Properly assess emergencies to limit 911 calls

  • Published
  • By Staff Sgt. Amanda Savannah
  • 18th Wing Public Affairs
KADENA AIR BASE, Japan --  Imagine you are playing a game of basketball on base with your friends, when a teammate is tripped and falls to the floor.

His ankle hurts when he puts weight on it, but it isn't swelling or discolored and he is otherwise uninjured. What do you do?

Though the best answer to this question is to use self-aid and buddy care and take your friend to seek medical attention, when actually faced with this situation, some Kadena Air Base members call 911.

"We treat every call as an emergency, so if you call 911 we are going to respond," said Master Sgt. Anthony T. Willett, 18th Civil Engineer Squadron fire and emergency services assistant chief of fire prevention.

As one of only two 911 Emergency Dispatch Centers for all the military installations on Okinawa, the 18th CES fire and emergency services flight responds to an average of 4,000 emergency calls annually. Three to four of those calls per day are for situations that are non-life threatening, and are what the center refers to as false calls.

"Accurate 911 calls are about managing limited resources," said Tech. Sgt. Marcel Brown, 18th CES NCO in charge of 911 emergency dispatch. "We're a big base, but we're only one fire department, so whether we're going to actual emergencies or something that's not an emergency, it ties up those resources."

This doesn't mean that first responders won't be available, however; it just means response and transport times will be slower.

"We still respond to all calls, but there will be a delay in transport time of the patient to a medical facility," said Willett. "We have trained EMTs [emergency medical technicians] on staff here who can provide care on scene, but there might be a delay in transport due to the ambulance being tied up with another patient. If our ambulance has responded to a false call, it could be a non-emergent patient being transported, so now we're on scene with an emergent patient who requires vital care. So the right 911 call is also vital to the life of the emergent patient."

These false calls can also affect other Kadena first responders.

"When a 911 call pops up and we don't know if it's an emergency or not [such as from a caller who hangs up or a fire alarm activation], security forces goes to the building to make sure everything is OK, so it affects them too," Brown said.

To limit the amount of false calls the Emergency Dispatch Center receives, the 18th CES is asking everyone to use a common sense approach in making the decision to call for help. All active-duty service members should be trained in self-aid and buddy care, so on minor calls, they can make the determination, Willett said.

"If you think it's minor, then by all means, make that decision, help your wingman and transport them if possible," he said. "If it really is a serious call, then activate the 911 system, and we'll respond and ... transport the patient to [the Naval Hospital on Camp] Lester."

If you have a question or are unsure and it might be an emergency, then call, Willett said.
There are three numbers people can use to activate the 911 system:

· If you are calling from a land line on base, call 911
· If you are calling from a cell phone on base, call 098-934-5911
· If you are calling from a local land line or cell phone off base, call 119

"Bottom line, be a good wingman and make the assessment to try to help reduce false calls," Brown said. "We're going to provide care no matter what, but if we can streamline the calls to those that are real emergencies, it helps everyone in the end."