My Time At FDIC

So I started this post yesterday, but packing, traveling, and recovering definitely took priority, so here I sit Sunday night reflecting on this past week’s trip.  It’s funny that every year I attend I find myself having a different experience than any other year, but each year is still a GREAT experience!  This year’s focus was two-fold.  The first was introducing my father-in-law to the experience of Indianapolis and FDIC and the second was taking the opportunities given to me by Fire Engineering to share my thoughts and promote my book.

We arrived Tuesday and after checking in took an opportunity to check my computer and make sure it would be perfect for class.  Afterwards we took the opportunity to wander around and found my book on display at hte Fire Engineering booth!  There it was in all it’s glory!  I know that seems silly, but seeing my book on the shelf at a major trade show, really was a bit overwhelming!  We also found the sign that advertised my book signing opportunities. Honestly I think I was more impressed by the names that I was included with then with the fact that I was going to have a book signing.

Because of my schedule this week I wasn’t able to attend a large number of classes (only attended 1). I was able to help my husband get ready for his class (which was a smash hit). I was able to participate in a radio webcast with Mike McEvoy and Robert Raheb (I’ll share the link later). I was able to meet some amazing people! 

My first book signing was Thursday from 11-12.  Here I am:

It was an opportunity to put a face to a book. I actually had two people come and buy my book and ask for my autograph!  My class was Thursday night and was met with great reviews.  I taught on developing strong rehab operations and policies. I’m always happy to share information, but as happens in every class, I’m also just as happy to learn from my students. After class I went and got ready for the Courage and Valor 5K. I had set absolutely no expectations for the run, which was probably the best. I ended up walking some of it, but still finished in a decent time.  I was just happy to have participated in an event that raises money for a great cause and to bring focus to health initiatives for firefighters.

Friday we spent the day wandering through the exhibits. There is always new information, new products, and some great ideas. There are also lots of giveaways and contest to enter (which I LOVE doing).  Come one, you know we all love free stuff! It was nice to relax and take our time walking through. I had my second book signing and while I didn’t get an opportunity to sign any books, I was given a great opportunity to meet and talk to two fire service legends. Paul Combs (best known for his illustrations of issues in the fire service) and Battalion Chief Frank Montagna of FDNY.  These men have had a great impact and took the time to give me comments, ideas, and support for my book and future projects.  It really was an honor!

Saturday was leave time. We got up and did one last sweep through the exhibits. We packed, we entered one last contest, which my husband won and we went home.  The trip home became quite an experience (but that could be a whole separate post).  I’m happy to be home, but truly thankful for the experiences I had and people I interacted with.

I have a few more posts about the week that I’ll share throughout the next few weeks, but until next time…stay safe and don’t forget to follow on twitter (@stickysidedwn).

Friday Five – FDIC Five

So, given that FDIC is only three days away, and I leave next Tuesday (only five days from now) to participate, today’s post is dedicated to five things I hope to do/see/participate in during this year’s FDIC.

Top Five “To-Dos” For FDIC

1.  Teach My Class - This may seem like a simple concept, since that’s really why I’m going, but man do i look forward to teaching. I always come away from my classes feeling like I’ve met some great people, taken away some great ideas, and firmed up why I love doing what i do. The opportunity to teach to a national/international audience is a truly humbling experience and I love doing it each and every time.  If you are attending FDIC, my class is Thursday from 1:15-3:30 in Lucas Oil Stadium Room 10-12

2.  Take AMAZING classes – This conference is an amazing opportunity to take classes from nationally recognized names and from those people who are working their way to that status. It’s an opportunity to hear about programs and initiatives across the country that I might not have been exposed to. Fire Engineering has done a great job of finding a great mix of Emergency Management, Fire, and EMS training opportunities.

3.  Promote my Book – I don’t often like promoting myself, but Fire Engineering has given me a great opportunity two have two book signings during the conference. I will be available on Thursday from 11-12 and Friday from 1-2 to sign copies of my books.  If you already have a copy, bring it!  If you miss me at the Fire Engineering booth, stop me in the hallway and I’ll be happy to sign the book!

