Mass media misaligns the perceptions and expectations of 9-1-1 professionals, from actual operational capabilities as reported by 9-1-1 professionals.
There is a wealth of evidence suggesting that long work hours and burnout affect performance among nurses and physicians. However, no studies have investigated this relationship among non-medical health care providers such as Public Safety Telecommunicators (PSTs), who play a critical role in patient safety.
High job demands in 9-1-1 centers mean high turnover which place 9-1-1 centers in an understaffed situation. Understanding the public safety telecommunicator perspectives that further describe the life-or-death protective nature of the work can lead to improved retention.