On the first day of Christmas, my Xybix Sales Rep gave to me: a complimentary design consultation! That’s right, friends. If you are looking to upgrade your dispatch center, call your local sales rep, and they will come out to meet with you to collect all of the project details required to submit your project to design. There’s no project too difficult for our trained team to handle. We understand that each communication center is unique in its own way, and that’s why we customize our products to meet your needs.

I had a great opportunity to go to an open house for a newly remodeled dispatch center. This was in Shawnee, Oklahoma, a city of about 30,000 residents.  They dispatch fire and police for the city.  

With Thanksgiving all around us, we are called to be thankful and grateful. We all have things we are grateful for in our personal lives, but what about work? So I started thinking what here at Xybix am I thankful for? Some are the traditional things to be thankful for and others are a bit of a stretch. But either way, I figured I’d share my list with you, in hopes that you too can find something to be grateful for in your lives either at work or at home. As hard as I tried, I can’t rank these in any particular order, here are the things I am thankful for:

You begged and pleaded. You worked hard to fit the treadmill into your budget for three years running and went through all of the red tape. You had all of your dispatchers sign the waivers, and the effort seemed to pay off; the treadmill was a hit! You were the hero, until a couple of months went by, and the popularity started to wain. Of course there are the dedicated few who spend an hour or two every day burning calories, but how do you keep interest high in the rest of the center? FEAR NOT! Here are five fun (and FIT!) ways to keep your treadmill desk or bike in use:

I previously wrote a blog highlighting which companies selling imaging desks will be at RSNA.  If you are shopping for a new desk, the following advice should help get you to the right booth without wasting time.  

Once you get to the booth and start talking to the helpful (pesky?) salesperson, what are some good questions to ask?  If you are like me, you probably think of them after you’ve already walked away. Fortunately, I have put together some questions that will help you make your best decision.  

We all know that funding for even the smallest of items can feel like it takes an act of Congress or the signatures of our Four Fathers. And, we all know that keeping employees motivated and positive is an additional struggle. So when you try and do something to boost morale, such as introduce health accessories (i.e. a treadmill or bike) into the workplace, it can often feel like you’re met with road block after road block. Fortunately, there may be a solution out there that can help curb the funding hurdle.

Motivation and overall morale in the dispatch center are difficult to maintain and with the encroaching holidays, one thing is for certain, 911 dispatchers are called to be at the top of their game. Holidays can be a very busy time for 911; burnout, sickness and just genuine lack of motivation can be huge problems causing 911 centers everywhere to struggle. Nothing can replace giving up time with family or friends over the holidays. So, what can you do to help motivate and maybe inspire your dispatchers this holiday season?

911 Dispatchers know a lot about being efficient. They have to be ready to react quickly when the important call comes in amidst all of the barking dog and drunk neighbor complaints. Taking time to reach around looking for the right mouse or the right keyboard can slow them down when trying to get the job done.

Stress is a very sensitive and very real subject for many 911 dispatchers. And while it is not my intention to try for a minute to understand the dealings with that you must go through in your profession, I think that the idea of stress in a dispatch center has a very real effect on your health and well-being. With health becoming a topic of great importance in the 911 industry, as sensative of a subject it might be, I feel it is worth blogging about. Coping with stress can happen on many different levels and we all deal with it a different way. When stress effects our personal health learning how to cope with it in a productive way can make all the difference.

Treats are pretty common around a 911 Comm Center or any office during the Halloween season.  So I thought, maybe we could add a healthy spin to the treats we all know we will eat. Bringing healthy ideas and initiatives to your next office pot luck or event gathering doesn’t have to be scary. It can be fun and rewarding for both you and your co-workers. Here are three phases to a creepy plan of bringing better health into a workplace near you.