'Smart911' Safety Profiles Save Lives In An Emergency: Officials

Every second can be critical in an emergency situation, so local governments across the north suburbs are encouraging citizens to sign up for a free service to help first responders to better react in the event of an emergency.

Residents were asked to volunteer any information they want public safety personnel to have in an emergency situation, allowing the Smart911 service to show a safety profile with potentially life-saving data to telecommunicators as soon as a 911 center receives a call from a registered number.

Participants can provide as much or as little personal information as desired to help save vital moments in the event of an emergency. Getting key details such as an address, the number of residents, medical conditions, emergency contacts and other household facts can be invaluable for quickly getting the proper teams to the right place and with the right preparation.

“Smart911 saves critical time in an emergency and has proven to save lives nationwide,” said Winnetka Fire Chief Alan Berkowsky, encouraging residents to sign up. “The additional information provided in a Smart911 safety profile enables us to know exactly where we are going and who we are looking for in a house fire or at the scene of a vehicle accident.”

Smart911 is currently available in 40 states and more than 1,500 municipalities around the country, according to its parent company, Rave Mobile Safety. The system has been credited with helping find a missing girl whose photo and description were immediately available to 911 and responders in the field and helping a man suffering a heart attack get aid faster as his his medial notes and address allowed responders to get to his location faster.

"The safety profile travels with you and the additional information provided allows public safety dispatchers to alert the right response teams faster and more accurately," said Brent Reynolds, director of public safety support services in Glenview. The village's public safety dispatch center handles calls from nine North Shore communities from two locations.

Location information in safety profiles is extra handy for 911 telecommunicators taking calls from cellphones — comprising 80 percent of all calls placed to 911 — because mobile phones do not immediately provide home addresses or exact locations. But if the software detects a 911 call from a registered phone number, the safety profile of the caller appears on screen for the dispatcher and in the responding officer's vehicle for a short time. The service also allows residents to link home and work addresses to the mobile phone numbers.

Winnetka Village Manager Rob Bahar said the benefits of the service for 911 calls from mobile phones were incalculable.

"These emergency situations are often the worst of a person's life, and the safety profile can speak for you when you might be unable," Bahar said, announcing the adoption of the service in the village last month.

The latest update to the Smart911 system adds more resources to better serve the homeless and those with mental health or cognitive conditions, according to Rave. The company last month announced a new option to include a mental health crisis plan in safety profiles, which can advise emergency responders the best way to handle a situation or report particular behaviors and prescriptions.

National Alliance on Mental Illness Chicago Executive Director Alexa James said her group is partnering with local government and emergency personnel to offer the service aimed at providing people experiencing mental health emergencies with "most appropriate intervention" and potentially offer treatment.

"Unfortunately first responders have become the safety net for those experiencing a mental health emergency," James said. "The new Smart911 updates, accompanied by increased investment in mental health awareness training, reflect the need to provide call takers and first responders with the information needed to facilitate the best and safest outcomes for all involved."

The latest update also added an option to specify how emergency responders best should approach individuals with autism, room for more details for people facing addiction and allowing those without permanent addresses to describe their housing situation and location in case of emergency.

A spokesperson for Rave Mobile Safety said Smart911 service is currently compatible with dispatch services in Cook, Dewitt, Dupage, Knox and St Clair counties, as well as the cities of Chicago, Naperville and Elgin. Local officials in Glenview, Grayslake, Highland Park, Lake Forest, Northfield, Winnetka and other participating communities have encouraged residents to sign up:

Lake County does not use the service, according to sheriff's office spokesperson Sgt. Chris Covelli.

"The challenge with this and other similar services is that there is no consistency to the CAD or telephone interfaces that the companies provide, there is typically a significant cost for custom integration, and web-based alternatives to the integrations add several steps to the dispatch process," Covelli said.

Deerfield, which runs a dispatch center serving Bannockburn, Riverwoods and Lincolnshire, is evaluating the program, according to Deputy Chief Tom Keane.

The profiles take as little as 5 to 10 minutes to set up function with any participating 911 dispatch center across the country. They are private and only used for emergency responses, according to the officials in participating villages.

Anyone interested in creating a Smart911 profile may visit the Smart911 website or download the app, which provides emergency alerts in real time based on the users location, such as National Weather Service warnings.