NFPA - Measuring Fire Dispatch
Performance 2013 Updates
Jim Long, Northwest Fire District
Performance Measures
Lord Kelvin was quoted as saying –
“When you cannot measure what you are
speaking about, when you cannot
express it in numbers, your knowledge is
of a meager and unsatisfactory kind, it
may be the beginning of Knowledge, but
you have scarcely in your thoughts
advanced to a stage of science, whatever
the matter may be.”
(CFAI, 1999,pp. 11-12)
Absolute zero (0 K) equivalent to −273.15 °C (−459.67 °F).
Where Do We Begin?
•
Identify your team / empower your experts
•
Define & understand your goals
•
Define what is important to measure
•
What can be accomplished with the
resources and tools you have today?
•
Evaluate how well you are doing
•
Allow for periodic/incremental changes or
“improvements”
•
How will you measure
change/improvements? effectiveness?
•
Measure, Refine, Adjust & Adapt……
Why Measure?
 Comparison
 Adjustment of Strategy or Tactics
 Discover Patterns/Trends
 Alert to Developing Situation (Real Time)
 Public Scrutiny
 Return on Investment
What’s Worth Measuring?
 Elapsed Times?
 Performance of an





Action? (Or Not)
Distance Traveled?
Frequency of an
Event
Distribution of a
Type or Class
Success or Failure
Outcomes?
Standards of Cover
 Arizona Fire Agencies -
Accredited/ReAccredited 2012-13
 Apache Junction Fire District
 Central Yavapai Fire District
 Chandler
 Glendale
 MCAS Yuma
 Mesa Fire Dept
 Northwest Fire District
 Peoria
 Tempe
 Yuma
http://www.publicsafetyexcellence.org/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=jt3UHTz7_P0%3d&tabid=71
http://www.no
rthwestfire.org
/pdf/SOC2011
.pdf
Percentile VS Average -
Response Time
The Philadelphia Fire Department prides
itself on an average response time of
4.5 minutes for Fire Engines and 6.5
minutes for Medic Units.
Call Time Count
0:12:50
0:12:10
0:11:30
0:10:50
0:10:10
0:09:30
0:08:50
0:08:10
0:07:30
0:06:50
0:06:10
0:05:30
0:04:50
0:04:10
0:03:30
0:02:50
0:02:10
0:01:30
0:00:50
0:00:10
Average Response Time
Frequency Distribution Average
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
0:12:40
0:11:50
0:11:00
0:10:10
0:09:20
0:08:30
0:07:40
0:06:50
0:06:00
0:05:10
0:04:20
0:03:30
0:02:40
0:01:50
0:01:00
0:00:10
Percentile Response Time
Percent Calls
100.0%
90.0%
80.0%
70.0%
60.0%
50.0%
40.0%
30.0%
20.0%
10.0%
0.0%
Percent Calls
What is Process time?
 Dispatch Time – Answer Time
 Answer = When the last Ring is picked up.
 Ani/Ali to CAD Dump
 First Keystroke
 Manual Entry
 Dispatch =
 The time the ERF (Emergency Response Facility)
 ERU (Emergency Response Units)are Notified
o Tones
o Pagers,
o Radio Transmission
o Station Package Activated
Formulas
 =PERCENTILE
 Uses a RANGE you want a percentile
OF
 (Talley up the numbers of occurrences
 Parameters
 “=“ tells EXCEL there’s a Formula Coming
 FORMULA TYPE (PERCENTLE)
 (parentheses to enclose parameters)
 Range (Top cell, to bottom cell like A1:A200)
 “,” next Parameter
 Percent Value (.1 = 10%, .25=25%, etc)
Statistically Valid Data

