HANCOCK COUNTY (WTHR) - When someone calls 911, the person taking that call has to be totally focused on the crisis at hand. But now one county is looking to relieve some of the stress that comes with the grind of dealing with emergency calls. It's a healthier approach.
At any moment, the call could come. A car crash, a police chase, a home break-in, and 911 dispatchers must respond quickly.
John Collins has been a Hancock County dispatcher for seven years.
"We have to multi task, so there's not a lot of chance for us to get away from our workstation during the day," he explained.
For an entire shift, he says, they can be tied to their desks.
"A lot of times you're sitting in your chair for eight hours and your legs kind of get the dead feel to them," he said.
But now there's a way to pedal away some of that tension.
"So whenever I start getting that feeling, I'll get up and get the bike out and I usually do 5 to 10 miles," he said.
Two stationary pedaling machines and one treadmill are now available for the twenty dispatchers at the Hancock County 911 Center.
"You definitely can feel a difference. I usually get up and walk laps around the room, so getting that now I can sit and do my job and not get up and leave my area," said dispatch operator Heather Fisher.
County commissioners approved the idea to help keep 911 operators sharp.
Dispatchers have been able to get some exercise on the job, but only using equipment that is outdated. Some of it is breaking down. Plus, dispatchers could only use equipment before or after their shift.
Now they can get in a small workout while working incoming emergencies.
John Jokantas is the director of the Hancock County 911 center.
"And it is a matter of life and death, that I would rather have our employees in a better mood and more alert by exercising," Jokantas explained.
Hancock County's Emergency Operations officials expect the cost of pedaling machines to be far cheaper than the medical costs of treating problems caused by a sedentary lifestyle. And it's already sparked some in-house competition.
"We have one of our day shift employees, her name's Lacy. We call her Lace Armstrong because she bikes upwards of 20 miles a day. So she's kind a tough to beat!" said Collins.
It's the latest approach to maintaining public safety by helping workers behind the scenes.
Hancock County is now looking to replace some outdated exercise equipment for emergency workers, but it will likely take an outside fundraising effort to help pay for that.
