The Support Services Unit of the Atascadero Police Department includes six Support Services Technicians (SST's) or Dispatchers, one SST Lead Technician, and one SST Supervisor. The Support Services Unit receives and dispatches all emergency 911 and non-emergency calls for assistance, including requests for police, fire, and emergency medical personnel.
Professionalism and providing quality and responsive customer service under the most stressful conditions are the goals of the Support Services Unit. The SST is the first point of contact with the Department for most citizens when they are most in need of help or information.
All the SST's are certified emergency medical dispatchers who are capable of providing emergency medical care instructions for the ill or injured until the arrival of emergency medical personnel at the scene. As an example of their versatility, SST's also process Department records and reports and assist citizens with information at the front desk in their "spare" time between answering the telephone and dispatching emergency personnel. Given the high volume of calls for assistance and radio transmissions from police and fire units, that "spare" time becomes a rare commodity.