Come see where the journey takes us tonight...

Tonight we're going to get back to the emergency manager roots a little bit. We're going to talk about emergency managers - born or made? 

The discussion that's out there - what is the background that allows for success in  emergency management? Does it come from years as a traditional first responders?  A business background?  Do you  learn all you need to know in one of the new university emergency management and/or homeland security degree programs?

Come hear our thoughts, and then come back and share yours...

Only at FAAT by the Fire - Unfiltered!

We cant even begin to describe the random thoughts... just come listen!

Train...

Train...

Train Until you don't....

FAIL.

We recognize a mentor.  We talk about why we train and some of the challenges that we've run into.

We hit on mission creep... and why a lot of us in all-hazards emergency management don't really have a choice, but what we may want to think about as we are faced with opportunities to avoid it...

In the latest episode we continue to talk about some of the road blocks that hinder our ability to get he job done, and why some of the solutions that are out their in our industry are not ideal, and not one size fits all...

Paperwork...

People putting up roadblocks...

Unrealistic Expectations...

Bureaucracy...

The things that hold us back from getting tasks accomplished and goals met.  The everyday snags and pitfalls that make us getting through our days and meeting our goals - 

BE THE WATER!

As we finish up our conversation on mental and physical well being - we shift the focus to who should be monitoring our moods and our emotional health?  Who knows us best, and sees us at our worst?  We need to track each other, and we need to depend on and rely on our brothers...

We then talk about a post made by the wife of a LEO, and the emotions that they experience every time their loved one walks out the door.  While it may be LE geared, it should be an eye opener for anyone of us in emergency services and emergency management as to what our families, partners and friends are seeing and feeling as they watch us coping with the stresses of the job. 

Tonight, we continue the discussion of responder self care and well being with a discussion of some of the effects of the bad crap we do and what it does to our bodies...

While more specific to firefighting due to the extremes that we face, the nutritional aspects also effect long-term, high stress environments such as disaster response withing emergency management, sleep deprivation due to rotating schedules or emergency call-outs and long term well being. 

By understanding some of the physical stressors, as well as the psychological aspect we introduced last episode, we can start to understand what we are putting our bodies and minds through, and start to better prepare ourselves before the 'tones drop' 

In honor of Memorial Day, and those who have given the ultimate sacrifice, we look at the importance of realizing the stress that comes hand in hand with working, or loving someone that works, in emergency services.  Understanding the stresses of the job, both mental and physical, and the effects that they have on both responder health and safety, as well as their relationships with families and loved ones is a part of the job that not enough of us are talking about.

Come listen as we set the stage for discussions over the next several episodes of what we can do to help protect ourselves and be at our best for the entirety of our careers.. and beyond. 

Continuing the Episode 5 discussion on technological advances, and more specifically A.I., we are talking with Wes Jones of Aurelian and the products that they have developed to support the work of PSAP's and dispatch centers. 

Aurelian has developed technology solutions that help support telecommunicators and assist with information gathering.   Aurelian's solution integrate within current workflows to seamlessly support operations and staff. 

Wes is a public safety professional with over 30 years of experience spanning emergency communications, emergency management and public-private collaboration. He spent more than 25 years in New York State in 9-1-1 and emergency management roles, including 12 years as a 9-1-1 center director, where he was responsible for operations, staffing, technology and service delivery in high-pressure, mission-critical environments.

Wes currently serves as Public Safety Engagement Lead at Aurelian, where he works closely with emergency communications leaders to apply conversational AI in ways that support 9-1-1 professionals, reduce non-emergency call burden and strengthen emergency response. His approach is grounded in firsthand operational experience and a deep respect for the realities of public safety work.