Fire Rescue EMS Health, Fitness and Wellness News

Dr. Gonzalo Fernandez and Dr. Lance Walker | 10/14/2011

We are often asked by Fire Chiefs about OSHA 1910.156 and how it applies to fire departments. There is a great deal of confusion about what standard is applicable and which should be followed. This article will discuss the standards, their intent and applicability. Read More...

Relevant Tags: Health and Fitness, fire, standard, nfpa 1582, 191 156, osha 191, fight fire, fire brigade

Dr. Gonzalo Fernandez and Dr. Lance Walker | 07/05/2011

Firefighters have about three times the risk of the general population of suffering a fatal heart attack. The exact mechanism of action is unclear and may be due to stress, shift work, micro-particulates, poor diet or some combination of these factors. What is clear however is that identifying and dealing with cardiac disease in firefighters should be an integral component of all medical surveillance programs. Read More...

Relevant Tags: Health and Fitness, firefighters, testing, disease, heart, risk, stress, heart disease, stress test, medical history, first responders, health fitness, risk factors, cardiac disease, firefighters have, important steps

Dr. Gonzalo Fernandez and Dr. Lance Walker | 04/29/2011

(This is part three of a three-part series on health for first responders.) So you’ve chosen a vendor, laid the groundwork with your firefighters, and survived the testing day. Now what? In this third article of our three-part series, we discuss clearance issues, departmental statistics and record keeping. Read More...

Relevant Tags: YOUR HEALTH AND FITNESS, medical, physician, testing, information, clearance issues, medical provider, primary care, blood pressure, abnormal ekg

Jim Stumbo | 01/11/2011

A fire station, or as many refer to it, a fire “house,” is more than a building built to house fire apparatus, sleep rooms and large Lazy-Boy recliners. It is truly what the second name refers to; it is a “house.” Where I, and most of those working to support our families go to work and then go “home” afterwards, those in the fire service go to work and live at the fire house for a period of time. As we have heard many times, “The kitchen is the Heart of the Home,” it is no different for the fire department. Read More...

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Michael Medeiros | 01/11/2011

In your home town and home towns across the U.S. the same thing is evident; fitness becomes more of a trend not of a lifestyle. If the public safety service is to maintain the safety of the public, then we need to press them to maintain there own health and safety. It tends to be difficult to start a program or even keep a program alive and thriving. The components of a well rounded program are; developing diets, mental health, rehab, proper rest and of course working out. Most of these can be offered to your department by internet companies for little to no cost. As for the actual physical fitness implementation, it will take buy in from al... Read More...

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Dr. Gonzalo Fernandez, Dr. Lance Walker | 01/11/2011

So you’ve chosen a vendor and laid the groundwork with your firefighters. Now test day is approaching, and you want to make sure you get the most from your investment. In this article we discuss a few preparatory items and approaches to NFPA testing that will ensure you have a successful and well received medical and fitness evaluation. Read More...

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Matt Lyden, MS, ATC, PES | 01/11/2011

Another New Year has arrived, the holiday season is behind us and once again it is time to REALLY get fit. So you sit down and write out your goals to lose weight and get in shape. Things are really going well for the first month. February we are into the routine but may cheat an extra day on the diet and miss a workout or two. Then March arrives and for some reason (time, money, kids, vacations, the dog ate my goals among some of the more popular) we find an excuse(s) and fall back into the “after the holidays I am going to get serious about my health and wellness.” Read More...

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Bradley Dean | 07/25/2010

Sometimes the science and the street have trouble communicating. The Trendelenburg position was originally used to improve surgical exposure of the pelvic organs, credited to the German surgeon Friedrick Trendelenburg (1844-1924). During World War I, Walter Cannon, an American physiologist, made the Trendelenburg position popular as a treatment for shock. With the person being placed with their head down and feet elevated, he promoted it as a way to increase venous return to the heart, increase cardiac output and improve vital organ perfusion. Read More...

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Tim Deppen | 07/25/2010

I’m pretty much like every firefighter believing in the ideology of, “we should train like we’re in it.” Everything we do should be mimicking the incidents we respond to. As firefighters we must be equipped, trained and physically able to do this great job of ours. I’m not saying that we need to be marathon runners, or have the body of mister universe to do our jobs, but rather maintain a high level of fitness; ready physically to respond to our community’s call for help. I read somewhere that firefighters use as much energy in a major incident as football players do in a game. That’s quite a bit. For the most part we lead sedentary lives at... Read More...

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Michael Medeiros | 07/25/2010

All across America we see fire departments and emergency services taking measures to outfit there companies with newer trucks and better equipment. These same departments spend large amounts of money to make sure the apparatus we ride on has all the bells and whistles, yet we are still neglecting the major tool in our arsenal, the people who drive and use this equipment. Read More...

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| 04/26/2010

Whether you’re on vacation with friends or looking for things the whole family can enjoy, your vacation at Myrtle Beach is guaranteed to be the best you’ve ever had. The Myrtle Beach area, also known as the Grand Strand, features something for everyone. Sixty miles of pristine uninterrupted beach, water parks dripping in fun, shopping excursions, toe-tapping live theatre shows, over 1,600 restaurants and more than 100 championship golf courses, it’s no wonder that the Myrtle Beach area one of the leading vacation destinations in the country! Myrtle Beach’s most popular attraction is, of course, the beach. Besides working on an even tan, beac... Read More...

Relevant Tags: Fire,beach, myrtle, carolina, golf, fun, myrtle beach, beach area, broadway beach, grand strand, fun things, golf courses

Zane D. Poindexter | 04/26/2010

One of the most important components to a successful fire service response is a properly completed origin and cause fire investigation. We state this as fact for two important reasons: to recognize an intentionally set fire and to subsequently assist with placing those individuals responsible into the criminal justice system, and also to properly identify certain dangerous practices or faulty equipment that may spark accidental fires. Neither of these end results could be possible without proper scene preservation and other important functions conducted by the first responding crews. Scene preservation If proper scene preservation is not a p... Read More...

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DAVID GREENE | 01/11/2010

We will spend this article examining an issue that no one likes to talk about on the fire ground. Rehabilitation or “rehab” used to be a place where exhausted firefighters who could not continue to function were sent. Rehab continues to have negative connotations associated with its use. We may be disappointed to learn that our favorite movie star or celebrity has entered rehab in order to battle an unwanted addiction. Likewise, in the fire service, years ago, the incident commander sending you to rehab was synonymous with your mom sending you to your room. Read More...

Relevant Tags: Health and Wellness,rehab, fire, firefighters, vital signs, cooler months, fire ground

JOE ELLIS | 10/18/2009

Saving lives. Isn’t that the heart of what firefighting and emergency medical services are all about? What about your own life? I’ve been to several fire/ EMS tradeshows lately to introduce our new firefighter’s treadmill and it’s very concerning how overweight, and even obese, many public safety workers are. Many firefighters don’t appear physically capable of performing their job in intensely demanding situations when people’s lives are on the line. The American Medical Association recently came out with a report that said one-third of all Americans are obese and another one-third is overweight. This leaves only one-third of the American p... Read More...

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