Dispatcher/AEMT - LifeFlight Event Medicine

Vanderbilt Health Event Medicine Dispatcher

Discover Vanderbilt University Medical Center: Located in Nashville, Tennessee, and operating at a global crossroads of teaching, discovery, and patient care, VUMC is a community of individuals who come to work each day with the simple aim of changing the world. It is a place where your expertise will be valued, your knowledge expanded, and your abilities challenged. Vanderbilt Health is committed to an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive and where your uniqueness is sought and celebrated. It is a place where employees know they are part of something that is bigger than themselves, take exceptional pride in their work and never settle for what was good enough yesterday. Vanderbilt's mission is to advance health and wellness through preeminent programs in patient care, education, and research.

Organization: LifeFlight Event Medicine CRT & Comms

Job Summary:

The Dispatcher is responsible for coordinating medical support at event venues in conjunction with command staff and serves as the primary communication hub. When an injury or illness is reported, the Dispatcher receives emergency (911) or service calls, assesses urgency, gathers critical information, and dispatches appropriate medical personnel or resources. The Dispatcher monitors and tracks patient movement, unit locations, and response activities using radio communication, phone systems, and computer-aided dispatch (CAD) tools. Acting as a liaison between callers, field personnel, and command staff, the Dispatcher ensures timely, effective, and appropriate care. Responsibilities also include maintaining detailed and accurate incident documentation, prioritizing multiple requests, adhering to safety protocols, and ensuring confidentiality and compliance with established procedures. Schedule is event-driven and may vary week to week based on operational needs.

Position Hours

Part-time or full-time available

Days, evenings & weekends

Preferred Skills and Experience:

• 1+ years of experience in a public safety communicator/dispatch role
• 1+ years of AEMT experience on a 911 service
• Experience with public safety radio systems

Key Responsibilities

• Track inbound, staged, and outbound ambulances and medical assets at Event Medicine venues and events
• Maintain real-time awareness of all event medicine assets located at assigned venue/event
• Maintain real-time awareness of helicopter air ambulances operating in the Mid-Cumberland Region of Tennessee.
• Relay safety advisories, including weather updates and relevant environmental activity.
• Facilitate communications between ambulances and hospitals within Tennessee EMS Region 5.
• Facilitate requests for patient transports by external EMS agencies as needed at events.
• Assist with the coordination of Event Medicine and EMS resources/responses during mass casualty incidents or disasters.
• Facilitate interoperable communications.
• Maintain effective communication and coordination with law enforcement, security teams, hospitals, EMS agencies, and emergency services.
• Understands the operations, updating, and applications of all communication equipment, including troubleshooting, and up to programming.
• Communicate information and emergency notifications to crew members in an efficient, concise, and courteous manner.
• The responsibilities listed are a general overview of the position and additional duties may be assigned.

Technical Capabilities

Listening (Intermediate):

• Actively engages in all forms of communication, showing genuine interest.
• Consistently applies the listening process: hear, understand, interpret, and respond.
• Recognizes and responds to non-verbal and paralinguistic cues including emotions, body language, tone, and behavior.
• Ensure speakers feel heard and understood.
• Skillfully paraphrases for clarity and support.
• Use open-ended questions to deepen understanding.
• Prioritizes focused attention, rescheduling if unable to be fully present.

Decision Making (Novice):

• Makes multiple decisions impacting areas of direct responsibility.
• Takes full ownership of problems and outcomes.
• Decides effectively in fast-paced or changing environments.
• Consider a broad range of alternatives, including those beyond the immediate scope.

Change Management (Novice):

• Applies a structured approach to adapt to workplace changes and develop coping strategies.
• Offers sound recommendations and supports testing and quality assurance of solutions.

Pinpoints operational inefficiencies and drives solutions using a consistent, structured methodology.

