May 26, 2015 – Ottawa-Gatineau – The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission
At a ceremony held yesterday, employees of the Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission (CRTC) were presented with the Innovative Team Award from the Association of Professional Executive of the Public Service of Canada for their work on the Text with 9-1-1 service.
Text with 9-1-1 enables hearing and speech-impaired Canadians to access emergency services more directly and efficiently. Through this service, call centre operators are able to communicate with registered users via text messages. Canada's Text with 9-1-1 service is also unique in that along with the initial call, the operator receives the caller's approximate location, which can be of great assistance if the caller is unable to identify their location. A text messaging session is then initiated by the operator in order to exchange information regarding the emergency.
The rollout of these services started in the spring of 2014 and will be completed by the end of this year. Approximately 250 9-1-1 call centres across Canada will be able to support this service and have emergency personnel trained to interact with citizens in this new way. These changes will also pave the way for other next generation 9-1-1 services that will emerge in the coming years.
CRTC staff worked closely with wireless service providers, 9-1-1 call centres, representatives of hearing and speech-impaired persons, and others parties to make Text with 9-1-1 available in Canada. The CRTC's partnerships and ongoing collaboration with dozens of participants has been instrumental in making this project a success.
For more information and to register to use Text with 9-1-1, hearing and speech-impaired Canadians are encouraged to contact their wireless service provider and to visit Text with 9-1-1.
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