New technology to help emergency services locate people faster – a welcome advancement, says Hato Hone St John

Hato Hone St John welcomes the introduction of the new Device Location Information (DLI) service, which expands on the existing Emergency Caller Location Information service enhancing the ability of emergency services to rapidly locate individuals in life-threatening situations.

The DLI capability, announced today by Minister of Police Mark Mitchell, allows emergency services to access the approximate location of a person’s mobile device—even when they haven’t called 111—if there are serious concerns for their safety or health.

Peter Bradley, Chief Executive of Hato Hone St John, says this is a vital tool that will help emergency services respond faster when every second counts. The ability to quickly locate a person whose life or health is at serious risk but unable to call for help can mean the difference between life and death,” says Mr Bradley.

“Crucially, this new capability highlights the value of collaboration between emergency service agencies. By working together and leveraging shared technology, we can deliver a faster, more accurate medical response to people when they need it, wherever they may be.”

The DLI service is part of a broader programme of work being led by Next Generation Critical Communications (NGCC) to modernise the critical communications infrastructure and services used by the emergency services. NGCC is also delivering the Public Safety Network cellular services and a new Land Mobile Radio network for Police, Fire and Emergency NZ, Wellington Free Ambulance, and Hato Hone St John.

Mr Bradley says the service will particularly benefit time-critical situations such as where a call for help is cut short before location details can be shared.

“When a call drops, or when a person can’t speak but is in clear need of help, this technology ensures we’re not wasting valuable time trying to manually determine where they might be. It allows us to respond faster when a person’s life or health is at serious risk,” he says.

Hato Hone St John is committed to embracing new technologies that improve patient care and response outcomes and sees DLI as a meaningful advancement in the way emergency services serve and protect the public.

ENDS