Fire & Emergency Services Administration Chapter 7 Training and Education

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Overview Administrators are responsible for efficient and effective emergency operations. There are no shortcuts to having members who are well trained. Members should be trained, beginning with an intense recruit school, and should receive updated training regularly.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration In-service Training Must be high priority. Use NFPA 1500 as a template. Training should involve teams when doing fireground operations. The best retention comes when applying the knowledge to an actual incident or training exercise.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Higher Education Most programs are offered at community colleges, with a few universities offering bachelor’s degrees. Most Bachelor degree programs are Internet based. –This method requires great self-discipline. When researching programs, make sure they fit your needs. –Is the college fully accredited? –Will the offered courses transfer to other schools? –What is the official degree title?

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Professional Development Many excellent seminars and conferences with outside experts exist. –Members attending outside programs should be required to present the knowledge to their department. –Be selective—many presentations are not founded on knowledge that would stand up to peer review. Training and professional development is a never-ending process.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Recertification Currently there are no recertification or continuing education requirements. Each department should create a standard training program and schedule.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Standard Operating Procedures SOPs are needed due to the nature of emergency services. –Split-second decisions must be made by first arriving companies. –They provide a margin of safety. –They can have a huge effect on the final outcome. For consistency and reliability, they should be followed with few exceptions. Must be reviewed and practiced frequently.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Developing SOPs Developing SOPs can be a very contentious process. Best done on a regional basis. Don’t reinvent the wheel! Always include the option for the company officer to deviate at his or her professional judgment. Include a critique process for each deviation.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Regional Approaches to Training Greatest need is for multi-company drills and entry-level Fire Fighter I and II. Many smaller departments struggle with finding the opportunity to train on even a typical house fire that needs multiple companies. For more specialized training, regional cooperative approaches are very effective and affordable.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Hazardous Materials Teams Hazardous materials emergencies have required a rethinking of many of the traditional approaches. In the past two decades there has been a huge increase in the number of hazardous materials teams in the public sector. Many communities have found that these specialized teams are used rarely, if at all. –With so few calls, there is little chance to test the teams’ training and increase their experience.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Initial Fire Attack: Training Goals NFPA 1410, Standard on Training for Initial Emergency Scene Operations, outlines typical fireground evolutions and recommended completion times. If times are inadequate, evaluate the following: –Frequency of training sessions –SOPs –Staffing

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Company Officer Education and Training Either a lieutenant, captain, or a chief in a one- or two-station department Based on the NFPA professional qualifications standards for Fire Officer I and II

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Chief Officer Education Chief officer should look at formal education as a tool to be effective at his or her job. Many other agency heads will have at least a bachelor’s degree. Bachelor’s degree should be in relevant major such as fire science, management, or administration or public administration or policy.

Fire & Emergency Services Administration Quality Service Training and education are crucial for quality service. Higher education is the key to the door of opportunity both personally and professionally. Education puts the fire officer on equal ground with contemporaries and elected or appointed officials. Education will give the fire officer the tools needed to be a change agent.