The highway patrol dispatcher dispatches patrol vehicles, monitors officers’ status and positions, and keeps a record of calls and officers. They attempt to contact officers who have not returned and send backup patrols if necessary. The job requires extreme attention to detail, multitasking, and a good memory. The dispatcher forms a strong bond with patrol officers and must remain calm under stressful situations.
A highway patrol dispatcher performs a wide variety of jobs, from dispatching patrol vehicles to required locations, to monitoring the status and positions of officers. Perhaps one of the most important positions on the force, the highway patrol dispatcher is the eyes and ears of the patrol team as he or she performs the dangerous tasks required by the job. In addition to maintaining radio communication with all patrolmen or women on duty, the patrol dispatcher also keeps a written record of calls, the officer sent, and the times the officer arrived and left the scene. If the dispatcher senses that a patrolman has called into a scene but has not returned within a reasonable amount of time, the dispatcher will attempt to contact the officer by radio and send a backup patrol, if necessary, to ensure the officer is safe.
The job of the highway patrol dispatcher is a complex and very critical component of the patrol force. Answering calls, recognizing which patrol is closest to responding, and dispatching that patrol to the scene requires extreme attention to detail and the ability to multitask. A good memory of the road patrol dispatcher is needed, so he can keep track of all the patrols at all times. When a patrol goes off duty in any scene, the dispatcher responds with a time that the officer will use as the official arrival time for his own duty log.
This time is also noted by the dispatcher and is recorded in a log or file. Every type of response has an approximate time required. When that time is approaching and the dispatcher has not received any radio communication from the officer, the patrol dispatcher will attempt to reach him by radio. If no answers or wrong answers are given, the dispatcher will realize that something has gone wrong and will immediately send backup patrols to help the original officer. This knowledge allows many patrol officers to carry out their duties with the assurance that they are not truly alone on any call.
Most people employed as a highway patrol dispatcher understand the importance of their job and approach the duty very seriously. This makes it much more difficult for the dispatcher, in the unfortunate event that something goes wrong with a call, resulting in the patrol officer being injured or killed. Often, a very strong bond forms between the road patrol dispatcher and those on patrol. The dispatcher is also tasked with keeping calm under a variety of stressful and tense situations in order to communicate clearly with other officers.
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