{
  "abstract": "Introduction\n\nEmergency medical dispatch (EMD) is a critical yet understudied entry point into the US healthcare system. Given the increasing adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) in healthcare, we examine 9-1-1 telecommunicators' perspectives on AI integration in EMD.Methods\n\nWe conducted a qualitative analysis of open-ended responses from a cross-sectional electronic survey of 9-1-1 telecommunicators who primarily manage emergency medical calls at three 9-1-1 call centers in California between February and April 2026.Results\n\nEight themes emerged from the study: (1) 9-1-1 telecommunicators generally viewed human-centered AI as a tool to supplement, rather than replace human expertise; (2) the importance of maintaining human connection and empathy; (3) concerns related to liability, accountability, and data security; (4) the need to differentiate between emergency and non-emergency calls; (5) 9-1-1 caller location identification; (6) 9-1-1 caller language identification; 7) delays in connecting with interpreters; and (8) AI performance under \"less-than-ideal\" conditions.Policy implications\n\nThese findings highlight the importance of human-centered, equity-focused approaches to AI integration in EMD, including proactive policy development, implementation, and evaluation.",
  "abstract_shown": true,
  "affiliations": [
    "Department of Emergency Medicine, Stanford University, Palo Alto, CA 94304, United States.",
    "Bellarmine College Preparatory, San Jose, CA 95126, United States.",
    "Department of Health Policy and Management, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA 90095, United States."
  ],
  "article_type": "research article",
  "arxiv": null,
  "author_total": 8,
  "authors": [
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Esmeralda Melgoza",
      "orcid": "0000-0001-9202-4939"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Diego Xavier Torres",
      "orcid": "0009-0005-0067-0797"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Elaine Hsiang",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-1393-8204"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        1
      ],
      "name": "Rohan E Shah",
      "orcid": "0009-0004-0765-8873"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Eli Carrillo",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-3032-8747"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Kenneth Miller"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        0
      ],
      "name": "Jennifer A Newberry",
      "orcid": "0000-0002-2948-0111"
    },
    {
      "affs": [
        2
      ],
      "name": "Arturo Vargas Bustamante",
      "orcid": "0000-0003-0414-5015"
    }
  ],
  "bibtex": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3wd67azrqe7vz.bib",
  "cited_by": 0,
  "doi": "10.1093/haschl/qxag262",
  "fulltext_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13712128",
  "id": "3wd67azrqe7vz",
  "issns": [
    "2976-5390"
  ],
  "landing_url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42948637",
  "language": "eng",
  "licence": "CC-BY-NC",
  "licence_label": "CC BY-NC",
  "licence_source": "article",
  "licence_url": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/",
  "metadata_licence": null,
  "native_subjects": [
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/MED00862"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "AcademicSubjects/SOC02360"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "Research Article"
    ],
    [
      "heading",
      "haschl/pt_2233"
    ],
    [
      "openalex",
      "2718|Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education"
    ]
  ],
  "openalex": "W7214343587",
  "pdf_url": "https://europepmc.org/articles/PMC13712128?pdf=render",
  "pmcid": "PMC13712128",
  "pmid": "42948637",
  "published": "2026-09-25",
  "publisher": "Oxford University Press",
  "ris": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3wd67azrqe7vz.ris",
  "sources": [
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-31T00:20:35Z",
      "native_id": "MED:42948637",
      "source": "europepmc",
      "url": "https://europepmc.org/article/MED/42948637"
    },
    {
      "first_seen": "2026-10-31T12:22:46Z",
      "native_id": "PMC13712128",
      "source": "pmc",
      "url": "https://doi.org/10.1093/haschl/qxag262"
    }
  ],
  "subjects": [
    {
      "field": "medicine",
      "origin": "openalex:2718|Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education",
      "subfield": "epidemiology-public-health"
    }
  ],
  "title": "9-1-1, what is your emergency? Human-centered artificial intelligence, language access and health policy.",
  "title_text": "9-1-1, what is your emergency? Human-centered artificial intelligence, language access and health policy.",
  "type": "peer-reviewed",
  "updated_at": "2026-10-31T12:22:46Z",
  "url": "https://research.draconitic.com/paper/3wd67azrqe7vz",
  "venue": "Health affairs scholar",
  "versions": []
}