For many, the current and upcoming 911-related legislation is a bit confusing. Some compliance deadlines have already passed, others are upcoming, and there's general confusion around which of these deadlines affect you.
Even though many organizations aren't explicitly required to (yet), I strongly encourage everyone to minimally start with implementing on-site alerting. This is both the least expensive component and where the greatest enhancement to on-site safety and response is realized. Additionally, it's either mandatory now or will be for your organization in the not-so-distant future.
Getting the location information to the answering PSAP is important, no question. This information helps PSAPs and their responding agencies in determining where to respond to (especially important for large campuses, multiple location organizations, or multi-floor buildings). Especially when help is several minutes away already, routing responders to the correct area is absolutely critical in ensuring help is not delayed in any way.
But what about those who are in the best position to provide immediate assistance? The often under-appreciated reality is that help is already on-site and available. Whether it be your security, first-aid, or in reality, any staff, you already have resources on-site and ready to assist prior to first responders arriving. This help comes in the moments when it is most critical.
On-site staff are able to respond immediately, and are in a position where they can start providing care immediately. Additionally, staff can prepare access for first responders, and be ready to direct them efficiently to where the emergency is once on-site. These realities all dramatically improve response time both prior to, and once first-responder help has arrived on-site.
Contact Genesis Systems for more information on E911, immediate emergency on-site alerting, and the features available to help improve your on-site emergency responses. These solutions provide improvements in response time of several minutes, at a time when every second counts.