Phoenix 911 dispatchers to get new 'quiet room' to decompress

PHOENIX - Emergency dispatchers in Phoenix who handle 911 calls now have a place to decompress.

It's not your traditional break room but a quiet room. A calm, relaxing space for 911 dispatchers where they can take a minute to step away from the desk, put down the phones, and decompress.

Local Rotary clubs sponsored the idea of the quiet rooms to give those who serve our community a more quiet space in the workplace. 

"Sometimes you just want to sit, you don't have to talk but knowing that you have somewhere to go and there's going to be someone there next to you when you're ready to express yourself or just talk about it or not, just decompress and say, 'okay, I'm done let's get back to work'.," said Olga Balenzuela, a 911 operator. 

Phoenix Police say it's almost every day that the job can take an emotional toll for all emergency dispatchers and first responders, so the new quiet rooms are a great source of peace from what 911 operators say can oftentimes be a hectic day at the office. 

"We all are moms, dads, brothers, sisters and so we're apart of a family and so this room is really giving them an opportunity to come in and take that moment to just take a breath and let it be quiet because in that communication room it's super busy," said Sgt. Mercedes Fortune with the Phoenix Police Department. 

Counseling services will also be provided to dispatchers in addition to the quiet room to give more emotional relief in case operators handle a tough call.