Emergency Call Dispatch Sankey Diagram: Operational Template
Map emergency calls from call type through priority category to response outcome, including advice only, transfers and abandoned calls. Invented figures.
An emergency call dispatch Sankey shows how incoming calls are sorted by type and priority and what response each ends in. It is an operational view of workload, not guidance on how to answer a call.
The example follows 1,000 calls through five call types, four priority categories and four outcomes. Medical calls are the widest type, but the priority column shows the real load: urgent calls are the widest category, and almost all of the immediate category ends in a unit being dispatched.
The final column is where capacity questions live. Abandoned or duplicate calls and transfers to other services are effort that produces no dispatch, and the picture shows which priority bands carry them. Non-emergency calls, for instance, mostly end in advice, transfer or abandonment. Use it with /sankey/incident-response if you also track the response itself.
How to read this diagram
- Medical calls are 420 of 1,000 (42%), and police or public safety calls are 260 (26%).
- The urgent category is widest at 430 calls (43%); 340 of them (79%) end in a dispatch.
- 665 calls (66.5%) end in a unit dispatched, 155 in advice only, 90 in a transfer and 90 abandoned or duplicate.
- Of 140 non-emergency calls, 95 (68%) end in advice or a transfer, and 40 are abandoned.
The data behind it
Invented figures for illustration. Not data about any real emergency service and not an official statistic. Operational volumes only; it is not clinical, legal or safety advice and does not describe how any call should be handled.
| From | To | Amount (calls) |
|---|---|---|
| Medical | Immediate | 110 |
| Medical | Urgent | 220 |
| Medical | Routine | 70 |
| Medical | Not an emergency | 20 |
| Fire | Immediate | 40 |
| Fire | Urgent | 35 |
| Fire | Routine | 10 |
| Fire | Not an emergency | 5 |
| Police or public safety | Immediate | 50 |
| Police or public safety | Urgent | 120 |
| Police or public safety | Routine | 60 |
| Police or public safety | Not an emergency | 30 |
| Road incident | Immediate | 45 |
| Road incident | Urgent | 50 |
| Road incident | Routine | 15 |
| Other or non-emergency | Urgent | 5 |
| Other or non-emergency | Routine | 30 |
| Other or non-emergency | Not an emergency | 85 |
| Immediate | Unit dispatched | 230 |
| Immediate | Advice given | 5 |
| Immediate | Transferred to another service | 5 |
| Immediate | Abandoned or duplicate | 5 |
| Urgent | Unit dispatched | 340 |
| Urgent | Advice given | 40 |
| Urgent | Transferred to another service | 25 |
| Urgent | Abandoned or duplicate | 25 |
| Routine | Unit dispatched | 90 |
| Routine | Advice given | 55 |
| Routine | Transferred to another service | 20 |
| Routine | Abandoned or duplicate | 20 |
| Not an emergency | Unit dispatched | 5 |
| Not an emergency | Advice given | 55 |
| Not an emergency | Transferred to another service | 40 |
| Not an emergency | Abandoned or duplicate | 40 |
The same data as CSV
source,target,value
Medical,Immediate,110
Medical,Urgent,220
Medical,Routine,70
Medical,Not an emergency,20
Fire,Immediate,40
Fire,Urgent,35
Fire,Routine,10
Fire,Not an emergency,5
Police or public safety,Immediate,50
Police or public safety,Urgent,120
Police or public safety,Routine,60
Police or public safety,Not an emergency,30
Road incident,Immediate,45
Road incident,Urgent,50
Road incident,Routine,15
Other or non-emergency,Urgent,5
Other or non-emergency,Routine,30
Other or non-emergency,Not an emergency,85
Immediate,Unit dispatched,230
Immediate,Advice given,5
Immediate,Transferred to another service,5
Immediate,Abandoned or duplicate,5
Urgent,Unit dispatched,340
Urgent,Advice given,40
Urgent,Transferred to another service,25
Urgent,Abandoned or duplicate,25
Routine,Unit dispatched,90
Routine,Advice given,55
Routine,Transferred to another service,20
Routine,Abandoned or duplicate,20
Not an emergency,Unit dispatched,5
Not an emergency,Advice given,55
Not an emergency,Transferred to another service,40
Not an emergency,Abandoned or duplicate,40How it works
Choose a period and count calls once
Use one period, such as a month, and count each call in one call type only.
Record the priority category
Use the categories your service already assigns, and count calls by type and category.
Record the outcome
Count dispatched, advice only, transferred and abandoned or duplicate for each category.
Check the balance
Each priority category should send on exactly the calls it received. Use totals only, never caller details.
Frequently asked questions
Can I use this for response times?
Not directly. This chart counts calls by category and outcome. For times you could add stages such as answered within target, using counts you already hold.
Is there any personal data involved?
There should not be. A Sankey needs totals per category. Do not put names, numbers or addresses in node labels.
Edit this call dispatch Sankey
Open the example as your own chart and enter your aggregate call counts.