Emergency Management (Novice):

• Possesses sufficient fundamental proficiency to successfully demonstrate emergency management in practical applications of moderate difficulty.
• Has an understanding of mass casualty operations and priorities, swiftly adapting operational protocols to meet the capabilities of the team and incident demands.
• Ability to operate in austere environments, adapting to conditions without modern amenities.

Physical Requirements:

"Heavy Work" category requiring exertion of 50 to 100 lbs. of force occasionally and/or up to 20 to 50 lbs. of force frequently and/or up to 10 to 20 lbs. of force continually to move objects.

Physical Demands:

Pathogens: Risk of exposure to bloodborne pathogens and other contagious illnesses. - Frequent
Chemicals and Gasses: Medications, cleaning chemicals, oxygen, other medical gases used in work area. - Occasional
Climate: Ability to withstand exposure to atmospheric extremes including heat, cold, humidity, and barometric pressure changes. - Occasional Radiation: May be exposed to occupational radiation, requiring enrollment in VUMC's Radiation Safety Program which includes training, use of personal protective equipment with lead shielding, and personal dose monitoring. - Not Applicable Vibration: Subject to oscillating movement. - Not Applicable Dust - Not Applicable Bimanual Dexterity: Requiring the use of both hands. - Frequent Proximity to moving mechanical parts - Not Applicable Working in high, exposed places - Not Applicable Electrical current - Not Applicable Odor - Not Applicable Mist - Not Applicable Noise: May include exposure to occupational noise levels which equal or exceed an 8-hr time-weighted average of 85 decibels, requiring enrollment in VUMC's Hearing Conservation Program which includes training, use of hearing protection, and periodic audiometry. - Not Applicable Taste: Ability to detect quality, texture, consistency and taste of prepared foods/quality control. - Not Applicable Feeling: Ability to perceive size, shape, temperature, texture by touch with fingertips. - Continuous Smell: Ability to detect and identify odors. - Continuous Vision: Clarity of near vision at 20 inches or less and far vision at 20 feet or more with depth perception, peripheral vision, color vision. - Continuous Auditory: Perceiving the variances of sounds, tones and pitches and able to focus on single source of auditory information - Continuous Fingering: Picking, pinching, gripping, working primarily with fingers requiring fine manipulation. - Frequent Communication: Expressing or exchanging written/verbal/electronic information. - Frequent Handling: Seizing, holding, grasping, turning or otherwise working with hand or hands. - Frequent Reaching below shoulders: Extending arms in any direction below shoulders. - Frequent Reaching above shoulders: Extending arms in any direction above shoulders. - Occasional Crouching/Squatting: Bending body downward and forward by bending legs and spine. - Occasional Kneeling: Bending legs at knees to come to rest on knee or knees. - Occasional Crawling: Moving about on hands and knees or hands and feet. - Not Applicable Balancing: Maintaining body equilibrium to prevent falling when walking, standing, crouching or maneuvering self, patient and equipment simultaneously while working in large and small spaces - Frequent Climbing: Ascending or descending stairs/ramps using feet and legs and/or hands and arms. - Occasional Bending/Stooping: Trunk bending downward and forward by bending spine at waist requiring full use of lower extremities and back muscles - Occasional Push/Pull: Exerting force to move objects away from or toward. - Frequent Carrying over 35 lbs: Transporting an object holding in hands, arms or shoulders, with help of coworkers or assistive device. - Occasional Carrying under 35 lbs: Transporting an object holding in hands, arms or shoulders, with help of coworkers or assistive device. - Frequent Lifting over 35 lbs: Raising and lowering objects from one level to another, includes upward pulling over 35 lbs, with help of coworkers or assistive device - Frequent Lifting under 35 lbs: Raising and lowering objects under 35 lbs from one level to another - Frequent Standing: Remaining on one's feet without moving. - Frequent Walking: Moving about on foot. - Frequent Sitting: Remaining in seated position - Occasional

Core Accountabilities:

* Organizational Impact: Performs tasks that are typically routine that may impact team's performance with occasional guidance.