In March next year, new technology will be introduced that allows everyone to contact SOS Alarm with a text message instead of calling.
Real-time texting is an aid that already exists in some smart phones. Simply put, it works like an SMS where the background noise from the call follows - and the latter is important.
Sound is actually a very important part for our SOS operators to be able to make an assessment. You can, for example, hear if it is restless on the spot, what the breathing of the one who calls sounds like, if he has chest pain, explains Björn Skoglund.
Continue calling
The service will be open to everyone, but the target group is those with disabilities and SOS Alarm wants people to continue calling in. However, there are situations where real-time texting can become an important component, such as during an ongoing violent act like the mass shooting at Risbergska school in Örebro in January.
You can be in a situation like Risbergska or if you have another problem to talk right then, says Björn Skoglund.
For 15 years, the hearing impaired or those who have problems with speech have been able to send SMS to 112 in a special service. 880 alarms per year come in that way, but Björn Skoglund says that SOS Alarm estimates that they would have received an additional 70,000 SMS if they had released it freely.
"Hello sweetie"
It sounds like it may require more resources for this, can you handle it?
It's very difficult to know, says Björn Skoglund.
Of course, there are advantages to being able to text. But you need to do it in an organized way. You can imagine if we had received 70,000 SMS in addition to the 880 that come in now. It would also affect the deaf and speech-impaired people's opportunities to reach 112 via SMS.
Already now, many people mistakenly believe that it is possible to SMS to 112.
There are people who have connected their burglar alarm and think they can SMS it to 112 when the alarm has gone off. There are people with psychiatric problems which can be deduced and there are other SMS of the type: "Hello sweetie, what's for dinner?", so it's a wide variety of what comes in.
