Supporting Callers’ Needs in Crisis: Designing the Next Generation of 9-1-1 for Medical Emergencies

Paper Title

Supporting Callers’ Needs in Crisis: Designing the Next Generation of 9-1-1 for Medical Emergencies

Publication Info

• Topic area: Enhancing 9-1-1 systems for medical emergencies through user-centered design and technology integration.
• Keywords: 9-1-1, emergency response, medical emergencies, multimodal communication, AI-assisted triage, real-time translation, participatory design, user-centered design, accessibility, privacy.

Background and Problem

• Problem / challenge: The traditional audio-only 9-1-1 system has limitations in effectively supporting callers during medical emergencies, including difficulties in conveying location, language barriers, lack of transparency, and challenges in sharing medical history.
• Significance: Improving 9-1-1 systems can enhance emergency response, save lives, and reduce caller anxiety during high-stress situations.
• Motivation and related work: Prior research has focused on video integration for 9-1-1 but has not comprehensively addressed broader challenges or explored alternative technologies. This study aims to fill these gaps by investigating caller needs and proposing design solutions.

Solution

• Proposed approach: A mixed-methods study combining surveys, interviews, and participatory design workshops to identify challenges and propose design opportunities for next-generation 9-1-1 systems.
• Novelty:
  1. Identification of major challenges faced by callers during medical emergencies.
  2. Exploration of design opportunities beyond video calls, including multimodal communication and AI-assisted features.
  3. Consideration of socio-technical factors for technology adoption in emergency contexts.
• Procedure and key techniques:
  • Conducted a web-based survey (N=253) to understand caller experiences and preferences.
  • Semi-structured interviews (N=12) to gain deeper insights into challenges and needs.
  • Participatory design workshops (5 sessions, 12 participants) to co-create design concepts and address user concerns.

Results

• Concrete findings:
  • 29.9% of survey respondents reported difficulty describing their location.
  • 28.8% faced challenges in verbally explaining emergencies.
  • 46.7% preferred location-sharing features, while 34.4% supported text-based communication.
  • Privacy concerns were highest for location sharing (39.1%) and video calling (27.4%).
• Advantage over baselines:
  • Proposed solutions address limitations of audio-only systems by integrating multimodal communication (video, text, location sharing), AI for triage and translation, and caregiver-integrated apps.
  • Enhanced transparency (e.g., real-time ambulance tracking) and emotional support features.
• Experiments / evaluation:
  • Survey: Quantitative analysis of user experiences and preferences.
  • Interviews: Thematic analysis of challenges and unmet needs.
  • Workshops: Co-design of features like video calling, real-time translation, and mobile apps.
• Limitations and future work:
  • Limited representation of vulnerable populations (e.g., older adults, LEP individuals, socioeconomically disadvantaged groups).
  • Lack of validation with call takers and emergency agencies.
  • Future work should include diverse populations and test feasibility within existing 9-1-1 workflows.

Summary

This study identifies key challenges in the 9-1-1 system for medical emergencies, including difficulties in location sharing, language barriers, and lack of transparency. It proposes innovative solutions such as multimodal communication, AI-assisted triage and translation, and caregiver-integrated mobile applications. The findings highlight the importance of balancing technological innovation with user needs, privacy concerns, and socio-technical considerations. These insights pave the way for designing more inclusive, efficient, and compassionate next-generation 9-1-1 systems.