Need a new washing machine? A new flatscreen TV for the big game? A deck for the backyard? Money to pay for your child’s braces? Career members can agree that we didn’t get into the fire service to be rich. However, we still would like to make enough money to have a nice life and to have nice things from time to time. We work so hard with long shifts. We deserve a vacation here and there. The problem is paying for these large-ticket items, either via a one-time charge or over time.
What often happens is that we begin to place ourselves in “the gap”—the space that’s between where we are and where we want to be.
Dr. Benjamin Hardy goes into detail of this concept in his book “The Gap and the Gain.” He explains how to stay out of the gap by not wishing for what you want but by reflecting on yourself in the past and finding improvement.
To take this concept to a different level, the gap that I’m referencing is a specific firefighter life financial one.
We all have been in this place where we want to make a large purchase—let’s say a vacation. You place yourself in the gap, because you most likely don’t have the funds immediately to pony up to pay for the vacation. Some might use credit cards; some might take out a small personal loan.
If you’re like me, you start to fall into what I call the “overtime gap.” You want to vacation in Florida? That vacation for a family of four might cost you three overtime shifts. You want to vacation in Hawaii? You might be looking at 10 overtime shifts.
It’s inevitable that you begin to look at large purchases as overtime shifts.
Having a job that allows you to work overtime if it’s available is a huge perk of working in a career fire service position. It can be a way that we can have nice things and a nice lifestyle sometimes. Many families are single-income, and overtime is a way to supplement that. Not many people outside of the fire service have the same opportunity.
Not worth it?
The problem lies with the stressful complexities of our job.
Christina Sauder writes in “Firefighters’ Stress Response to a Virtual Reality Occupationally Relevant Stressor and a Virtual Reality Laboratory Stressor” that psychological stress from within the workplace is regarded as a contributor of firefighter death because of the marked effects that stress has on the cardiovascular system. In other words, firefighters battle every single day for their health.
Diet, sleep and mental health can be affected negatively when we work too much. They already are just working a normal shift schedule.
Lisa Caputo and her co-authors write in “The Impact of Changing Work Schedules on American Firefighters’ Sleep Patterns and Well-being” that firefighters’ inadequate amount of sleep directly affects their psychosocial well-being and stress. This includes inhibiting the ability to get into a healthful diet rhythm.
Similarly, in “Impact of Shift Work on Diet and Cardiovascular Health of Fire-Fighters in Selected Fire Stations in the Accra Metropolitan Area,” C.E. Mensah notes that the rotating shift cycle of firefighters prevents them from getting into a healthful diet schedule and, thus, contributes to cardiovascular disease.
Mental health also is negatively affected when one works too many shifts. In “Suicide in the Fire Service: Saving the Lives of Firefighters,” Steven Heitman writes that occurrence of post-traumatic stress disorder among firefighters occurs as much as five times more than it does among members of the general public.
Financial consultation
Financial stress that contributes to firefighter suicide is a modifiable risk factor. Perhaps it’s time to look at how much we work and at really taking care of ourselves.
In my recent dissertation study, “Health and Wellness for Emergency Organizations: A Qualitative Case Study,” an astounding 100 percent of firefighter respondents favored having a financial planner/expert as part of a health and wellness program.
Where do we go from here? I challenge fire department leadership to consider implementing a financial component to their health and wellness program. Diet, sleep, physical well-being and mental well-being are very important. Let’s make the most robust health and wellness programs be inclusive to the financial difficulties that members of the fire service can face.
If as firefighters we can get ourselves in a place where we want to be, then we all will be the better for it and be better at serving others, and serving others is the reason why that we all signed up.
John Roper
John Roper has worked for Mountain View Fire Rescue in Longmont, CO, since 2007. He currently is a lieutenant in the department. Roper earned a doctorate in education in organizational leadership with an emphasis in development from Grand Canyon University. His research focuses on health and wellness in emergency organizations. Roper also is an adjunct faculty member for Colorado State University and the University of Northern Colorado.
