LORAIN COUNTY, Ohio — In an emergency, 9-1-1 dispatchers are a lifeline. They feed crucial information to the community and first responders.
But, in Lorain County, they're in great need of the very heroes that keep the public safe.
"They need more help. They need more support, they need more personnel," said Dan Ozbolt, with the Fraternal Order of Police and Ohio Labor Council.
In a release sent on Thursday, Ozbolt noted that dispatchers in Lorain County handle 911 calls for 24 fire departments and six police departments 24/7. As of April 16th, Lorain County 911 dispatchers have worked a total of 3,847 hours of overtime this year, which averages out to 174.86 hours of overtime each.
Ozbolt says the dispatchers in the county are burnt out and officials need to step up.
"There's a lot of moving parts and there's a lot of calls, particularly at night during third shift hours and they're getting worn out. They're spent and they're asking for some help," Ozbolt tells us.
Lorain County officials say, they agree -- there's a shortage.
"There's a shortage of staff almost every place. There's a shortage of nurses, there's a shortage of doctors, there's a shortage of almost all emergency personnel. People have to be able to want to do this job. You have to be qualified in order to do it. The training is quite long. And just think about it. You're on a 9 1 1 dispatch and you've got people that you're communicating with that are in real trouble and you have to understand what's going on. This is a specialized job. This isn't just something that anybody can just show up," says Lorain County Administrator Jeff Armbruster.
Armbruster says the county started with 25 working dispatchers, but dropped down to 22 when three people went on medical leave. He says the county needs between 30-35 dispatchers to be fully staffed, but that it's been hard to find people who want to do the job.
"Since COVID started, it's become very, very difficult to find those qualified people, those special people that actually are gonna dispatch our fire department personnel as well as our police departments," Armbruster said.
Ozbolt also acknowledges the challenges related to hiring, but says it's not enough.
"They need to do more. They need to do more, you know? Whether it's pay benefits ... we have to get people in there to take the load off because this is too important of an issue and it can have grave consequences," Ozbolt said.
Armbruster says the county is looking at those options, and respects the job these dispatchers are doing.
"We're looking at whether money makes a difference. Maybe we should increase that and take a look at it. We want to be competitive, but we have to have that special individual," he told us. "And those individuals that are working at 9-1-1, they are rock stars as far as I'm concerned."
Lorain County officials also tell us that they're stepping up advertising efforts and meeting with safety force departments about potential hires.
Ozbolt adds that while the union realizes that "many members of the public are also tired and overworked, most do not carry the burden of having to convey life and death information on their shoulders such as sending responders to a violent crime in progress, comforting a rape victim while first responders and medical personnel are en route or talking a novice through administering CPR."
You can read Ozbolt's statement on the "critical staffing crisis" below:
Lorain County Commissioner Michelle Hung gave the following statement to 3News:
"I would like to Thank each and every dispatcher employed by Lorain County Government at the County 911 center for the work you do for our residents. You are the lifeline for the mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, children and families in their time of need. Undeniably, you are the superstars of Lorain County.
"911 Director Jeff Young has been employed by the County since October 18th, 2021. During that time, Director Young was earnestly developing a plan to ready the county 911 center for future regional growth. Growth does not happen overnight, but Young knew the challenges and took them head on, briefing then County Administrator JR White and the Commissioners every step of the way.
"For months Commissioners Moore and Riddell, along with County Administrator Jeff Armbruster have developed their own plan to move the County 911 forward. It was my hope that those who made this decision would retain Jeff Young to help usher along the growth of our county 911 center. Mr. Young has accepted a new position within the County.
"When I began my tenure in January of 2021, I was at the 911 center while local law enforcement was visiting. I recall a conversation with an officer and I said it is my hope we can add more trained dispatchers in the next 6 months. The officer’s response to me was, Commissioner, you need to understand that it takes a year to train these folks, it is a specialized set of skills that a minimal amount of the population has. The first step is understanding the skill set, the multi-tasking, the basic knowledge of law enforcement and possessing the empathy to use those skills, while under immense pressure, to help the person on the other end of the phone.
"The County Administrator, Jeff Armbruster has shared his plan with all three Commissioners, which included the hiring of the new 911 Director Rob Berner. I am trusting Administrator Armbruster with the implementation of his plan. Mr. Armbruster will be accountable to the Commissioners and the residents of Lorain County for delivering results and a successful Regional County 911 center."