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The prevalence of voice disorders in 911 emergency telecommunicators
Heidi Johns-Fiedler1, Miriam van Mersbergen1
1Allied Health and Communicative Disorders, Northern Illinois University, DeKalb, Illinois.
Objective/Hypothesis:
Emergency 911 dispatchers or telecommunicators have been cited as occupational voice users who could be at risk for voice disorders. To test the theoretical assumption that the 911 emergency telecommunicators (911ETCs) are exposed to risk for voice disorders because of their heavy vocal load, this study assessed the prevalence of voice complaints in 911ETCs.
Study Design:
A cross-sectional survey was sent to two large national organizations for 911ETCs with 71 complete responses providing information about voice health, voice complaints, and work load.
Results:
Although 911ETCs have a higher rate of reported voice symptoms and score higher on the Voice Handicap Index-10 than the general public, they have a voice disorder diagnosis prevalence that mirrors the prevalence of the general population.
Conclusions:
The 911ETCs may be underserved in the voice community and would benefit from education on vocal health and treatments for voice complaints.
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