9-1-1 calls, AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile and Verizon Wireless, working with public safety partners NENA and APCO, have answered the call.
The solution involves an agreed upon timeline to:
- Verify technologies and vendor performance for indoor and outdoor technologies in a test bed;
- Accelerate the delivery of dispatchable location using indoor technologies with ambitious milestones for demonstration, standards development, and implementation of database and handset capabilities; and
- Improves existing location technologies for better outdoor and indoor location fixes.
Click here to continue reading...
Two Steps Forward, Two Steps Forward: Advancements in Wireless Location Accuracy
Thursday, November 20 | 1PM Eastern (live) or On-Demand
Sponsored by Intrado
Free! Click here to register!
Mobile location for 9-1-1 has not progressed significantly since it was originally introduced, but commercial location technologies continue to improve daily. The introduction of smartphones and other advanced devices were built upon commercial location technologies, surpassing the capabilities of legacy 9-1-1 systems.
Today, a majority of 9-1-1 calls are coming from mobile devices; it stands to reason that a majority of those calls would be coming from indoor locations. The FCC has seen this change and is considering implementing standards that would require carriers to improve the location they provide to public safety for indoor 9-1-1 calls.
This webinar will explore both existing and emerging technologies that may assist first responders in more accurately identifying caller locations and will discuss the capabilities of a system that can pinpoint caller locations – indoor and outdoor – and the differences between them.
9-1-1 Goes to Washington (February 22-25 in Arlington, VA) brings together hundreds of 9-1-1 professionals from around the country with policy leaders in our nation's capital to explore and discuss today's most pressing 9-1-1 and emergency communications issues. 9-1-1 Goes to Washington is the only event where you can learn about the policy challenges facing public safety and take immediate action to address them through dialog with your elected and appointed officials.
Click here to make your housing reservation. Registration and additional details coming soon...
Congratulations to the 41 9-1-1 professionals who passed the Fall 2014 ENP exam and are now certified Emergency Number Professionals! Well done! For more information on how you too can achieve this prestigious professional designation, visit the ENP webpage.
Earlier this week you received an email from NENA with a link to your 2015 NENA dues notice. Help NENA go green and save a stamp by choosing to pay online by check or credit card. If this is not an option for you or your agency, the email also contained a link allowing you to print out a copy of your invoice for local processing.
Instantly renew your membership online in just a few easy steps:
1) Simply log in to the NENA website.
2) Go to your Manage Profile page.
3) Click on Membership under the "Account History" header to view your renewal options.
4) Pay online by check or credit card.
5) Print out a receipt for your records.
In appreciation of your continued support, when you renew online by credit card before Dec. 31, 2014, you will receive free access to an upcoming NENA webinar of your choice - a $50 value!
We look forward to sharing many new and exciting member benefits with you in the coming year!
NENA has issued an open call for submissions for publication consideration for the Winter 2014/15 edition of NENA's official magazine, The Call. Articles on any 9-1-1/public safety operations or technology topic will be considered. Manuscripts should not exceed 20 double-spaced pages and should follow current American Psychological Association (APA) style. Further instructions for authors can be found by clicking here. Manuscripts may be submitted electronically; send the document as an email attachment to NENA Communications Director Chris Nussman for consideration by Nov. 21, 2014.
Looking to get more out of your career? Want to stay on top of the latest in emergency communications? Need continuing education credits? NENA’s education program has just what you are looking for! Upcoming offerings include:
11.19.14 - Caught in the Middle: A Guide to Middle Management - Omaha, NE - Register here!
12.8-12.14 - Center Manager Certification Program (CMCP) - Davenport, IA - Register here!
Our courses and certification programs, developed and led by experts in the field, provide relevant, informative, and up-to-date training on all aspects of 9-1-1 technology and PSAP operations. Check out the current list of classes toward the end of this email or view it online.
We're currently booking classes for 2015 and are adding more to the calendar every day! Highlights include our newly revamped versions of Leadership in the 9-1-1 Center and Customer Service: Takes Seconds, Saves Minutes. Contact Ty Wooten if you would like to schedule a class in your area, or if you have any questions.
And don't forget to like the NENA Education & Training Facebook page for the latest news and announcements!
AmazonSmile is a simple and automatic way for you to support NENA every time you shop, at no cost to you. When you shop at smile.amazon.com, you’ll find the exact same low prices, vast selection and convenient shopping experience as Amazon.com, with the added bonus that Amazon will donate a portion of the purchase price to NENA.
To shop at AmazonSmile, simply go to smile.amazon.com from the Web browser on your computer or mobile device. You may also want to add a bookmark to AmazonSmile to make it even easier to return and start your shopping at AmazonSmile.
On your first visit to AmazonSmile, you need to search for and select " National Emergency Number Association" to receive donations from eligible purchases before you begin shopping. Amazon will remember your selection, and then every eligible purchase you make on AmazonSmile will result in a donation.
Click here to learn more and here to start shopping now!
Make sure the addresses (email and postal) that we have on file for you are current! Please log in to your online member account to verify or update your information, or send an email to Bri Robinson.
UPCOMING DEADLINES
NENA's Product and Service Guide issue of The Call is fast approaching! As a member of NENA, your company receives a free basic listing. Please complete this form and return it by November 24 to Shaun Greyling to include your up-to-date information in the Guide.
OPS UPDATE
NENA encourages the use of the IAED’s Emerging Infectious Disease Surveillance (EIDS) Tool for centers working on how to handle Ebola related preparedness. The tool is available for use by any call center. IAED’s CBRN Fast Track Committee of the Council of Standards first issued dispatch-relevant information followed by an Ebola-based modification of the SRI Tool in ProQA on 8/8/14. Based on evolving information and input from CDC, WHO, NENA and others, the Academy has revised and re-issued the SRI/MERS/Ebola Surveillance protocol in software several times since and the current version was updated on October 20, 2014.
For more information, visit the IAED website. NENA thanks the IAED for making this information available.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has posted Interim Guidance for Emergency Medical Services (EMS) Systems and 9-1-1 Public Safety Answering Points (PSAPs) for Management of Patients with Known or Suspected Ebola Virus Disease in the United States online at the CDC website.
Coordination among PSAPs, the EMS system, health care facilities, and the public health system is important for a coordinated response to Ebola. Each 9-1-1 and EMS system should seek the involvement of an EMS medical director to provide appropriate medical oversight. The guidance provided in this document is based on current knowledge of Ebola. It is intended for 9-1-1 Public Safety Answering Points, EMS, and medical first responders including firefighters and law enforcement personnel. The guidance is not intended to set forth mandatory requirements or establish national standards.
EMERGENCY COMMUNICATION NEWS
NENA recently launched a FREE email news service called Public Safety SmartBrief. It provides a weekly summary of news, trends and updates on public safety issues—not just 9-1-1, but police, fire and EMS. Knowledgeable editors handpick key articles from hundreds of publications, summarize them and provide direct links to the original sources.
In other words, we do all the research and you get the latest news in your inbox or on your handheld device, absolutely free.
HELP WANTED
NENA's new and improved career center now offers more options and search functionality to job seekers and recruiters, including the ability to browse openings by category, subscribe to receive email notifications of new openings, and apply for openings directly online. Recruiters can now view and rate candidates applying for openings, search the resume database of available candidates (a members-only feature), and manage postings online.
UPCOMING EDUCATION COURSES
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