13.1 Patrol Reporting

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13.1 Patrol Reporting

Purpose

To define the operational reporting requirements for SLS patrols and services.

Overview

Accurate and timely patrol reporting supports operational awareness, service delivery, resource coordination, and the collection of reliable lifesaving data.

The Operations App is the primary system used for patrol reporting. Requirements relating to the use and availability of the Operations App are detailed in SOP 12.6 – Operations App.

Procedure

Patrol Sign On and Sign Off

Patrols must use the Operations App to sign on at the commencement of patrol and sign off at the conclusion of patrol.

Patrol information should accurately reflect the services and resources available throughout the patrol period, including patrol status and vehicle availability.

If an SLSC is unable to commence patrol as rostered but has resources available, they should sign on with a ‘None’ or ‘Setup’ patrol status, as appropriate.

Any significant change to patrol capability or service delivery should be reflected in the Operations App and communicated to the State Operations Centre (SOC) where required.

Patrol Statistics

Patrol statistics must be updated:

At the start of patrol,
Mid patrol, and
At the end of patrol.

Information recorded should accurately reflect patrol activity and beach conditions at the time of reporting.

Beach Attendance

Beach attendance information must be recorded at the start of patrol, mid patrol, and end of patrol.

Beach attendance monitoring and the methodology for estimating attendance are detailed in SOP 8.10 – Beach Attendance Monitoring.

Attendance information should include:

Persons in the water,
Persons on the beach, and
Watercraft operating within the patrol area.

Operational Notes

The notes section should be used to provide the SOC with supplementary operational information that assists with situational awareness.

This may include:

Patrol location,
Local hazards,
Equipment limitations,
Changes to service delivery,
Significant weather or environmental conditions, or
Other relevant operational information.

Essential or time-critical operational information must not rely solely on information entered into the Operations App and should be communicated to the SOC by radio or phone where required.

Photo of the Day

The Photo of the Day must be completed as part of patrol reporting.

The photo must show the beach conditions and will automatically be added to Beachsafe.

The photo should support public beach safety awareness and should not include inappropriate content, identifiable patient information, or sensitive incident material.

Further information regarding the Operations App Photo of the Day function is detailed in SOP 12.6 – Operations App.

Incident Reporting

Patrol reporting does not replace the requirement to report and record operational incidents.

Incident reporting and recording requirements are detailed in SOP 13.2 – Incident Reporting and Recording.

References

This document must not be displayed, including in a patrol room, or reproduced in any form, without permission from the Lifesaving Department, Surf Life Saving SA.

12.6 Operations App 13.2 Incident Reporting and Recording