The After Action Review: Post-Incident Size-Up

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The size-up is for all intents and purposes, our game plan or battle plan, if you will, against the structure we are working at. The size-up is where firefighters and fire officers gather information in order to make safe, efficient, and effective fire ground decisions. Fire ground decision making, as we know, is meant to be quick, but with an emphasis on safety and ensuring the tactics are done efficiently and effectively.

One aspect we do not stress enough is the fact we do not consider the culmination of the incident. After fire command is terminated and all units are back in quarters and in service. We must remember the pre-planning is not over just because we cleared the incident and everyone is back in the station and safe. This is where the add-value work is put into place and now it is time for the after-action review or post-incident size-up.

During the after-action review (AAR), firefighters and fire officers can discuss and share information obtained from the alarm and also discuss the success and failures they have experienced during the alarm. This is a time to ask a few question:

• What did we expect to happen?

• What actually occurred?

• What went well and why?

• What can we improve upon and how?

The benefit of asking these questions allow for strengths to be easily identifiable making it easier to uncover areas of weakness. By uncovering areas of weakness, you can develop ways to improve them! If you do not identify what went wrong, how could you ever expect to improve? On the contrary, if you do not understand what went right and why, duplicating that same success in the future will not be easy. Ensure necessary changes discussed in the AAR are implemented sooner than later as the longer it is on hold, the greater the likelihood of any changes being implemented diminish.

The size-up as a whole is a valuable step by step process for all firefighters, to obtain knowledge of their response district, riding assignments, and strategy and tactic implementation. By beginning this process formally or informally early on, it will allow for continual growth for each firefighter and fire officer. The key to success as an individual and team is to get ahead of the game and prevent ourselves from being reactive, rather proactive.

Until next time, work hard, stay safe & live inspired.

 

What Are You Telling People?

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I say “Good afternoon!How are you doing?” I am stopping to getodds and ends at a supermarket. It is atypical day during the summer here in Maryland;so being inside provides a bit of relief from the heat and humidity. The cashier is who I give this standard greeting. He is tall, lanky, and young. My guess is that this is probably his Summer job. Admittedly, I ask the question about his day out of rote practice. I just heard the conversationbetween the cashier and the person before me. I already know his answer. His response?“Oh, I can't complain.” That’s not the answer he gave the other guy.

In speaking with the person just before me, this is the response I hear him say: “Man it’s hot in here. It feels good at first, but then, it’s hot again.” Now, this is a supermarket, not a court of law. I will not prosecute him for telling me one thingand another person something else. And given that he and the other person are wearing the same uniform shirt, it makes sense. He is more comfortable with a known, coworker than anunknown, customer. We all have things that bother us. We are just not up front about telling everyone about them. And that’s fine, until you aren’t fine.

Everyone has problems.Whether or not someone will talk about them is another story. Over the last few months,firefighters in nearby jurisdictions have taken their own lives.An article from CNN article last year* states “Last year (in 2017), 103 firefighters and 140 police officers committed suicide, whereas 93 firefighters and 129 officers died in the line of duty, which includes everything from being fatally shot, stabbed, drowning or dying in a car accident while on the job.” In a discussion I had shortly after that, a question was posed to me; if I had a problem, who would I tell? Who would I tell what I felt, versus what the pre-canned answer of “Oh, I can’t complain.”

There are many people better qualified than I to speak on mental health. What I give you then, is not vast knowledge, but perspective. One that focuses on just on aspect of the problem of mental health in the fire service. Many people wouldn’t know who to tell their problems to if their life depended on it. If you had a problem, who would you tell?Not just any problem, but the kind of problem that would make you question being alive. How much trust you have in another person is proportional with how much would you revel to him or her. Who do you trust enough to tell that kind of problem?

I don’t feel like fire service culture makes it easy to talk about weakness, mistakes, and problems people tend to face. In order to have a conversation on that level, there has to be a sense of closeness between 2 people. A sense of trust.Listening to the comments of the young cashier and the guy he was talking to, they are obviously closer to each other than to me. They know each other. They have history. I'm just some dude picking up some odds and ends. No need to trust me with a problem statement.

As leaders, I ask we all take a look at what we are doing to make it easy for people to talk about problems. To find the common places and build bridges of trust and safety. Part of leadership is figuring out what that is for each individual. That's a pretty tall order. I've had a fewsuccesses and many more failures throughout my entire career.I don't know that I have a set answer. I will tell you what life has taught me so far. Keep saying “Good morning! How are you doing?” If I go back to that same store on a regular basis and interact that same cashier, eventually, we will get to know each other better. Eventually, we will talk about more things. Eventually, he’ll let me know when the heat is getting to him. Eventually, he’ll trust me enough to tell me what he really feels. Relationships are a lot like planting fruit trees. It takes a while to nurture the progress, but in the end, the fruit that is produced is worth it. As a leader, make trust your everyday order of business. Make trust ordinary, and you will see extraordinary impact.   

