Highway Patrol honors dispatchers

National Public Safety Telecommunications Week, which runs through Saturday, is designated to honor those who perform dispatching duties for law enforcement.

The week is sponsored by the Association of Public-Safety Communications Officials International. Celebrated annually, the week honor the thousands of men and women who answer emergency calls, dispatch emergency professionals and equipment, and render life-saving assistance to the world's citizens.

According to the Kansas Highway Patrol, the critical role played by public safety telecommunications professionals across the nation, and within the KHP, is often under appreciated and underestimated. When a member of the public or an officer needs help during an emergency, dispatchers become their lifeline, ensuring that the appropriate assistance is contacted and en route to whatever the situation might be.

The work dispatchers perform and the skill in which it is delivered clearly benefits and enhances the safety of officers and the public. They remain faceless and nameless to those who depend upon their expertise, and it is appropriate that they are recognized every April for all they do, according to a statement released by the KHP.