CHICAGO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Motorola Solutions (NYSE: MSI) today announced that it has made a new service available to the public safety market — CommandCentral Citizen Input — which is designed to help 9-1-1 call takers to better engage with citizens in their time of need. Citizen Input is a cloud-based service that allows citizens calling or texting 9-1-1 to send video, photographs and recordings of an incident to the Public Safety Answering Point (PSAP), using controlled and permission-based procedures.
“With CommandCentral Citizen Input, Motorola Solutions has really listened to its customers,” said Anita Pitt, 9-1-1 program manager, Brazos Valley Council of Governments in Texas. “It allows the 9-1-1 call taker to send a link to the citizen calling or texting 9-1-1, which allows the citizen to send the media to the PSAP. With this, the 9-1-1 call taker is in control of what is sent. When I learned that, I thought, ‘Thumbs up, Motorola Solutions’.”
The service also protects these ‘first, first responders’ from unknowingly viewing potentially traumatic images. 9-1-1 call takers routinely engage with citizens in their worst moments, and research has shown that almost 24 percent of 9-1-1 call takers suffer from some form of post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)1. Citizen Input provides a simple link-based method for citizens to send a video and images. The media can then optionally be viewed as it is received and stored in the CommandCentral Vault for post-call analysis, as well as to maintain the chain of custody of evidence. Access to potentially disturbing video and images is controlled and limited by the call taker and their supervisor.
“Like all Motorola Solutions cloud-based offerings, Citizen Input is offered ‘as a service’ to our public safety customers,” said Andrew Sinclair, senior vice president and general manager, Software Enterprise, Motorola Solutions. “This enables us to eliminate the need for an upfront capital outlay, making it more cost effective and easier for agencies to purchase. Just as important, Motorola Solutions assumes the burden of regular maintenance, upgrades and security, so PSAPs can do what they do best — saving lives, one call at a time.”
Citizen Input integrates with existing VESTA 9-1-1 and CallWorks Call Station call handling platforms. Vesta 9-1-1 and CallWorks are already installed in thousands of PSAPs across the U.S., so Citizen Input can be deployed and available to citizens easily and rapidly, helping to share critical information that improves situational awareness and accelerates response.
Citizen Input is part of the CommandCentral software suite — Motorola Solutions’ highly integrated, end-to-end mission-critical software solution for public safety that unifies data and streamlines workflows from call to case closure. For more information on CommandCentral, please visit MotorolaSolutions.com/software. Please see this news release for additional information on Citizen Input and its deployment with Brazos Valley Council of Governments.
About Motorola Solutions
Motorola Solutions is a global leader in mission-critical communications and analytics. Our technology platforms in mission-critical communications, command center software, video security & analytics, bolstered by managed & support services, make communities safer and help businesses stay productive and secure. At Motorola Solutions, we are ushering in a new era in public safety and security. Learn more at www.motorolasolutions.com.
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1https://icma.org/articles/pm-magazine/management-911-emergency-dispatchers