Many start the New Year with the thought of a fresh slate, allowing them to write out their goals and create a map for the journey in the New Year. The ideas are endless, from studying for a promotion or moving to a new station, to improving one’s overall health and wellness, to improving at tasks that have proven challenging in the past.
In the fire service, there really is no perfectly clean slate to work from because those who took the path before you, whether in a career or volunteer organization, made mistakes, learned from them and passed along those lessons. That’s what the laughing-turned-serious discussions in the cab or kitchen are all about—passing along the wisdom to prevent something bad from happening to you, too.
As you work on your slate for 2019, try to create a calendar for each month that is focused on three goals: learning something new, reinforcing a skill you already know, and becoming a better member of your department.
For example, while studying to become a lieutenant or a captain, you learn that your role as an officer requires you to create drills for your crew. If this applies to you, sit down and map out a drill for the next couple of months. These drills can range from simple discussions to taking the apparatus to a parking lot or building to help your crew understand the rig’s capabilities.
As a new officer, how well versed are you with thermal imaging cameras (TICs)? Did you receive your training on an older model but don’t understand all the bells and whistles on the new ones? Read the manual, watch some videos and take the camera to your burn facility to best understand how the tool can be used to aid your future crews during search or fire attack operations.
Next, to become a better member of your department, you can take those drills that you created and either work with your current officer to start teaching or get involved with your department’s safety or tactics review committee to contribute back to the agency.
The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) has spent years creating in-depth reports that detail incidents that resulted in serious injuries or line-of-duty deaths (LODDs). Following each investigation, NIOSH investigators work with members of the fire service to create a series of recommendations that can be utilized by every single reader. These reports, which can be found at cdc.gov/niosh/fire/default.html, are invaluable resources for any crew.
Another way to start 2019 on the right foot: Keep reading! Several articles in this month’s issue are focused on 2019 goals. Aaron Zamzow offers six tips to being a healthier firefighter in the new year, and Dr. David Griffin offers 99 questions that you can use to reflect on yourself and your commitment to the fire service. If you are a company officer, be sure to read Jarrod Sergi’s article “Company Officer Expectations” to learn four key expectations to set for your crew.
Additionally, as you read this, the Firehouse staff is putting the finishing touches on Firehouse World, to be held at the Los Angeles Convention Center, March 25–28. The conference is focused on helping attendees achieve their goals of becoming better firefighters and leaders.
Dario Gaus, Michael Reick and Stefan Svensson bring international perspectives on topics like smoke spread and flow path, fireground decision-making and compartment fire behavior training. The conference will also feature sessions on mayday incidents, covering everything from firefighter survival and removal skills to best practices for managing a mayday. John Salka will lead a must-attend session on rapid-intervention operations that failed, offering tips for helping your crew be prepared for their toughest assignment.
This year’s conference is also designed to create a better you. Classes will offer advice on how to maximize your time in the fire service and how to keep your department from making news in the wrong way. Several presenters will explain how you can stay motivated and positive during challenging times, while others tackle hot topics, such as firefighter cancer, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), peer support, plus how to improve your health and wellness goals.
We look forward to seeing you in Los Angeles! Visit FirehouseWorld.com for the latest information and to register.
Peter Matthews | Editor-in-Chief/Conference Director
Peter Matthews is the conference director and editor-in-chief of Firehouse. He has worked at Firehouse since 1999, serving in various roles on both Firehouse Magazine and Firehouse.com staffs. He completed an internship with the Rochester, NY, Fire Department and served with fire departments in Rush, NY, and Laurel, MD, and was a lieutenant with the Glenwood Fire Company in Glenwood, NY. Matthews served as photographer for the St. Paul, MN, Fire Department.