*From <https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/2018/04/11/officers-firefighters-suicides-study/503735002/>

 About the Author

 NICK BASKERVILLE Nick has had the honor of serving in the United States Air Force for 10 years, followed by 4 years in the United States Air Force Reserves. He attained the rank of Technical Sergeant (E-6). Nick also has 18 years of fire service time, with 15 years of that being in a career department in Northern Virginia. Nick has had the opportunity to hold positions in the Company Officer's section of the Virginia Fire Chief's Association (VFCA), The Virginia Fire Officer's Academy (VFOA) staff, and as one of the IABPFF representatives to the Fire Service Occupational Cancer Alliance. Nick is one of the many trainers for Firefighter Cancer Support Network (FCSN) to offer awareness and prevention training about cancer in the fire service. Nick has the honor of being one of the many contributors for The Firehouse Tribune.

Improve Your Cholesterol, Improve Your Career

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Heart Disease is the leading cause of death of both men and women in the United States. It’s also one the leading causes of death in firefighters and for more than 1 reason. However, in this article we are discussing it with its link to cholesterol. So what is cholesterol and what does it due to our bodies?

For starters, cholesterol is a fat found in your blood that is developed in the liver but your body can also receive it from meat, fish, eggs, butter, cheese, and whole or low-fat milk. Everyone needs some cholesterol in their bodies in order to function properly such as your brain, skin and bodily organs. What cholesterol is doing for your body is acting a building block for your cells as well as helping repair damaged cells especially ones found in the blood vessels and the dietary tract.

If cholesterol is helping your body, why is it bad?

Well, foodhigh in additives, preservatives and other toxic processes will cause cells to become damaged and are most likely found in refined and processed carbohydrates. This will cause the cholesterol to flow around the blood and eventually cling onto the walls of your blood vessels, thus causing the vessels to become narrower as time goes on eventually clogging the vessels. A clogged vessel does not allow for proper blood flow through the vessel potentially causing a heart attack (lack of oxygen-rich blood)or stroke (decreased blood flow to thebrain) to name a few.

To be on top of our game and have long lasting career and life, we can as firefighters help ourselves and families to help improve our cholesterol levels.

1. Eat heart-healthy foods

a. Healthier Fats

i. Saturated fats, founds in red meat and dairy will raise your total cholesterol levels and low-density lipoprotein (LDL) also known as “bad” cholesterol. Rule of thumb: 7% or less of your daily caloric intake should be from saturated fats.

ii. Leaner cuts of meat such as London broil, top sirloin, chicken breast, 96% lean ground beef and pork tenderloin are other healthier options along with low-fat dairy and monounsaturated fats which is found in olive and canola oils.

b. Eliminate Trans Fats

i. Trans fats affect cholesterol levels by increasing LDL levels (“bad”) and lowering the (“good”) HDL levels. Trans fats can be found in fried foods and many processed foods such as cookies, crackers and snack cakes. In the U.S., food containing less than 0.5 grams of trans fat per serving is consider “trans fat-free”.

c. Omega-3 Fatty Acids

i. Omega-3’s don’t have an effect on LDL cholesterol (“bad”) however it does have heart benefits. Some benefits omega-3 has are helping to increase high-density lipoprotein (HDL or “good”), reducing triglycerides (type of fat in blood) and reduces blood pressure.

ii. Types of fish rich in omega-3 are salmon, mackerel and herring. Other good sources include krill oil, walnuts and almonds.

d. Soluble Fiber

i. There are 2 types of fiber – soluble and insoluble. Although both have heart-health benefits, soluble fiber also helps to lower your LDL (“bad”) cholesterol and all you’ll need to do is all a little more fiber to your diet.

ii. High in fiber foods are oats, fruits, beans, lentils and vegetables.

e. Whey Protein

i. Whey protein given as a supplement according to studies has shown to lower both LDL and total cholesterol. So if you’re in the gym, at home or in the firehouse working out and GETTING AFTER IT, don’t forget to include whey protein in your diet.

2. Exercise

i. Exercise has been known to improve cholesterol especially help raise HDL (“good”) cholesterol. Before engaging in any physical activities, please consult with your physician beforehand.

If you want a long, healthy and prosperous career and a long life with your family your health comes first. Protecting the front lines and take care of our own comes above all else. Please remember to consult with your physician before looking into any of these recommendations as this is for informational purposes.

Until next time; work hard, stay safe & live inspired.

About the Author

NICHOLAS J. HIGGINS is a firefighter with 16 years in the fire service in Piscataway, NJ, a NJ State certified level 2 fire instructor and a State of New Jersey Advocate for the National Fallen Firefighter’s Foundation. A martial arts practitioner in Taekwondo, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai as well as a former collegiate athlete in baseball, Nick is a National Exercise & Sports Trainer Association Battle Ropes Instructor and studying for the Functional Fitness Instructor certification.  He holds a B.S. in Accounting from Kean University and is the founder/contributor of the Firehouse Tribune website.