Arizona law expands paid counseling to emergency dispatchers

PHOENIX — The way Melody Hernandez sees it, the trauma incurred by those taking emergency calls from people in crisis and dispatching help is no less than what occurs for her as a paramedic.

Only thing is, state law did not require that 911 dispatchers get access to the same counseling.

But unlike others in her field, she could actually do something about it as a state representative. So the first-term Phoenix Democrat got colleagues this session to unanimously approve legislation that extends the program now available to other public safety employees, peace officers and firefighters to get paid counseling after a traumatic event.

And in a signing ceremony Wednesday, Gov. Katie Hobbs, herself a former social worker, emphasized the importance of the new law.

Current law requires public employers to establish programs for counseling of public safety employees after certain circumstances. That includes visually witnessing the death or maiming of an individual, being involved in investigating certain crimes against children or requiring rescue where their life was in danger.

HB 2717 first adds the term “audibly” to witnessing. And then it specifically includes 911 dispatchers.

During hearings on the bill, Lauren Birnbaum tried to explain to lawmakers about the stresses.

“I cried on the phone with a mother while she did CPR on her 6-year-old son after finding him in the pool,” Birnbaum said. “I couldn’t finish the call without tears.”

That, Birnbaum said, would have been a normal response for anyone else. But she said dispatchers are not encouraged to find a counselor, even one they have to pay for themselves.

“We are told to cry in the bathroom — but not too long and come back in for more, quickly,” Birnbaum said.

Hernandez echoed that at Wednesday’s bill signing.

“911 dispatchers are truly the first responders,” she said.

“They’re the one who answer the calls to begin with,” Hernandez said. “And after they’ve worked through the screaming and the anxiety and the pressure that they face from the community that they are speaking to, they are oftentimes, once they leave the call, they are left with the pain of those calls, they are left with the memory of those calls.”

Hobbs said the role of dispatchers is critical.

“Many of these calls can be the difference between life and death for the caller,” she said.

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“Those on the receiving end are tasked with putting their emotions aside and acting decisively to get help where it’s needed,” the governor continued. “And the moments they are on that phone can be extremely traumatic experiences that they take home with them.”

But with no coverage from employers, she said, the dispatchers either have to pick up the cost of their own counseling “or continue working under serious emotional strain.”

Hobbs said this is more than about getting care for dispatchers. She said there are multiple reports of a shortage of dispatchers across the state.

“Ensuring dispatchers get the care they need will help us fill gaps in our workforce,” the governor said. “We must give them the tools they need to thrive outside the workplace as well.”

Hernandez said the symptoms of what is post-traumatic stress disorder are serious.

“It is one of the most difficult diseases to deal with,” she said.

“You have multiple, recurring nightmares about situations you have heard on the phone or you have witnessed firsthand,” Hernandez continued. “And those recurring nightmares can oftentimes wake you up in fear and panic.”

Hernandez said it also can result in people getting angry about things that are out of their control.

“A sight, a sound, a small can trigger that memory and leave you stuck in the past,” she said.

In her own case, Hernandez said she has suffered “flashbacks.”

“I get so stuck in the past that, while I know that I’m here, I’m also completely re-imagining or re-visualizing what traumatized me to begin with,” she said.

As it turns out, though, Hernandez does not have the same paid counseling already available for paramedics who work directly for cities.

She is an employee of American Medical Response, a private firm which works with a variety of cities. And that means any costs of treatment comes out of her own pocket.