Public safety has always been a priority for Rishada Majeed, even in her childhood. Growing up in a socioeconomically challenged neighborhood, she witnessed delays in emergency assistance due to limited resources. This experience motivated her to help others, leading her to become an OnStar Advisor, where she has worked for two years in Emergency Services and Stolen Vehicle Assistance.
“Public safety has always been a passion of mine since I was young,” says Majeed. “That curiosity sparked the start of my education in emergency communications and emergency management. This position gives me the opportunity to contribute to the effort and allows me to support public safety and OnStar Members in crisis and emergency incidents.”
As an OnStar Advisor, Majeed is responsible for triaging and validating emergency incidents using International Academies of Emergency Dispatch (IAED) protocol, active listening and situational awareness to assist Members and First Responders. Her typical day involves handling calls related to crashes, domestic situations and medical emergencies, as well as providing advanced pre-arrival instructions such as CPR, Narcan and EpiPen use from time to time.
A Responsibility Like No Other
While being an OnStar Advisor can be high-pressure, especially during critical medical emergencies, Majeed finds it immensely rewarding.
Her favorite part of the job is collaborating with public safety telecommunicators to ensure Members receive the help they need. “We may not always know the outcome, but we know First Responders arrived and we did everything in our power to help someone in one of their scariest and hardest moments,” she explains.
One of her most memorable calls involved a woman in a remote area who activated her vehicle's emergency button after struggling to maintain a cellphone connection with 911.
“The caller’s fiancé’s wheelchair snapped, and he hit his head, going in and out of consciousness after their trail walk, and I needed to start CPR instructions because she did not think he was breathing,” Majeed recalls. Responders had difficulty locating them, so Majeed was able to remotely flash the vehicle's lights and honk the horn to guide them. “I remember the caller’s sigh of relief as paramedics took over care,” she says.
Dedicated to Professionalism
OnStar Emergency Advisors are certified by IAED in Medical, Fire and Police Dispatch. Advisors ask structured questions similar to those posed by Emergency Communications Center (ECC) call takers to validate the hundreds of thousands of emergency calls they receive each year. In 2023 alone, OnStar Emergency Advisors handled nearly 1 million emergency calls, and OnStar has earned the designation of Accredited Center of Excellence (ACE) in all three disciplines earlier this year.
