Business Plan - Emergency Services Telecommunications Authority

12 ESTA Business Plan 2009/10
ESTA’s Service Delivery
CTD Operations
ESTA is responsible for emergency telecommunications, including taking emergency calls (000 calls), dispatching
emergency services (police, ambulance, fire and SES), managing emergency events and related information
transfer services. The following diagram shows the sequence of events relating to an emergency and 000 call and
ESTA’s role in that process:
ESTA Calltaking
ESTA receives and processes emergency and non-emergency calls from the public and other agencies. The
objective of ESTA calltaking is to quickly and thoroughly process calls so that the appropriate response can be
provided as effectively as possible. This is achieved by:
• Obtaining all the information required through ESTA Standard Operating Procedures;
• Verifying the event location and accurately identifying it on the Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) map;
• Accurately entering all relevant information received into the CAD system for use by the Dispatcher selecting
the appropriate event code; and
• Processing updates and further information regarding an event status.
In 2008/09 ESTA answered 1,827,106 calls (emergency and non emergency).
ESTA Dispatching
ESTA uses the information obtained and recorded by the Calltaker to dispatch emergency resources and monitor
and update the status of events, using a sophisticated mix of technologies including computers, telephone and
radio. ESTA dispatchers are responsible for co-ordinating an appropriate response to calls for service in different
geographic locations by:
• Managing event information;
• Evaluating and prioritising emergency status;
• Processing information and related event data;
• Identifying the required response; and
• Dispatching resources.
In 2008/09 ESTA dispatched 1,295,302 events.
During 2009/10, ESTA will maintain the organisation’s focus on call answer and dispatch speeds, and the
quality of information provided to ESO partners to enable their most efficient and effective response.
ESTA will continue to manage a robust system and process variation program that ensures fast-evolving needs
of ESO partners are reflected in enhancements to ESTA’s Call Taking and Dispatch systems and processes.
ESTA’s call taking and dispatch performance standards are outlined in Appendix A.