Post-Dispatch Instructions and Call Closure
Post-dispatch instructions are part of the response
Once the determinant is selected, the protocol directs a set of Post-Dispatch Instructions - the safety and readiness steps that make the responders' arrival faster and safer. Typical content: unlock the door and turn on the outside light, put pets in another room, have medications and identification ready, do not move the patient unless in danger, and call back if the patient's condition changes. These are scripted, not optional, and they are not small talk. A candidate who dispatches units and then simply says "help is on the way" has skipped a required element of the call.
Closing the call correctly
Call closure has its own checklist. Confirm the address one final time. Tell the caller plainly what will happen next and how many units to expect. Give the callback instruction so the caller knows what to do if things worsen. If pre-arrival instructions are in progress, the line is not released at all until responders are with the patient or the protocol permits release. Document what was instructed, what the caller agreed to, and any change in condition reported before the line closed.
Traps
Common failures: closing before post-dispatch instructions are delivered; giving post-dispatch instructions before the determinant is selected, which delays dispatch; hanging up while the caller is still performing CPR; promising a specific arrival time; neglecting to tell the caller to call back if the condition changes; and failing to repeat the address to a caller who is distraught. A subtler trap is treating a call as finished once units are dispatched - the call is closed when the protocol's closing steps are complete, not when the tones go out.
Rule of thumb: dispatch, then instruct, then confirm and close - in that order, every time.