Data Range


Function
Percent
Parameter
=PERCENTILE(AS2:AS5850,AY2)
“Enroute”
“Onscene”
“Clear”
Crew or Station
Notify
Crew Enroute
Wheels Rolling
Arrival at Patient
Or At Scene
Unit Available or
End of Incident
(NFPA 1221)
(NFPA 1710)
(NFPA 1710)
Discovery
Notification
Alarm Handling
Turnout
Travel
On Incident
Soft Time
Soft Time
Time
Time
Time
Time
Mobilization or Lag
Time
Primary to
Secondary
PSAP Lag
Total Response
Time
Unit Response
Time
Total Resource (Apparatus)
Time
Pre 911 System
Total 911 Incident Time
Soft Time
Time
“Normalcy or Recovery Begins”
911 System
Notification
Alarm Processing Time
Event
Discovery
“Dispatch”
Incident Control Time
“Normalcy”
Event
Begins
Alarm Answering Time
“Event” “Discovery” “Notification”
Alarm Transfer Time
Incident Times – Cascade of Events
NFPA 1221(2010) – Call Answering
 3.3.1* Alarm. A signal or message from a person or
device indicating the existence of a fire, medical
emergency, or other situation that requires action by
an emergency response agency.
 7.4.1* Ninety-five percent of alarms received on
emergency lines shall be answered within 15
seconds, and 99 percent of alarms shall be answered
within 40 seconds. (For documentation requirements,
see 12.5.2.)
 7.4.1.1 Compliance with 7.4.1 shall be evaluated
monthly using data from the previous month.
From NFPA 1221 - 2010
NFPA 1221(2013) – Call Answering
 3.3.1* Alarm. A signal or message from a person
or device indicating the existence of a fire,
medical emergency, or other situation that
requires action by an emergency response
agency.
 7.4.1* Ninety-five percent of alarms received on
emergency lines shall be answered within 15
seconds, and 99 percent of alarms shall be
answered within 40 seconds. (For documentation
requirements, see 12.5.2.)
 7.4.1.1 Compliance with 7.4.1 shall be evaluated
monthly using data from the previous month.
From NFPA 1221 - 2013
NFPA – 1221 – January 2013
NFPA 1221 (2010) – Call Processing
 7.4.2* Ninety-percent of emergency call
processing and dispatching shall be completed
within 60 seconds, and 99 percent of call
processing and dispatching shall be completed
within 90 seconds. (For documentation
requirements, see 12.5.2.)
 7.4.2.1 Compliance with 7.4.2 shall be evaluated
monthly using data from the previous month.
From NFPA 1221 - 2010
NFPA 1221 (2013) – Call Processing
 7.4.2* With the Exception of Call types identified
in 7.4.2.2 80 percent of emergency call
processing and dispatching shall be completed
within 60 seconds, and 95 percent of call
processing and dispatching shall be completed
within 106 seconds. (For documentation
requirements, see 12.5.2.)
 7.4.2.1 Compliance with 7.4.2 shall be evaluated
monthly using data from the previous month.
From NFPA 1221 - 2013
1221 Annex “A” You Are a Primary
1221 Annex “A” You Are Secondary
Monthly Report Examples –FIRE Types
NFPA 1221 (2013) – Call Processing
 7.4.2.2* Emergency Alarm Processing for the
following Call types shall be completed within 90
seconds 90 percent of the time and within 120
seconds 99 percent of the time.
 Calls requiring emergency medical dispatch questioning





and pre-arrival medical instructions
Calls requiring language translation
Calls requiring the use of a TTY/TDD device or
audio/video relay services
Calls of criminal activity that require information vital to
the emergency responder safety prior to dispatching
units.
Hazardous Materials incidents
Technical Rescue incidents
From NFPA 1221 - 2013
Monthly Report
Examples – Excepted
Types - EMD/Hazmat/TRT
Real Time Monitoring
Alerting
1710 – 2014 Revision
 Current version 2010 (2001,2004)
 Public Comment period
underway
 Closes This month – New
Standard should be out January
 Proposed Travel time of 240
Seconds 90 percent of the time:
 NO regard for geography
 Demographics
 Road network quality
NFPA 1710: Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire
Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations, and Special
Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments
NFPA 1710 - Response
 3.3.37.2 Call Processing Time. See 3.3.37.3,
Dispatch Time.
 3.3.37.3* Dispatch Time. The point of receipt of
the emergency alarm at the public safety
answering point to the point where sufficient
information is known to the dispatcher and
applicable units are notified of the emergency.
From NFPA 1710 - 2010
Public/Provider Input
NFPA 1221 UPDATE Comparison
 2010 Edition (Obsolete)
 Ring to Answer –
 15 Sec 90%
 40 Sec 99%
 Process to Dispatch
 60 Sec 90%
 90 Sec 99%
 2013 Edition
 Ring to Answer 15 Sec 90%
 40 Sec 99%
 Process to Dispatch
 60 Sec 80%
 106 Sec 95%
 Exceptions:






EMD- EMS pre-arrival
Language
TTY/TDD
Criminal Info
Hazmat
Technical Rescue
 90 Sec 90%
 120 Sec 99%
1221 - What Didn’t make it in 2013
A.7.4.2.1 The AHJ (Authority Having Jurisdiction) of the
responding agency can allow certain types of
emergency calls to be excluded from the
requirements of 7.4.2 that require
 extra call interrogation time. All emergency calls of
these types will be identified and reviewed by the AHJ
on a monthly basis. Such calls could include but are
not limited to:
 (3) Dispatch equipment malfunction
 (4) Unusually high call volume due to unpredictable
scenarios (weather events, earthquakes, etc.)
 Exclusions should be reviewed and trends identified
that need to be addressed for possible operational or
technical solutions.
What Kind of Variables can Throw off
Measurement?
 Can’t Verify Address
 Location Changing (Driving)
 Caller won’t answer questions
 Caller gives bad answers
 Multiple 9-1-1 calls to same event
What can you control?
What is beyond your control?
Sources to Monitor vs. Reasons to Monitor
 What data sources are available to monitor
 Which data source contains that data that matters?
 If one data source is good, is two better?
D A T A
R
E
A
S
O
N
S
T
O
M
O
N
I
T
O
R
Phone
Data
Clinical
Dispatch
Y
Financial
Operational
Risk Mgmt
y
S O U R C E S
T O
M O N I T O R
CAD
Data
ProQA
Data
EPCR/RMS
Data
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Y
Billing
Data