In case of an emergency, dial x6000 from any on-campus phone, 713-348-6000 from any cellular phone, or pick up any blue-light emergency phone. If you are off-campus and need emergency assistance, dial 911 to contact the Local Fire/EMS Department.

What to do when you call x6000

Dialing 6000 will connect you to the Rice University Police Department dispatch desk. The dispatcher will answer the phone. Be prepared to provide the following information:

The exact location of the emergency
We can respond to your emergency much faster when we have your exact location. Please be as precise as possible. For example, saying you are in Fondren Library will get us to the front door, but we will need to search floor by floor to find you. Telling the dispatcher that you are on the fourth floor of Fondren Library, near call number DA89 is preferred, as it tells us which floor you are on and where you are on that floor. It is also a good idea to have someone waiting outside your building to help direct Rice EMS to the scene.
A brief but adequate description of the emergency
This is extremely important. If you call the police to say that your friend's hand is bleeding, but fail to mention that the reason your friend is bleeding is because he has a gunshot wound, we won't be prepared for your emergency when we arrive on scene. Make sure that you give us information in the order of its priority. And be sure to give some indication of the severity of the problem. Saying someone is "bleeding" isn't enough. You could be describing a paper cut or an amputation. If the emergency is medical (nausea, chest pain, dizziness), as opposed to trauma (car accident, twisted ankle) it may be important to give the age of the patient.

The most important thing to remember is that you hang up last. Never hang up before the dispatcher does. The dispatch officer may also ask you other questions, depending on the nature of the emergency. Please remember that in order to better serve you, it is important that you give us accurate information and that you stay calm. The more you help us, the faster we can help you.

What to do before Rice EMS arrives

Give first aid
If you or someone else on scene has first aid training, try to help the patient. However, you should never attempt to do anything that you have not been trained to do, or feel uncomfortable doing.
Send someone to meet the EMTs
If you are inside a building, or somewhere that is not easily visible from a roadway, send someone down to meet the EMTs when they arrive. It is best to tell the dispatcher where these people will be (for example, if the building you are in has multiple entrances, tell the dispatcher at which entrance the person will be waiting). This decreases response time and ensures that advanced care is provided as rapidly as possible. However, if you are the only person on scene, do not leave the patient unless the dispatcher tells you to do so, or if you are in danger.
Leave the scene if it is unsafe
If the there is some threat to your safety at the scene of the emergency, such as a fire, a violent person, or a dangerous chemical, leave immediately. If you can safely help to remove the injured person from the scene, do so (you may want to ask the dispatcher whether you should move the patient), but your safety comes first. If you or the patient do leave, tell the dispatcher this (it's OK to call x6000 again and give an update), and it is vital that you tell the dispatcher if there is a safety threat. If you fail to tell the dispatcher of the safety hazard, EMTs may come onto an unsafe scene and be harmed by whatever safety hazard is there: obviously, if the EMTs are injured, they can no longer help the patient.
Remain calm
Rice EMTs are well-trained, and have a lot of experience helping injured and sick people. They have literally saved lives on numerous occasions, and are more than ready to take on any situation. Though it may seem like it is taking a long time for help to arrive, the EMTs are coming as fast as they can; therefore, do not call the dispatcher back just to ask where the EMTs are, and do not harass the EMTs when they arrive on scene. If you have any issues with the promptness or quality of service provided by Rice EMS, feel free to contact the EMS Director after the call. Any complaints you have will be thoroughly investigated and appropriate action will be taken. However, complaining directly to the responding EMTs will only prevent them from helping the patient.