In a pivotal decision for next year, the Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA) has decided to separate the Apparatus, Safety and Equipment Conference and the Health and Safety Conference. The new Apparatus Training & Symposium, sponsored by FDSOA, will be held January 8-11, 2023, at the Gilbert Fire Academy in Gilbert, AZ.
The FDSOA Health and Safety Conference will be held in conjunction with the First Responder Center for Excellence (FRCE) Health and Wellness Symposium. The FDSOA conference will take place January 17-18, 2023, and the FRCE conference will follow directly after, January 19-20. Both events will take place at the Tradewinds Island Grand in St Pete’s Beach, FL. Pre-conference programs will be held January 15-16th. “Over the years, we have blended the apparatus and health and safety conferences in an attempt to find synergy with them being together. Now that our organization is on a growth path, we feel these conferences need their own space, and the co-location with the FRCE conference is a great fit to expand our health and safety to greater heights,” said Eric Valliere, FDSOA chairman.
Keynote speakers for the FDSOA conference have been confirmed as US Fire Administrator Lori Moore-Merrill and Fire Chief Dennis Compton on Tuesday, January 17, and Dr. Richard Gasaway on Wednesday, January 18.
The FRCE has held successful cancer and behavioral health symposia over the last five years and aims to take a more holistic approach with this year’s event. Combining the two events provides for a more robust group of speakers and allows participants to attend both conferences for one great price.
There are other significant additions to the health and safety conferences in three co-sponsors. F.I.E.R.O., Firefighter Cancer Support Network (FCSN) and the Science Alliance, a new community of scientists and fire service professionals dedicated to improving the health and safety of first responders, have all signed on as sponsors of the event to participate in some way and expand the reach of the conferences.
As firefighter health and safety has become a topic at the forefront of the fire service, including these organizations expands our pool of subject matter experts. “F.I.E.R.O. is enthusiastic about joining with four other great organizations, FDSOA, FCSN, FRCE and the Science Alliance, to offer a few days of education about emergency responder health and safety. We will be offering a full-day pre-conference PPE workshop with subject matter experts providing insight into the rapidly changing world of personal protection. We are confident this will be a joint event with unique networking opportunities for firefighters, company officers and chief officers who are involved in protecting their department’s members,” said Robert Tutterow, president of F.I.E.R.O..
Exact schedules for the January conferences are still being confirmed, but we expect a powerful course line up for each of the conferences because of the organizations involved. “These conferences are critically important to all fire service professionals,” said Brian Frieders, president of FCSN. “They will provide relevant insight to all fire service disciplines while offering tangible ways to immediately improve the health and safety of your members.”
Class schedules for each conference will be available soon on our website at www.fdsoa.org. We look forward to seeing you at one of these great events!
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The Fire Department Safety Officers Association (FDSOA) was established in 1989 as a non-profit association. Its mission is to promote safety standards and practices in the fire, rescue and emergency services community. The association is led by a volunteer board of directors and has a small staff to handle the day-to-day operations. The association is dedicated to the issues that affect the critical role of the safety officer in protecting and promoting the safety and health responsibilities of fire departments, communities and first responders. FDSOA can be found on the web at www.fdsoa.org. Please follow FDSOA on LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram.
F.I.E.R.O. is a 501(c)(3), not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving firefighter health and safety through education and research. F.I.E.R.O. operates under the guidance of an all-volunteer Board of Directors made up of both active and retired fire service members. F.I.E.R.O. is known throughout the fire service for hosting high-quality educational conferences and regional workshops, as well as for participating on fire-related research projects.
FCSN is a 501(c)(3) organization established by Los Angeles County Firefighter Paramedic Michael Dubron, a survivor of stage IV colon cancer. Today, FCSN’s key supporters and partners include the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), the International Association of Fire Chiefs (IAFC), the National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC), Firefighter Close Calls (FFCC), and the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF), among many other respected fire-service organizations. FCSN is a founding member of the Fire Service Occupational Cancer Alliance. We also work with the American Cancer Society and the Live Strong Foundation. Now in our 16th year, FCSN has active operations in 44 states. In 2016, we expanded FCSN’s cancer-prevention training and launched our new train-the-trainer program. Of course, we’re continuing our primary focus, which is supporting firefighters and their families following a cancer diagnosis.
The First Responder Center for Excellence for Reducing Occupational Illness, Injuries and Deaths, Inc., (FRCE) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The Center receives funding through private donations from individuals, organizations, corporations and foundations. The FRCE is a National Fallen Firefighters Foundation (NFFF) affiliate organization, created in 2016. Its mission is to promote quality educational awareness and research to reduce physical and psychological health and wellness issues for first responders.
Science to the Station: A Health and Wellness Alliance (Science Alliance for short). The Science Alliance is a group of scientists and fire service leaders dedicated to providing the fire service with relevant scientific findings and health-related resources. We also facilitate the relationship between the fire service community and the scientists who can help them interpret the data they need when developing new policies and best practices. We offer training, access to cutting-edge research, and articles from field experts and industry leaders. We’re here to provide fire departments with the information they need to mitigate risks and the resources to build solutions. We’re bringing science to the station. To contact The Science Alliance, please email [email protected].
