TO: Fire
Department
DATE: 3/1/2009
RE: What
is our Plan?
What is our plan? I look at our
mission and value statements and this question comes to mind for many different
reasons. I need to state that my intent in writing this letter is not to
condemn or ridicule any individuals or group of individuals. This is a good
Department, I enjoy the work, the people and the environment I am employed in,
my only wish is that it rises to its full potential. It would be much simpler
to accept the status quo, remain in a comfort zone, and through inaction accept
things the way they are. I find it difficult to believe that this department
would hire employees with those qualities. We find
ourselves in a new environment in which maintaining the status quo will not
work.
In this document I wish to articulate my observations, and opinions, of the dynamics and structure
of our Fire Department. I do this yearly to allow me to condense and refine my
thoughts and understanding of the workings of our Department. I hope this will
not only benefit me, but also promote some discussion and perhaps action toward
improving our department’s functionality and service to both citizens and
employees. I feel that documentation of circumstances and attitudes within the
department is as critical to determining progress as the quantitative data
already being collected. I make these observations with incomplete knowledge of
the underlying practices employed by management. There may well be reasonable
explanations for why things are as they are, but I do not posses the
information to determine if they are valid. In either case it is the perception
in the absence of information that is the basis for my concerns.
OBSERVATIONS
Overall Management
and Oversight
i “When wrestling a gorilla, one does not stop
until the gorilla gets tired!”
1) We
have seen a variety of changes to our equipment this year, some with
appropriate levels of user input, others not.
2) The
intent of the changes has been good, but the execution and lack of stakeholder
involvement has in some cases produced less useful, even dangerous outcomes.
3) There
does not appear to be any effort to communicate the long term plans for the
department or any long term goals despite multiple exercises to obtain and
promote the needs of the rank and file, i.e.: Target 21.
From a fiscal standpoint the city
and all departments will be required to modify their operations and practices
to accomplish their goals with less. For our department this should not mean
that we back away from needed changes and improvements for the sake of not
upsetting our budget, but instead embrace the opportunity to accomplish both
improvement and cost reduction through efficiency and intelligent decision
making processes. It is not logical to circle the wagons and wait for things to
improve, they will not, the problems will remain and they will have multiplied.
I admit I know nothing of our
department’s plans for training, finances, and organizational structure. This
information is not available to me, the closest I seem to get is the month old
reports on the command staff meetings and ECC meetings. I find these somewhat
useful, but they don’t really convey the long term goals of our department
adequately. Do we have a published 1, 2, 3, and five year plan for both the
Fire and EMS components of our department?
Department Continuity
i “does it not reason
that those who are left to carry-on are doomed to repeat the same mistakes”.
1) There
is no apparent effort on the part of more senior staff to mentor and train
upcoming officers to fill their roles, leaving a great concern for having to re-live
previous mistakes. To date no officer candidate school is in place.
2) The
magnitude and scope of the changes the Department and City must make to achieve
a more businesslike level of operations and performance of our duty will
require a new way of thinking.
3) Those
without any business training or experience may find themselves unable to cope
with and/or perform in this new environment.
4) From
the outside it appears that no one wants to share their cheese for fear of
somehow becoming less important or possibly expendable.
Training and Officer
Development
i “You can care about fighting fire all you
want but if you don't train to do it, sooner or later someone will pay the
ultimate price and that person will be one of our brethren.”
1) The
department has put forth a basic officer development program consisting of core
DFP courses for new officers.
2) No
other tactical courses, exercises, or drills have been developed that provide
any hands on real-time practice with the exception of occasional task related
training provided by our training division. The only tactical exercise I have
been involved in for two years was at the last assessment center.
3) There
have been no perceptible changes in our way of training new officers since the
call last year.
4) Training
remains highly variable across all stations, shifts and Battalions. In my case
I was allowed to pursue my EMT and ITLS instructor credentials, but not
involved in the instruction program except as a part-time instructor.
5) Our
training division remains severely under funded and understaffed.
1) Fire
and EMS components within the department are not fully integrated; patient care is achieved in spite of this. Friction, animosity, and
frustration exist just beneath the surface. There are disparities on both sides
that need to be addressed. EMS calls are the
primary call type for all apparatus and account for >90% of calls.
2) There is only one EMS
officer per district (paramedics are not considered or addressed as officers)
and an Officer for every other fire apparatus in each district.
3) Paramedics
are denied specialty assignments due to staffing, and required to spend a
disproportionate amount of time riding an ambulance in most districts/stations.
In my case I was hired with the majority of my Technical Rescue certifications
already in place and attended others off duty, but was denied a place on the HTR
team due to my paramedic certification. Others were hired with no
certifications, placed on the team, and paid overtime to get their HTR
certifications.
4) EMT’s
do not routinely ride the ambulance at all, ST’s typically ride every third
shift, and PM’s every other shift at best.
5) Battalion
level officers on Fire side are called Chief, EMS
officers are called Lieutenant.
6) EMS calls have a QI process; FIRE calls do not have a
formal process for evaluation.
7) The
Battalion level FMO position is filled based on the performance of an
individual on an Engine company officers assessment.
8) Assignment
to a Medic duty is considered a chore for most, a punishment for some, and used
as a punishment by others. For example; it appears to be ok to miss an Engine
duty, but Ambulance duties must be made up.
I personally do not mind riding the ambulance, but I did not
agree to give up other opportunities to do so. A truly integrated Fire/EMS
system would require equal participation of all personnel ALS & BLS.
Battalion level EMS officers shoulder the same responsibilities as other
Battalion level officers and should be given the same level of authority and recognition;
this of course raises the question of other EMS positions being filled with
subordinate EMS officers (captains and
lieutenants).
SUGGESTIONS:
(ill informed and probably too optimistic)
- Stop
Procrastinating: We need an Officer and Professional development program
in this department now. If this does not happen we are doomed to repeat
tragic errors made here and elsewhere.
- Implement
a formal mentoring program for all levels with specific goals and
objectives that will facilitate a progression from rank to rank.
- Put
- Improve
- Hire
and/or train an adequate number of ALS providers. It is unreasonable to
expect our paramedics to shoulder the responsibility they do and be denied
opportunity because of their training. It should not be unreasonable to
have an ALS provider on every first response unit.
- Engage
in active public education to
reduce false and inappropriate calls, an added benefit should be cost reduction.
Inform the public of our activities so they understand what we do for them
and how we work.
- Take
employee suggestions seriously, give feedback, and allow participation and
ownership of department issues by the entire department.
- No
More Lip service; we should not engage in exercises such as target 21 if
no resources or commitment will be dedicated to addressing the issues
identified. Seek honest input, identify areas where improvement is needed,
aggressively seek resolution of the issues and provide regular feedback to
everyone.
I have been a resident of this city since its birth. I have
watched my parents, friends and neighbors contribute and become actively
involved in choosing the path this city would follow. I realize that any
organization, department or city must have frequent honest dialogue with its
members and those it serves in order to discover its true mission and purpose.
I think it is extremely easy to look at such an organization and feel that
there is nothing really that I can do to influence the actions and outcomes,
but I know the truth to be otherwise, It will take hard work, determination,
constant prodding, and perhaps a new way of thinking, but it can and must be
done. This city and our department in particular have changed since my parent’s
time. Citizens will remain complacent with bad decisions by local
government until something happens that has a significant negative impact on
them. I myself am much less politically active than I was 20 or 30 years ago.
We have to fix ourselves and earn the respect and support of our citizens. We
owe it to ourselves and those who pay our salaries.
Sincerely,
Alan Perry
i) Quotes from Allen Schidgen with permission
