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The Sacramento Bee, Calif., R.E. Graswich Column: Employee Exodus Leaves Sacramento's 911 Center in a Crisis of Its Own

Posted on: Monday, 15 May 2006, 12:05 CDT

By R.E. Graswich, The Sacramento Bee, Calif.

May 15--Emergency call: After 22 years, Judy Ortiz is leaving her job as a 911 emergency dispatcher for the Sacramento Police Department. Judy is moving to a similar job for another agency. She is part of the exodus that has left the city's emergency communications center short-handed by at least 50 percent of its authorized strength - an emergency situation requiring off-duty cops to come in and answer phones for overtime pay.

"The dispatchers are overworked and tired," Judy said. "We have mandatory overtime and an all-time low in staffing. People who call us on the non-emergency lines get frustrated that there is no one answering, so they call us on the 911 lines, only to be told to call back on the number they already tried." Sacramento Police Chief Albert Najera acknowledges the problem, but the brass sees little hope to stop the exodus. "It's a highly stressful job, and we're competing with other communities for dispatchers," said Capt. Joe Valenzuela. "We don't want to be a training ground for other cities, but that has happened." The brass says dispatcher benefits are better in suburban communities. And stress levels are lower. "They are cherrypicking our top people," said Aaron Donato, a dispatcher and union rep for Sacramento 911 operators. "It's a crisis." As for Judy and other veterans who have quit, the situation is sad. "I will be leaving my dear friends, my second family," Judy said. ...

Click here for more... Smoke out: A familiar face has turned up in promotional material for Chantix, a new anti-smoking pill from the Pfizer drug folks. The name is Joe Maloof. The Kings owner is shown in Pfizer video testimonials discussing how the drug helped him kick his habit. "Probably the biggest accomplishment in my life is quitting smoking," Joe says in the tape. "I smoked for 28 years. It was a major part of my life. I had to have my cigarettes everywhere I went. I couldn't do anything without having my cigarettes." Joe participated in clinical trials for the pill, which can only be obtained with a doctor's script. In April 2002, Joe made headlines in this column when he bummed a cigarette after a Kings game from an Arco Arena janitor named Patricia Villegas. Joe gave Patricia $100 for the cancer stick. Times change. ...

Political town: Don't look for much mudslinging in the race for Sacramento County supervisor, where SMUD board member Larry Carr, bounty hunter Leonard Padilla and former Sacramento Mayor Jimmie Yee are running. Larry was pleased the other day when he received an honorary law degree from Lorenzo Patino School of Law - the institution overseen by Padilla. "I thought that was kind of unusual, an opponent giving me an honorary law degree," Larry said. "I was very impressed." Carr has no plans to pursue an honorary law career with his honorary law degree. ...

Oven cooked: The re-emergence of Kathmandu restaurant on Broadway has brought joy to those of us who believe Kat's tandoori chicken is tops in Sacramento (Sansar Indian in Livermore is a little better, but just barely). A kitchen fire blackened the Kathmandu walls and ceiling months ago, leaving the joint shuttered. Welcome back. ...

Quick step: Mary Stanley figures she is lucky to escape jaywalking tickets (or worse) on Freeport Boulevard, which she crosses south of Sutterville. "I regularly walk a 15-minute mile, but I can't get across Freeport before the 'Walk' sign changes to red, unless I run," Mary said. "So now I am a jaywalker in a marked pedestrian crosswalk." It's no easy feat, exercising your feet.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Sacramento Bee, Calif.

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Source: The Sacramento Bee

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