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Written by Diane Ritchey

The days of the bullhorn are long past, but what technologies are making a difference in public safety, and what items are on many first responders’ “wish lists?”

According to a recent survey of public safety officials by APCO International and Motorola, better-informed users are more effective in their jobs. Also not surprising was that survey respondents said that the continuing advancement of technologies gives first responders the tools necessary to protect themselves and the public.

Specifically, the survey showed a strong demand for technologies that provide advanced situational awareness to first responders, improve incident coordination, and streamline emergency response. A top concern of first responders nationwide, according to the survey, is their ability to react to natural disasters (65% of survey respondents), superseding both terrorist attacks (7%) and crime (10%). Regional fire and police officers dually note that advanced communications technology ranks as the most critical aid in preparedness and response, both now and in the future.

While technologies are improving, the survey showed the greatest need for technology improvement in terms of range, speed, and availability, (26% of survey respondents), interoperability (25%), and availability of equipment (17%). Topping responders “wish lists” were rugged notebook computers, visual identification and recognition capabilities, and smart transportation navigation.

The survey revealed areas for improvement within departments, as well as additional communications needs for responders and communities. Community officials in both large and small populations listed mapping technologies or GPS tracking as the top tool they’d hope to see utilized as technology continues to evolve in the security and safety arena.

The survey also examined the needs of police departments, fire departments, emergency medical services, and public administrators. Fire officials, the survey showed, regard traffic light sensor technologies (41%) as critical to their needs, while police departments rely more heavily on mobile video systems (63%). Fire departments, in turn, would like to have better availability of mapping technology (35%), while police officials are more likely than fire officials to volunteer that they face continuing challenges with interoperability (51%).

For urban and rural areas, responders said they view improved data availability and access (20%) as their greatest benefit. Yet, those in rural environments are more likely than their counterparts to cite the range, speed, and availability of equipment (35%) as most critical. Larger communities of 100,000 or more reported technology as most helpful in providing situational awareness to incident response (4.6 on a 5-point scale) over smaller pools less than 10,000, who cited the aid of technology in interoperability between county agencies (4.4 on a 5-point scale) as most helpful.

Public safety officials from large and small population areas said that more training for first responders (25%) and the need for additional responders (29%) were areas in need of increased attention, based on the allocation of funds.

Overall, the study validated how critical technology and communication tools are for public safety professionals and how progress is being made to meet each agency’s needs so they, in turn, can meet the public’s needs. As one police chief noted in the survey comments, “Technology saves lives, and the productivity outweighs the cost by thousands of dollars…”

What about you? What current and future technologies are on your wish list? Please e-mail me at dritchey@hendonpub.com.