Customer Reviews

Under the Headset : Surviving Dispatcher Stress

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Richard has hit the factual, emotional, humorous and sincerity bullseye with "Under the Headset". His combination of real life experience and dedication to Critical Incident Stress Management for dispatchers are admirable and appreciated. If you are a 911 dispatcher, first responder, private sector dispatcher or communications supervisor; you owe it to yourself and your staff to read this fast paced and easy read. Richard's writing style is from the heart but packed with usable tools we can all use. This would also be a GREAT resource and peek into the 911 dispatch profession for police, fire and EMS Administrators and Chiefs. I hope you enjoy the book as much as I did. For more information on Richard, please feel free to visit www.pstc911.com or the 911 console list server. Those in the profession are raving about this fine author, dispatcher and friend to the profession! GREAT JOB RICHARD!

Very little has been written over the years about the stresses of being a public safety telecommunicator. Richard Behr has brought his years of expertise as a 9-1-1 dispatcher, and his own personal experiences as a victim of critical incident stress, to the dispatching community in this exciting new book. Richard examines the forces that can lead dispatchers to become stressed, factors that cause dispatchers to leave the career early, and gives suggestions in coping strategies that will assist dispatchers at home as well as at work. Richard writes from the heart in a way that only someone who truly has 'been there' can possibly know. You'll laugh at some of his stories, while others may very well bring a tear to your eye. This is a book that should be read by every first responder, and kept in every 9-1-1 dispatch center. A great work; I'm looking forward to his next book!

I met Richard at a meeting in Iowa and became an instant fan of his work. He sat with me and listened to me (a stranger) talk about life in general and gave me some wonderful advice at a time in my life when I needed to talk to someone who had been "in my shoes." Richard is very inspiring and so is his book. Since I got an autographed book from him, I have read it over & over again and find myself smiling, nodding, and thinking, "Yep, that's exactly how I feel or felt!" There are many wonderful poems and stories in this book that relate to everyone's life at some point or another. Richard's book always makes me happy and is a great pick me up when I feel like I am "Just a dispatcher." I would reccomend it for anyone!

I thought it was well worth the money. Im a trainer, and the first weekend a trainee has off, I tell them to read it. Its very informative. Richard did an excellent job, can't wait for his next book to come out. Since my agency is never offers CISD, this was the perfect book to read. My agency offered to pay me back for buying it, if it could be left in dispatch. I said "no way, this is going in my dispatch library" thanks richard..i still wish i could have gotten it signed. I know, i could send it to him, and he would sign it. I think every dispatcher should read it... GOOD JOB RICHARD~~

I gulped at paying $(...) for this little book. But, it's worth every penny. I swear that he wrote it just for me! This is SO good. So many things here I am going to share with my trainees. It is so valuable. I keep thinking that the author is a genius. Of course he is, he's a dispatcher!

Richard Behr is a very sincere person who passionately cares about the emotional well being of all individuals in the emergency dispatching field... The book conveys that message, plus a strong reminder to the reader to take care of yourself and know the warning signs of overload and PTSD. When he signs a copy of his book, in addition to his name he also writes, "Thanks for all you do and for making a difference everyday," and he means it. As a dispatch supervisor at a busy Southern California Police Department, I keep two copies of his book at work with me to share with my dispatchers, and I also share his book with my students when I teach my Dispatcher Wellness Class.
In addition to good plain facts and information about stress and how to fix it, there are also light hearted stories and anecdotes to make you laugh. If there is one important thing that dispatchers should learn and Richard would encourage you to learn, laughter is the best medicine. To anyone who has ever criticized this book as being too light hearted or flippant, you've missed a really important message. Try reading it again and you'll catch what you missed the first time around.

Thanks Richard for an important dispatcher wellness tool....

Some of this I already knew, some was new to me. It was nice to see that what I'm feeling is normal for dispatchers. I highly recommend this book. The poems in the back are nice reminders. Book is small enough in size to fit at the console.

There's some good general information in this book and I love the humor portion.

I know there are other reviews that differ, but I found that for [$&&], (used!) it was a pretty small book. Some of the information was valuable, but it was filled with sappy poems, war stories and the like. There wasn't much in this book that identified the specific stress that police dispatchers suffer from. Just a few cliche articles about stress in general. I was very disappointed in this book, left it here in dispatch and found several of my co-workers felt the same. Comments I heard were "you paid how much for this book?..."