There is an old saying, “Sometimes you can’t see the forest because of the trees.” It’s a very profound statement that I think most people can relate to at some point in their lives. For me, in the context of this discussion, it represented my inability to fully appreciate the performance and services that my fire department provides to the community.
After working for the same department for over 30 years, I found it difficult to see the changes that had taken place over the years, similar to the way we see ourselves in the mirror and don’t see much of a difference from the previous day.
As such, I decided to create a list of the things that I felt were important to help me evaluate my fire department. After drafting a list, I realized that if I developed it in the form of a survey, it may better assist me in seeing the big picture. I decided to develop the survey based on a self evaluation and a comparison of my department to other local fire departments. A comparison to other local fire departments seems much more relevant based on overall environmental, economical and demographic similaritiess.
Survey scale
The survey has 20 questions and the response scale goes from 1 to 5, with 5 being the highest score (see page 124). A 5 represents Superior, four is Better than Most, three is Average, two is Worse than Most and one is Inferior. A perfect score is 100, better than most is 80, average is 60 and so on. The following is a description of the survey questions along with what I considered within my department prior to assigning them with a score.
The first question deals with the quality of the firefighters that you hire. In other words, do you hire quality people? This seems like a good place to start since the answer has a major impact on most other aspects of the organization. When assigning a rating for this question, I considered the fact that we use a county-wide municipal written and practical exam to provide us with a pool of candidates. We also use in-house personal references, an interview process and independent agencies for background checks, polygraphs and medical exams.
The second question concerns the quality of orientation training for new recruits. Before assigning a rating for this question, I considered the fact that we have a well-established, comprehensive, six-week recruit training class that covers every aspect of being a firefighter in our city. Of course, this is in addition to the training candidates receive while obtaining their state firefighter certification and emergency medical technician (EMT) certification.
The next three questions ask how your firefighters compare to other local firefighters with regard to fighting structure fires, providing EMS and performing vehicle extrication. Before assigning a rating to these questions, I considered our fire loss per capita rate, which is lower than the national average at $5.19, our firefighter and civilian death and injury rates, the feedback we receive from local hospitals, our Return of Spontaneous Circulation (ROSC) score, which is double the national average, and the performance of our advanced cardiovascular life support (ACLS) and extrication competition teams.
The next two questions relate to the amount and quality of our fire and EMS training. When assigning a rating for these questions, I considered the fact that we have four training officers and our own training facility with tower, flashover simulator, gas field and various props. We conduct training on emergency vehicle operations, vehicle extrication, surface water rescue, Mayday alerts, maze, air consumption and rapid intervention. We complete about 9,000 facility hours and 10,000 EMS hours annually for approximately 210 full-time certified firefighters. In addition, we require performance objectives to be completed each month on fire and EMS related topics. Finally, we provide in-house officer development classes for the ranks of driver engineer, lieutenant, captain and battalion chief.
The next four questions are related to vehicles, equipment, facilities and personal protective equipment (PPE). In our case, we typically staff six front-line engine companies, seven EMS transport units, two command vehicles, two platforms and an aircraft rescue and firefighting (ARFF) truck. By fall 2015, we will have taken delivery of two new custom pumpers, four EMS transport units and one command vehicle, which equates to a replacement of approximately 40% of our entire front-line fleet.
Our vehicles are maintained at our own fire department garage, which has three full-time mechanics. All of our extrication tools, fans and generators receive regular preventive maintenance and we expect to take delivery of 90 new self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) within the next four months. We also expect to have power stretchers and power load units installed in all of our front-line EMS transport units by the end of this year For our facilities, we have a computerized work order program which allows personnel to enter requests for repairs while allowing us to assign and track their progress. For PPE, we follow National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 1851, Standard on Selection, Care, and Maintenance of Protective Ensembles for Structural Firefighting and Proximity Firefighting, and replace all bunker gear at a maximum of every 10 years (our average is about 7½ years). We also provide a backup set of gear for each member and extractors to clean the gear at several fire stations.
