Gabriella Williams's List: Fire Safety

• The Mayo Clinic  indicates that although symptoms of depression can vary from person to person,  these can be typical:

   

   

   
  • Feeling sad, down or "empty"  
  • Losing interest in activities you once enjoyed  
  • Feeling hopeless, worthless or helpless  
  • Feeling irritable or restless  
  • Changes in appetite, and losing or gaining weight unintentionally  
  • Sleeping poorly or oversleeping  
  • Feeling fatigued or having decreased energy  
  • Having persistent feelings of guilt  
  • Having trouble thinking, concentrating or making decisions  
  • Having thoughts of suicide  
  • Abusing alcohol or drugs
• More than 50% of firefighter line-of-duty deaths are caused by health-related  issues
• More than 50% of firefighter line-of-duty deaths  are caused by health-related   issues .
• Being sad is a normal reaction when something upsetting has happened, such as a  loved one dying. However, when after several months you are unable to get out of  bed in the morning, you could be depressed
• According to Depression.org, more than 15 million people in the United  States suffer from depression, including people who should seemingly be "happy."

•  Because of the various causes, severity levels,  etc. associated with   depression, there are also various treatment  options, ranging from psychotherapy   and  medication to lifestyle changes. 

   

   If you feel depressed or think you  
• Lifestyle changes, such as adding aerobic, strength training and flexibility  exercises, can help reduce mild to moderate depression. Exercise is thought to  decrease depression by improving self-esteem and by releasing endorphins,  chemicals in your body that interact with the receptors in your brain to reduce  your perception of pain.
• Get adequate sleep and eat a balanced, healthy diet. Practice mind-body  techniques such as biofeedback therapy (improving health and performance by  using signals from your own body), meditation and tai chi. Adding nutritional  supplements and herbs and incorporating acupuncture and homeopathy into your  daily routine are also being studied as ways to treat depression

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• we  need is a simple, written assessment tool that could be completed as    part of the annual physical
• We  have   created critical     incident  stress management programs to address   issues        

    a fter  a      major     call,  and   hotlines have been established for firefighters  in     need         of       mental    health  assistance. Yet 91 percent   of the reporting fire  departments     do       not   include a  mental health component in their     annual   physical
• The survey shockingly found that 32 percent of career,  combination and volunteer fire departments do not require physical examinations  for their members
• We have created critical incident stress management programs to address issues  after a major call, and hotlines have been established for firefighters in need  of mental health assistance. Yet 91 percent of the reporting fire departments do  not include a mental health component in their annual physical. We are not  looking for a four-hour test with interpretation of ink spots (see Table 3).  What we need is a simple, written assessment tool that could be completed as  part of the annual physical.

  • Introduction
• Mental health is just as important as a firefighter’s  physical condition, and can just as easily impact job performance

  • Introduction
• We have created critical  incident stress management programs to address issues   after a  major call, and hotlines have been established for firefighters in need    of  mental health assistance. Yet 91 percent of the reporting fire departments  do   not include a mental health component in their  annual physical.
• after a   major  call, and hotlines have been established for firefighters in  need     of   mental
• We have  created critical   incident stress management programs to address  issues       

  after  a     major   call, and  hotlines have been established for firefighters in   need       of     mental  health assistance. Yet 91 percent  of the reporting fire departments   do     not  include a mental health component in their   annual  physical.  We are n
• Our next challenge is to incorporate a mental health  assessment in our annual physicals.

• The challenge that we have as chief officers  is to ensure that all firefighters—interior, exterior and drivers—receive  annual medical physicals. We must implement the use of generally accepted  firefighter medical standards. Physicals need to be performed by qualified  physicians knowledgeable about the firefighter’s job and the appropriate  standards. Finally, we must begin the process to include a required mental  health evaluation in the annual firefighter physical.

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  Secondary  stress  is the stress resulting from helping or wanting to help a  traumatised or suffering person. People that work in the emergency services,  such as firefighters, are prime candidates to experience secondary  post-traumatic stress disorder.
• Secondary stress
• Firefighters are often exposed to traumatic stress which can be caused by  exposure to such things as mutilated bodies, the impact of life threatening  situations, physically demanding activities, and great material  destruction
• Indeed, a survey of 2000 firefighters and paramedics reported that 90% of the  sample had encountered at least one distressing mission in the last year that  included dead, dying or severley injured persons. These are experiences that may  never occur in the lives of members of the general population.
• Due to this, there has been a lack of empirical research investigating  occupational stress in the emergency services. In fact, research into secondary  post-traumatic stress disorder was non-existent until just ten years ago.
• 318 German firefighters
• Of their sample, 20 were found just to have post-traumatic stress disorder  symptoms, 58 were found to have post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms and  other psychiatric symptoms, 86 were found to have other psychiatric symptoms, 76  were found to have subsyndromal post-traumatic stress disorder and just 78 were  found to be mentally healthy
• In closing, based on their findings, Wagner et al (1998) suggest that  18.2% of all firefighters suffer from post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms,  and that almost half suffer from further psychiatric symptoms.

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• Janet Savia, a doctoral student in clinical psychology at Regent University who  is trained in CISM and married to a volunteer firefighter for 28 years, said:  “Depressed individuals may move and think more slowly and have trouble making  quick and quality decisions. As those in emergency services well know, this can  be devastating at a fire or accident scene. Clinical depression can  significantly increase the risk of on- and off-duty accidents. Depression can  also result in mistakes that may leave a department open to criticism or legal  liability.”
• It's essential that emergency services leaders become more aware of the signs  and symptoms of depression and know what to do to help so a possible tragedy can  be avoided
• “It would be a good idea for the chief to have a short list (no less than two)  of CISM- trained mental health professionals within driving distance of the  service area. The firefighter or EMT of concern can then be given specific names  and telephone numbers of available and knowledgeable mental health professionals

  • solution evidece

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• Every fire department can set up a peer support unit. This unit can consist  of firefighters from neighboring departments as well as your own. Small  departments can pool resources with other small departments. Mental health  professionals should know how to work with this phenomenon rather than against  it.

• Although most fire departments have implemented the safety guidelines, many have  not provided resources for coping with stress and grief. This may be the result  of insufficient budgets, scheduling problems, or lack of interest.
• However, the rise in the divorce rate and health problems related to stress and  grief in the fire service community have made educational programs to cope with  these issues necessary and crucial for the emotional health and physical  wellness of firefighters.
  
• The students learn coping skills for job-related stress issues as well as  personal life traumas. These men and women realize they are not alone in their  thoughts and feelings. Family members can discuss their needs as well as their  fears and frustrations. Fire department chaplains receive information to help  them provide emotional support to firefighters and their families.
• reduce the number of lives that are lost from physical illness, substance abuse,  and suicide in the fire service then they must provide firefighters with help  and coping skills.

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