Emergency Communication: An Unfortunate Necessity
While it would be nice to live in a world where emergency communication wasn’t necessary, it’s unfortunately not the world we live in. Every organization, from schools to companies should have some kind of emergency communication system. Even the Gotham Police Department has the Bat Signal and the Bat Phone. Most emergency communication systems aren’t quite as simple as flicking the switch on a spotlight or picking up a phone, however, so it’s important to know how to use it properly.
The Problem with Infrequent Usage
Practice Makes Perfect
Using your emergency communication system regularly is key. This does mean running emergency drills on a regular basis so that you can be sure that not only does everyone know how to use the system but they also know exactly what to expect when an emergency alert needs to go out.
Run Regular Drills
Schedule regular drills for a variety of different emergency messages. Make sure your staff (and students, if you work in education) are aware that a drill will be occurring. A staff member who would be in charge of sending the alert in a real emergency should be the one to send the alert for the drill. If you have different types of emergency alerts, such as active shooter, tornado, extreme weather, fire, etc., then you’ll need to run tests for each one. This will ensure that not only does everyone know what to do in an emergency but also that they know exactly what to expect should an emergency arise. Plus, you’re regularly testing the entire system to make sure it functions as it should in an emergency situation, rather than waiting until an emergency occurs to discover that something isn’t working.
Use the System Every Day
Even better than scheduling regular drills is to just use the system every day. MessageNet Connections has many uses far beyond just emergency communication. You can use it for a bell schedule, posting lunch menus, displaying announcements, requesting meetings, contests, trivia, and more. Devices like the MediaPort and the Omni can display videos as well as images, PowerPoints, and text.
MessageNet Connections is far more than just a spotlight in the sky or a phone call to Batman. The system’s versatility gives it a wide range of everyday activities that can be done. The more that is done daily by your staff, the more experienced at using the system they’ll be. If an emergency situation arose, they would already be familiar and comfortable with using the system. Administration would also be more familiar with all of the capabilities of the system and so could design emergency alerts so that they utilize the full potential of the system. Emergency alerts can therefore reach more people in the event of an emergency scenario.