COMPLIANCE WITH NFPA 1500: ROOM FOR IMPROVEMENT
Firefighting is widely recognized as the most dangerous occupation in the United States—each year more than 100 deaths and approximately 100,000 injuries occur. These figures indicate a need to improve firefighter health and safety conditions.
The hazards of firefighting demand constant attention. It is an occupation in which potential injuries and loss of life have long been considered “part of the job.”
Realizing that the health and safety record of the fire service was unsatisfactory, in 1987 the National Fire Protection Association came out with NFPA 1500, Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program. It is designed so that fire departments can implement it all at once or gradually. In either case, the plan must be established in writing. The standard is intended as an umbrella document related to firefighter health and safety issues. Its main objective, however, is to specify “minimum requirements” for health and safety programs and procedures.
RATE OF COMPLIANCE
I recently surveyed members of 99 departments in 33 states to determine their level of compliance with NFPA 1500. The participants represented paid, volunteer, combination, large, and small departments. Since I polled them at classes at the National Fire Academy, an annual symposium for state fire marshals, and a seminar for members of a safety anil research organization —all functions that place a strong emphasis on health and safety education—I expected a much higher compliance rate. Thus 1 was disappointed to find that only 40 percent of the 99 departments have adopted NFPA 1500; 60 percent of these “progressive departments,” which stress health and safety, did not fully comply with the most comprehensive health and safety standard ever developed for the fire service!
SOME POSITIVE STEPS
There are some areas where the fire service has done a commendable job of meeting health and safety standards. They include:
- Self-contained breathing apparatus. Ninety-nine percent of the de-
- partments surveyed have a mandatory self-contained breathing apparatus policy. Such policies can help decrease smoke inhalation injuries.
- Inoculations and vaccinations. The fire service is working to protect firefighters from contagious diseases through inoculation and vaccination programs. Almost 78 percent of those surveyed, for example, provide hepatitis B vaccinations.
- Vision and hearing protection. Most departments (88 percent) said they provide eye protection, while 80
- percent provide hearing protection.
- Employee assistance programs. In the surveyed group, close to 77 percent offered programs to members to help them cope with issues that affect their daily lives.
- Psychological assistance. Almost 80 percent of respondents provide critical incident debriefing for employees exposed to tragedies that have an emotional and psychological impact.
- Safety officer and committee. More than 75 percent of the departments have a designated safety officer, and almost 70 percent have an established safety committee.
IMPROVEMENT NEEDED
The survey also uncovered some critical areas that need attention. One area that appears to be grossly neglected, according to the survey, is physical fitness. Few departments (38 percent) have a mandatory physical fitness program. Health and safety will remain a major issue as long as so many departments are neglecting physical fitness.
A major cause of firefighter deaths is heart attacks. Major causes of injury are strains and sprains. A concerted national effort to establish, maintain, and require fitness standards can help reduce the death and injury figures.
While some progress has been made in the area of voluntary physical fitness programs, more than 45 percent of the departments surveyed do not provide a voluntary physical fitness program. Only 45 percent offer wellness programs (medical examinations and physical fitness evaluations performed by professionals, who then develop individualized rehabilitation or maintenance programs). Almost 50 percent of respondents do not provide a designated physician because of the exorbitant cost.
While the fire service has taken the first steps in providing a more healthful and safer environment for firefighters, the journey is far from over. To paraphrase Los Angeles Dodgers Manager Tommy Lasorda. the difference between possible and impossible is determination