Rating health and safety
The next two questions relate to health and safety. For both, we have a Health and Safety Committee composed of union members and administrative personnel. We provide mandatory annual physical exams and require fitness training, which is conducted at gyms located at each fire station. We also have a no-smoking policy, an exposure program and a uniform-cleaning service. The city also provides an Employee Assistance Program and a Safety Program to promote and reward safe behavior. The department safety supervisor reviews and makes recommendations on all workplace accidents and injuries. All of our fire stations are equipped with security cameras, access codes and security fences.
The next five questions are related to fire prevention, public education and other general benefits to the community. We have a public relations officer who, with the assistance of company units, averages almost 20,000 personal contacts per year. Subjects include fire safety, fire prevention, workplace safety, aging populations and hurricane preparedness. We also have a Firefighter’s Explorers Program and Community Emergency Response Team (CERT). Our city was recently awarded the American Heart Association’s Heart Ready City award. We have AEDs in all of our city buildings and currently offer three levels of CPR training classes monthly. We typically receive approximately five to 10 positive emails, phone calls, letters and cards each month, compared to one or two complaints per year. Our Fire Prevention Division completes annual inspections on all 11,000 businesses in the city and reviews all construction projects. It also investigates all significant fires. Last year, our average response time to medical emergencies was 4 minutes, 30 seconds and to fire calls was 5 minutes, 29 seconds.
Professionalism of agency
The final two questions are related to the degree of professionalism instilled within the culture of the organization and whether the department has taken part in a review process by an outside agency. We conduct morning line-ups and inspections. We adhere to a formal organizational structure, a strict chain of command and have policies, procedures and regulations to govern our behavior and operations. We have been reviewed by the Insurance Services Office and we are currently a Class 1 fire department.
The survey lets me review the performance and services provided by my department with a fresh set of eyes and to actually be able to see the forest, in spite of the trees. It confirmed what I knew about my fire department, which is clearly written in our mission statement: “The Pembroke Pines Fire Department is dedicated to the preservation of life, property and the environment. Our goal is to provide quality, cost-effective professional services predicated upon the knowledge, skills and abilities of our members.”
Recently, I was asked what my vision for the fire department was and how I see its future. After taking the survey, the answers become quite clear. I see a department that will continue to adapt and evolve to fulfill its mission while continuing to strive for a survey score of 100%.
I asked several of my staff officers to complete the survey, independently. Afterwards, we reviewed their scores and discussed what we can do to improve. The exercise provided us with new ideas on how we can improve the level of service we provide our residents. If you choose to take the survey, the questions may need to be adjusted to fit your location and the services provided by you and your neighboring fire departments. However, with a little effort, I believe that you will find the exercise to be as rewarding and compelling as I did.
FIRE DEPARTMENT PERSONAL EVALUATION SURVEY
Superior (5) Better Than Most (4) Average (3) Worse Than Most (2) Inferior (1)
FIREFIGHTERS
1) What is the quality of the firefighters you hire? In other words, do you hire good people? _____
2) What is the quality of your orientation training program for new recruits? ______
How do your firefighters compare to other local firefighters with regard to:
3) Fighting structure fires? ______
4) Providing EMS? ______
5) Performing vehicle extrication? ______
TRAINING
6) Amount and quality of fire training? ______
7) Amount and quality of EMS training? ______
VEHICLES
8) What is the overall condition of emergency vehicles? ______
EQUIPMENT
9) What is the overall condition of equipment? ______
FACILITIES
10) What is the overall condition and maintenance performed on stations? ______
PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT
11) What is the overall condition of bunker gear? ______
HEALTH AND SAFETY
12) How does your department handle health issues? ______
13) How does your department handle safety issues? ______
SERVICE PROVIDED TO RESIDENTS
14) Amount of outreach programs provided? ______
15) Additional benefits to the community? ______
16) Amount of positive feedback received from the community? ______
17) Response times? ______
18) Quality of fire prevention efforts? ______
PROFESSIONAL QUALITIES OF ORGANIZATION
19) Degree of professionalism displayed and promoted in fire department? ______
20) Accreditation, ISO Classification or other outside evaluation process? ______
