Latest News & Updates

Volume normalization is a feature in Spotify that automatically adjusts the volume of different songs to make them sound more consistent. The intention for this is to avoid jarring changes in volume when listening to songs in a playlist, When volume normalization is turned on, all songs are played at the same volume, regardless of how loud or soft they were originally recorded. But the setting has some major drawbacks, enough so that some would argue it does more harm than good and should be turned off as a default.

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We all know that dispatch centers are prone to "the regulars", members of the community who call daily for a variety of reasons. While it can be tempting to not treat these callers with the same urgency as other, more unique complaints, we must remember that as public servants, every call for service needs to be treated with the same level of respect.

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Just because the body of water in your city has frozen over, that doesn't mean it becomes any less of a potential site for a water rescue. Ted and Coilin talk about the context these types of calls exist in, as well as tips and reminders that can help ensure the safety of all involved.

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For this month’s training blast, we’re unearthing a video from early in our company’s history - AEP’s Director of Education Ted Bourgeois and AEP Instructor Coilin Jones talk about bullying between coworkers in 911 centers.

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In this month's Training Blast, AEP's Director of Technology Alex Chiasson expands on a previous Training Blast (July 2024) with several different ideas for staying healthy and active during the course of your shift at a 911 center.

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Even though some calls might sound immediately to us as a call-taker as a passerby misinterpreting a prank as a legitimate emergency, we need to remember that we need to take our callers at face value as we aren't experiencing the incident firsthand like they are. Asking questions and looking for clarification is a good way to get a clearer picture of what might be happening.

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In this month's training blast, AEP Director of Education Ted Bourgeois talks about some of the different things you can review to stay fresh as a fire dispatcher. From practicing PARs to checking run plans, a good working knowledge of the fire side of the room is a needed foundation and can supplant any issues that may you come across with your center's technology.

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As the heat and humidity increase, so do the occurrences of outside fires and brush fires of various sizes. Knowing your role in those incidents is paramount to facilitating a smooth incident from beginning to end, and having a good sense of the different geographical features at play can go a long way in shaping your preparedness.

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A chain is only as strong as its weakest link, so it is imperative for every dispatcher to be aware of their own physical health and maintain themselves inside and outside of the 911 center. From utilizing standing desks to performing "micro-exercises" throughout the course of your shift, every employee has the ability to be proactive in their own health, and, by extension, the health of their center.

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In this month's Training Blast, AEP Director of Education Ted Bourgeois talks about the importance of using group activities, such as tabletop exercises, to reinforce the various policies and SOPs utilized by your center. By having your staff participate in these exercises, it gives them a chance to work through some often difficult scenarios in a casual environment, giving them the necessary reps for when those situations happen in real life. Practice makes perfect!

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