I recently took my 4-year old son to the doctor to get looked at after running a fever with a sore throat, congestion and a headache over the last couple of days. Being it's flu season along with a high risk of RSV going around, we wanted to play it safe. One of the practices doctors came in the room and was immediately disinterested in being there and would hardly attempt to comfortable a scared toddler when going through the routine exam. Granted I was there as his father, I could only do so much to not get in the way of what the doctor needed to do to check him out. As the exam went on, the vibe in the room went from disinterested to completely annoyed with no attempts to try and work with the patient but rather work against the patient.

As a first responder who has to work with citizens of a community on what they consider their worst day, I was very tuned into how this doctor - who seems new to the practice - was engaging with my son and how the doctor turned a slightly scared child into a now combative frightened child. Both reactions from my son and the doctor are very real human emotions, no doubt about it at all. Now do any of you recall hearing the term, "walking billboard"? Well, that's exactly what this doctor is and exactly what we are as first responders - "walking billboards". How we handle situations, speak and act becomes a direct relation to our department and our personal brand. It goes back to a past article and episode of the "5-Tool Firefighter Podcast", "Re-present Yourself to Represent Your Department". Go check out the article and listen to the episode of the podcast.

Read here: https://www.thefirehousetribune.com/blog/2019/7/8/3ht5o0jqptvrelqj0z93k85v48wanl

Listen here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/7Mw2remzctDyi4aqCGxTOV?si=sPYMIf51RGmyfq5kJA7J7A

It is completely normal to have bad days, long days and days where we simply need a break. Although it is highly important when working with the members of the community we are cognizant of how we are presenting ourselves to them. Thus how we are representing our department to them.

When the elderly woman who fell asleep while cooking dinner and sets the fire alarm off for burnt food on the stove or the little boy who fell out of the tree in his yard possibly breaking a limb, both are calling us at a low moment in their life and need our help. They expect us to have the ability to help them. Granted we are not therapists and cannot console them to the level they may want yet, it is our duty to ensure we treat them with a level of respect and professionalism to hopefully ensure to them we are here to serve you and help you at this very moment.

How we speak, act, and treat those we are there to serve will always have a direct relation to how we are looked at as a person, professional and could quite possibly the light it sheds on our respective department. We made a promise to serve those who call us for help, it is on us to ensure we provide them with a high level of respect and professionalism. Represent yourself in a way it speaks volumes for you and your department.

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