Emergency medical dispatcher vs emergency communications officer

The differences between emergency medical dispatchers and emergency communications officers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. Additionally, an emergency communications officer has an average salary of $39,422, which is higher than the $38,255 average annual salary of an emergency medical dispatcher.

The top three skills for an emergency medical dispatcher include EMT, computer aided dispatch and EMS. The most important skills for an emergency communications officer are patrol, computer aided dispatch, and emergency situations.

Emergency medical dispatcher vs emergency communications officer overview

	Emergency Medical Dispatcher	Emergency Communications Officer
Yearly salary	$38,255	$39,422
Hourly rate	$18.39	$18.95
Growth rate	4%	4%
Number of jobs	69,103	93,158
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 29%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Average age	39	39
Years of experience	-	-

Emergency medical dispatcher vs emergency communications officer salary

Emergency medical dispatchers and emergency communications officers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Emergency Medical Dispatcher	Emergency Communications Officer
Average salary	$38,255	$39,422
Salary range	Between $30,000 And $47,000	Between $28,000 And $53,000
Highest paying City	-	Bloomington, IL
Highest paying state	-	Oregon
Best paying company	-	City of Austin
Best paying industry	-	Government

Differences between emergency medical dispatcher and emergency communications officer education

There are a few differences between an emergency medical dispatcher and an emergency communications officer in terms of educational background:

	Emergency Medical Dispatcher	Emergency Communications Officer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 29%	Bachelor's Degree, 46%
Most common major	Criminal Justice	Criminal Justice
Most common college	-	-

Emergency medical dispatcher vs emergency communications officer demographics

Here are the differences between emergency medical dispatchers' and emergency communications officers' demographics:

	Emergency Medical Dispatcher	Emergency Communications Officer
Average age	39	39
Gender ratio	Male, 35.8% Female, 64.2%	Male, 43.1% Female, 56.9%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 9.1% Unknown, 6.0% Hispanic or Latino, 11.1% Asian, 0.9% White, 72.1% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	17%	17%

Differences between emergency medical dispatcher and emergency communications officer duties and responsibilities

Emergency medical dispatcher example responsibilities.

Train new EMT students, and dispatchers in patient care, emergency call taking and operations.
Dispatch fire police sheriff and medical using the cad system.
Provide medical instructions to callers on issues such as childbirth and CPR.
Dispatch appropriate units according to acuity level, availability and location; assist with CPR until units arrive at location.
Develop and implement departments EMD program.
Dispatch ambulances as necessary and in accordance with state and company standard operating procedures.

Emergency communications officer example responsibilities.

Dispatch all patrol units to calls for service.
Monitor Fire/EMS calls of adjacent jurisdictions.
Maintain composure and compassion while handling emergency and non-emergency calls from a diverse community
Retrieve sensitive information such as, DMV files and background histories.
Insert foley catheter or straight cath a patient as directed.
Receive training regarding updates and changes of policies, procedure and regulations to CJIS.

Emergency medical dispatcher vs emergency communications officer skills

Common emergency medical dispatcher skills

EMT, 11%
Computer Aided Dispatch, 10%
EMS, 8%
CAD, 8%
EMD, 7%
CPR, 7%

Common emergency communications officer skills

Patrol, 20%
Computer Aided Dispatch, 10%
Emergency Situations, 7%
CPR, 6%
CAD, 6%
EMS, 6%

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Emergency Medical Dispatcher
Emergency Medical Dispatcher vs Emergency Communications Officer

Updated January 8, 2025

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