Don't Risk It! Podcast

Critical incident stress can have a lasting effect on emergency responders; yet, the stigma surrounding mental illness often interferes with seeking help. Dr. Kathy Jansen discusses potential solutions to help manage traumatic situations when they arise and tools to consider when integrating a critical incident stress management program into your organization.

Additional resources on this topic can be found at ResponderHelp.com and on our website.

Download the Risk Bulletin: https://hubs.la/H0TTsmh0

ResponderHelp.com is a valuable resource for emergency personnel, developed and administered by VFIS and offering content sourced from a broad variety of industry specialists. The website offers a robust variety of safety-related resources in response to the needs and questions of emergency responders everywhere. ETC Technical Writer and Site Administrator Rick Gurba talks with us about some of the site's features and the sign up process.

Patient handling is a complex task that emergency service organizations (ESOs) undertake every day. However, the basics of patient handling are often taken for granted and associated incidents can result in injury and damage to the responder, the patient and the organization. Sr. Risk Control Representative Dave Bradley joins the program to discuss how poor patient handling impacts organizations and some potential solutions to help control this exposure.

Download the Risk Bulletin: https://hubs.la/H0TTs-T0

Is your emergency service organization getting the most out of your current driver monitoring program? In this episode, we join VFIS Client Risk Solutions Director Mike Baker to discuss how driver monitoring systems can help improve your organization's fleet safety and impact overall maintenance costs. We'll explore how the data generated by these systems can provide timely alerts of risky driving behaviors to fleet managers so they can proactively address them before they lead to an accident.

When's the last time your department updated its severe weather plan? This week on Don't Risk It! we sit down with Chief Woody Sullivan from Pender EMS & Fire of North Carolina to discuss the importance of being proactive, not reactive, in storm response.

Fatigue impacts personal health as well as a responder's ability to perform key functions including patient care, incident command and vehicle operations. In this episode we revisit the discussion of fatigue management in EMS operations with Fire Chief Loy Senter and Battalion Chief Kevin Moran from Chesterfield Fire & EMS. Chief Senter and Chief Moran join us to talk about the details of an internal fatigue management study they've recently conducted within their department.

To learn more about the study conducted by Chesterfield Fire & EMS, please email [email protected].

Theft of emergency vehicles, including the specialized medical equipment and medications onboard, can be costly; and in some cases, losses of this nature have resulted in catastrophic injuries or fatalities. Furthermore, vehicle and equipment theft can occur anywhere. VFIS Industry Specialist Blair Tyndall provides some considerations for securing vehicles while away from and at the station.

Sexual harassment continues to be a hot topic for business and organizations. What can EMS and fire departments do differently now to address and prevent sexual harassment in the workplace? How can ESOs protect personnel from unwanted attention? Mike McCall, President of MJ Consulting, sits down to discuss what departments can do to foster safe and positive work environments. Join us for a special two-part series exploring this topic.

Sexual harassment continues to be a hot topic for business and organizations. What can EMS and fire departments do differently now to address and prevent sexual harassment in the workplace? How can ESOs protect personnel from unwanted attention? Mike McCall, President of MJ Consulting, sits down to discuss what departments can do to foster safe and positive work environments. Join us for a special two-part series exploring this topic.

Unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), commonly referred to as drones, have become favored tools among emergency service organizations (ESOs) for a variety of tasks. A UAS program can be a vital asset to an ESO. It's recommended that ESOs develop a UAS protocols before purchasing a UAS platform, as the intended use for the drone may impact selection. Chris Rodgers discusses some things to consider when looking to adopt a UAS program.