Contact: Craig Whittington
Phone: 336-373-2506
         Cell: 336-451-6730
         

Guilford Metro 9-1-1 Awarded International Accreditation for Excellence

GREENSBORO, NC (December 21, 2009) – Guilford Metro 9-1-1 was recently awarded accreditation as an Emergency Fire Dispatch Center of Excellence from the International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED). IAED is an international non-profit standard-setting organization that promotes safe and effective emergency dispatch services world-wide.

Guilford Metro 9-1-1 is the 11th 9-1-1 center in the nation, out of 6,500, and the 12th emergency services communications center in the entire world to be awarded this distinction for its comprehensive implementation and compliance with the Fire Priority Dispatch System (FPDS). The FPDS is a comprehensive emergency fire dispatch system designed to provide responder and caller safety, maximize utilization of resources, prioritize responses, provide efficient delivery of pre-arrival instructions, and improve overall fire department customer service.

“Receiving this accreditation was a total team effort,” said Guilford Metro 9-1-1 Executive Director Wesley Reid. “All of our emergency communications specialists, training/quality assurance team and other Guilford Metro 9-1-1 support personnel have worked for more than three years to accomplish this goal and we are a better 9-1-1 center because of their hard work and dedication.” 

To receive this designation from IAED, Guilford Metro 9-1-1 had to have proper 9-1-1 communications center management oversight and ongoing quality improvement programs in place, and had to make sure its entire staff was in compliance with FPDS practices.

Guilford Metro 9-1-1 will be recognized as an Accredited Center of Excellence at the upcoming IAED conference in April that will be held in Orlando, Fla.

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