PRINCE ALBERT - The Prince Albert Police Service (PAPS) is celebrating a win this week after receiving international recognition for their work enhancing internal information sharing.
The local police service was awarded first place in the 2022 Versaterm Public Safety Innovation Award, for how they were able to use the Versaterm system for their Shift briefing Reports. PAPS beat out the Gatineau Police Service in Quebec and the Pennsylvania State Police for the award.
Versaterm is a leading developer of integrated software solutions for First Responders in North America, according to the company website.
Shift Briefing Reports are used at the end of each 12-hour patrol shift to relay information to other shift supervisors with details on the number of calls that shift, police response, pending investigations, and proactive initiatives that are then collected and tracked on a daily, weekly, monthly, and yearly basis using Versaterm technology.
Office and IT Manager with PAPS, Josie Hemsworth, and Kushal Dave, System Programmer, worked with senior patrol supervisors and administration to create an electronic version of the briefing report that automatically compiles information from the database and captures it in the regular briefing. The enhanced reports also allow for additional information to be added quickly and easily.
Versaterm said the project “made use of organizational cooperation, technology and the Versaterm products to enhance community and officer safety.”
“While a number of other organizations have implemented variations of shift briefing reports, the progressive style of development and the special features to enhance content make it stand out,” Versaterm added.
Members of the Prince Albert Board of Police Commissioners extended their congratulations after hearing details of the new reporting system during a meeting on Tuesday.
To recognize their first-place finish, Hemsworth and Dave have also been asked to speak about the revised Shift Briefing Reports at Versaterm’s national conference in Saskatoon this fall.
