Claustrophobia?

[1696]

I am looking for information on disabling a full time firefighter due to claustrophobia problems. Has anyone else faced this? Any help is appreciated.

Thanks

[lutan1]

Out of interest, has this person just "developed" claustrophobia, or have they always had it and manged to hide it?

If they developed it, so to speak, what bought it on? Is there other help available?

If it was hidden during the recruitment process or similar, surely that's all the ammunition you need....

[FireAdvocate]

If the person has this condition or it's just become know that they have this problem then it's up to you to determine to what extent can this person still be used. For example, PPV, ladder operations, fire ground support, traffic control, etc. can all be done as an alternative to those things which they aren't equipped to do (eg. confined space rescue, interior attack, vent requiring SCBA...). However, if you are looking to use this as a reason to get rid of the person my advise is DON'T go that route. Be straight up on the real issues and don't use their particular disability as a crutch to hide behind.

[dfwscotty]

"Disabling"?

Does this mean getting rid of????

We had a guy that had a problem with the SCBA mask. He did his best to overcome it. First few times encountering him walking around the station with his mask was unusual but we got used to it. Unfortunately, he didn't. My point is, is everyone currently pretending there is no problem with him? Maybe you or station officer can talk to him in private and ask what solutions he has for his problem. If he has none, work on some shift training classes for everyone. Mask blackout drills.....make them crawl in tight spaces, etc.

Also make sure everyone on shift or in station knows that this is a problem and all personnel need to help and not make a joke of him.

He is there because he wants to be....try to keep him there, especially if he tries......

[fftruckie224]

most of the solutions offered so far seem to only fit into a volunteer dept. career dept cannot ensure that someone only does fireground support operations. what happens when the engine they are on is on the way back from the grocery store and a structure fire occurs 2 blocks from where they are at? claustrophobia severe enough to prevent a firefighter from performing all aspects of their job puts everyone they work worth with at risk as well as the citizens they are being payed to protect. my question is how long do you work with a new firefighter on a problem like this before it is time to cut your losses and move on? how long do you continue to knowingly endanger lives? I am also looking for any suggestions on trying to overcome this problem, all the research i have done suggest flooding the affected person with what it is they are afraid of coupled with counseling and coping exercises....so far this is not working for me, any suggestions?