PUERTO RICO
911 Safe Community Campaign

 

PROJECT CHARACTERISTICS PROGRAM AREA(S)
  Innovative or non-traditional approach   Safe Communities
Emergency Medical Services
       
TYPE OF JURISDICTION    
  U.S. Commonwealth    
       
TARGETED POPULATION(S) JURISDICTION SIZE
  General Population   3,800,000


PROBLEM IDENTIFICATION
Puerto Rico's 911 Emergency System was initiated in 1994 and for several years struggled with issues including lack of equipment, administrative difficulties and deficiencies in the Emergency Medical Services (EMS) system (see Rapid Response Program, Spring 1998). The system was further burdened with numerous non-emergency calls, resulting in an average emergency response time of more than 35 minutes. The 911 System was widely criticized by citizens and the media, and was perceived to be unreliable.

In an effort to address deficiencies in the 911 Emergency system, the director of the Puerto Rico Traffic Safety Commission was appointed as director of the 911 Emergency System. The new 911 director sought to combine his traffic safety expertise with the Safe Communities concept to develop a comprehensive emergency response program.


GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
The 911 Safe Community Campaign was created in 1998 to restore confidence in Puerto Rico's 911 system, and to reduce emergency response time. To assist in achieving these goals, the following objectives were developed:

  • To improve interagency cooperation among police, EMS, fire, boating, civil defense and health departments
  • To reduce the number of non-emergency calls to the 911 System
  • To establish a prevention program to reduce the number of emergencies


STRATEGIES AND ACTIVITIES
Applying the same strategy as he used as Director of the Puerto Rico Traffic Safety Commission, the new 911 director sought to utilize the Safe Communities concept to determine the scope of the problem with the emergency system. Representatives from law enforcement, EMS, civil defense, fire, boating and the health department cooperated to identify specific problems associated with the 911 system, and how to handle prevention measures. Activities employed to address the problems included:

  • A mass media campaign was launched using television, radio and press ads to educate the public about the causes of various injuries and how they can be prevented. Information on injuries resulting from traffic crashes was presented first, because of the 911 director's familiarity with the magnitude of this issue
  • The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's (NHTSA) Safe Communities overhead presentation was expanded and used to encourage communities to embrace the Safe Communities concept. Discussions of the dangers of placing non-emergency calls to the 911 system were emphasized at the community level as well as in the mass media campaign
  • Brochures, posters, stickers and coloring books were developed to highlight prevention as a key component of the 911 System
  • Because children were identified as placing many non-emergency calls to the 911 System, officials created a super hero modeled after the Virgin Islands' Captain Caribbean, with a special costume and robot sidekick that plays safety messages when kids press the controls


RESULTS
The following results are attributed to the 911 Safe Community Campaign:

  • Non-emergency calls to Puerto Rico's 911 System dropped 8 percent; from 1,266,883 in 1997 to 1,177,877 in 1998
  • Emergency calls were reduced 7 percent; from 303,448 in 1997 to 280,995 in 1998
  • Emergency response times were reduced from 35 minutes to 10 minutes (see Rapid Response Program)
  • Surveys conducted by 911 System officials resulted in a customer satisfaction rating of 90 percent; media criticism has disappeared
 

FUNDING
  Commonwealth: $466,935
CONTACT  
  Miguel Santini
Director, 911 System
P.O. Box 270200
San Juan, PR 00927-0200
(787) 282-2082



NATIONAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC SAFETY ADMINISTRATION

WINTER 1999