Data-Driven Dispatch: New Network Connects 911 Calls to Outcomes

AUSTIN, TX & SALT LAKE CITY, UT – April 22, 2026 – A groundbreaking initiative launched today promises to reshape emergency response by connecting the dots between a 911 call and a patient's ultimate hospital outcome. Data and software leader ESO Solutions, Inc. and The International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED), the world’s leading emergency dispatch standard-setting body, have established the Network for Evidence-Based Dispatch (NEBD).

The NEBD is a research consortium of more than a dozen pioneering EMS and fire agencies designed to generate continuous, data-driven evidence for the life-or-death decisions made by emergency dispatchers every day. This launch represents the next major step in a strategic research alliance the two organizations formed in November 2025, with the shared goal of ushering in a new era of outcomes-based innovation in emergency services.

Closing a Critical Information Gap

For decades, emergency dispatch has operated within a significant information vacuum. Dispatchers, the true first responders, follow established protocols to assess a situation and dispatch resources, but the feedback loop has traditionally been broken. Once an ambulance or fire truck is on its way, the dispatcher rarely learns the result of their decisions—whether a patient's condition was accurately identified, if the right resources were sent, or what the final medical outcome was.

This disconnect has been a long-standing challenge noted in academic circles. Past systematic reviews of dispatch systems have pointed to a "very low to low overall level of evidence" for their accuracy, not due to a lack of dispatcher skill, but a systemic lack of data connecting their actions to patient results. The information chain, as one industry report noted, "often ends along with the call."

"Dispatchers make critical decisions without knowing what happened to the patient after the call ended," said Jerry Overton, president of IAED, in today's announcement. The NEBD is designed to fundamentally change this paradigm. "The NEBD changes that, not with a single study, but with a standing group of agencies that can ask and answer questions continuously," Overton explained. "That's how evidence-based medicine drives stronger outcomes in the field."

The Engine of Change: Data, Technology, and Collaboration

At the heart of the NEBD is a powerful fusion of ESO's advanced data technology and IAED's globally recognized dispatch protocols. ESO has built an extensive data ecosystem designed specifically to bridge the information gaps between different stages of emergency care. Its Health Data Exchange (HDE) platform facilitates secure, bidirectional data sharing between EMS agencies and hospitals, translating complex hospital data into standardized, actionable information for first responders.

This technological backbone will allow the NEBD to do what was previously impossible at scale: track an emergency event from the initial 911 call and dispatch coding, through the on-scene EMS care documented in an electronic patient care record (ePCR), all the way to the patient’s diagnosis and outcome recorded in the hospital’s electronic health record (EHR). By leveraging a sophisticated data architecture, the consortium can analyze vast, anonymized datasets to identify patterns and correlations.

The initial cohort of founding agencies includes a diverse mix of large urban EMS systems, mid-size county services, and smaller community organizations. This diversity is by design, ensuring that the evidence generated is not specific to one type of community but is robust and applicable across the varied landscapes of emergency response in the United States. The consortium is built for rapid research cycles, allowing members to investigate everything from the effectiveness of alternative dispatch protocols for low-acuity calls to improving the identification of high-frequency, high-risk complaints like stroke or cardiac arrest.

From Protocol to Proven Practice

The IAED is the established global leader in creating and maintaining the protocols used by thousands of dispatch centers worldwide. These standards, developed and refined over decades by a Council of Standards, are "built on science and proven over time" to provide a consistent and reliable framework for dispatchers. However, the NEBD introduces a new, dynamic element: a continuous, real-world feedback loop.

The data flowing from the NEBD will provide unprecedented insight into how these protocols perform in the field. This allows for a shift from a system based on established standards to one of continuously validated standards. The research will help answer critical questions: Are certain dispatch codes consistently leading to the correct level of response? Can we identify subtle caller cues that correlate with serious medical conditions? How do different response configurations impact patient survival for specific emergencies?

"This consortium allows agencies to contribute to both the academic advancement of EMS protocols as well as operational enhancements to shared technologies,” stated Dr. Brent Myers, chief medical officer of ESO and co-leader of the network. He emphasized that the insights gained will directly influence the evolution of emergency response. “The NEBD will shape best practices, better inform policies and foster innovations that benefit patients, providers and the EMS community at large.”

A New Era for Community Safety and Patient Outcomes

Ultimately, the goal of the NEBD is to improve patient outcomes and enhance community safety. By grounding dispatch decisions in a bedrock of evidence, the network aims to ensure that every community receives the most appropriate and effective response for every call.

For participating agencies, this is a chance to move beyond anecdotal evidence and institutional habit. "Dispatch is where the emergency response system makes its first and often most consequential decision," commented Christopher Way, chief of Charleston County EMS and president of the National Association of EMTs. "Joining the NEBD means we have a mechanism to learn from those decisions at scale and to make sure the protocols guiding them reflect what the successful outcomes data shows us."

This data-driven approach has profound implications. It could lead to more accurate identification of patients who do not require an emergency ambulance, freeing up critical resources for true emergencies and potentially reducing healthcare costs. Conversely, it could help dispatchers more rapidly identify time-sensitive conditions like sepsis or heart attacks, ensuring the fastest possible deployment of advanced care. This smarter allocation of resources, driven by evidence, promises a more efficient, sustainable, and effective emergency response system for all. By uniting technology, protocol, and frontline experience, the NEBD is poised to set a new standard for emergency dispatch, transforming it into a truly data-backed science.