Hanover police are starting a new registry for people with special needs and their families, to let police officers and other first responders know how to respond to these individuals during a crisis.
“The more accurate information we have, the better,” said Hanover Police Chief Charlie Dennis.
Dennis said, for example, officers will know if they are responding to a house with an autistic person who is triggered by sirens or flashing lights before they get to the situation. With this knowledge, the officers will essentially be able to start the de-escalation process before they arrive.
“It helps us make a more appropriate response,” he said.
Hanover is working with the Special Needs Support Center, a White River Junction, Vt. organization, on the database.
Laura Perez said police deal with people on the autism spectrum, Down syndrome, dementia, or some other special needs all the time. These interactions can be dangerous if the actions of the special needs person are misunderstood by the responding officer.
“The benefits of the program to our most vulnerable citizens and to law enforcement make it an invaluable safety tool for our community,” Perez said.
The voluntary program allows a member of the community with special needs, or a member of their family, to submit information such as triggers, special accommodations, emergency contacts and a photograph. The information is entered into the database the police officers and first responders access.
“If we have that information we can keep things calm,” he said.
Dennis said the program will be run through the Hanover dispatch center, which provides dispatch service for 26 emergency service organizations throughout the Upper Valley in New Hampshire and Vermont. That includes several police departments that will all have access to the database.
“The big benefit is that it is open to all the communities in the Hanover regional dispatch center,” Dennis said.
Hanover isn’t the first department in the Upper Valley to sign onto the database. Both Lebanon police and police in Hartford, Vt., are part of the effort.
Police in Hanover are looking to help people interested to sign up for the program, and officers are available to visit with special needs people and their families about the program, which is free, Dennis said.
People can call the Hanover dispatch center at 643-2222 or the Special Needs Support Center at 448-6311 for more information and to fill out the database.