4.  Participate in some great events – This year I’m actually participating in the Courage and Valor 5k.  It’s a great opportunity to promote health, recognize a great Fire Service Leader, and hang out with great people.  My goal is to finish the event with a time that beats my split time from the 10K I just participated in, but other than that I look forward to running with some great people and being motivated to keep maintaining my health. Along with that event, I plan on attending the F.O.O.L.S. event on Wednesday night and watching the 9-11 memorial stair climb at Lucas Oil Stadium.

5.  Enjoying time with some amazing people.  Not just the ones I’ll be traveling with, though, but I also look forward to interacting with my fellow Fire and EMS service members, with the amazing employees of Fire Engineering who organize a great conference, meeting some new vendors, interacting with the people of Indianapolis, and truly just enjoying my time surrounded by a great city, wonderful people, and amazing opportunities.

This list may look corny, but this conference is truly a great event and I look forward to it each year!  If you haven’t been, you should definitely plan on attending next year.  The opportunities for learning and interaction are truly too many to number!

Are you going to FDIC?  If so, what are you looking forward to?

Until next time…stay safe and don’t forget to follow on twitter (@stickysidedwn)

Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC)

Today marks the one month countdown for the 2012 FDIC festivities. I (along with four other family members) will leave my hometown and travel to Indianapolis, Indiana for the annual Fire Department Instructors Conference.  I am honored not only to be able to attend as an instructor for the third year, but also to attend as a new author for Fire Engineering/PennWell Publishers. I have been to numerous conferences, but none like this. The training classes that are offered, the instructors that are brought in, and the vendors that line the exhibit floors are AMAZING, OVERWHELMING, and AWESOME!  Each year I arrive excited for the opportunities and leave overwhelmed with the information I gathered.

As I said, I will be teaching a class.  If you are attending, I would love to have you sit in and join me:

Course Title: Beyond the Water Cooler: EMS Role in Rehab
Course Date: Thursday April 19
Course Time: 1:30-3:15

Two other great courses to attend (forget that they are taught by my husband and my father) are:

Course Title: Engine Company Operations
Instructor: Robby Owens
Course Date:Wednesday April 18
Course Time: 10:30-12:15

Course Title: Emergency Responders vs. Electrical Hazards
Instructor: Frank Cheatham
Course Date: Friday April 20
Course Time: 8:30-10:15

Along with the great training/education opportunities, there are some awesome social networking opportunities, and just some amazing chances to meet other emergency services providers from around the country/world.  This year I will also be participating in the Courage and Valor Fun Run, a 3.1 mile (5K) run through White River State Park. There will also be a 9/11 memorial stair climb. I plan on watching that this year as well!

Even thought it is just 30 days away, there is still time to register and also to find a great hotel room.  Check out this link for some additional information.  http://www.fdic.com/index.html

Hope to see you there!

Until next time…stay safe and don’t forget to follow on twitter (@stickysidedwn)

Friday Five – Five Classes for EMS Providers

Okay, so I don’t normally provide too much background on my choice for Friday Fives, but I have to give a bit of a background to this list.  I had the pleasure of having a telephone conversation with what I call an EMS purist. You know them, those people who will only ever ride on an ambulance, only ever concern themselves with EMS stuff, and never understand the need for anything other than EMS. Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with that. However, the conversation with this guy made me feel like I’d fallen backwards 10 years in progression fo the system.

This gentleman did not understand why he, an EMS provider, needed to take NIMS training. Ten years after it was put into place, this individual still had not taken any of the NIMS trainings because and I quote “That’s a fire science class and I only run EMS calls”.  Without reaching through the phone and smacking this person, I calmly explained to him that while he may only run EMS calls, he will always work with other members of the emergency services field and that NIMS provides a framework for responding with multiple different agencies. He still didn’t seem to get it, even after I used his own localities recent interaction with state and federal resources as the result of damage from a hurricane.  He didn’t get it when I explained to him that the basics are important and that it actually wasn’t a huge deal because the training is available online, FOR FREE. After finally finishing my phone conversation I was struck by two things:

1.  Some people will just never get it.

2.  There are still EMS providers who believe that the only training they need is first aid based, just as there are probably still fire service members who believe the only training they need is how to put water on the fire.

With those two things in mind, today’s friday five is a list of five classes I believe every EMS provider should have (beyond first aid training), even if they are only riding on a fire truck.

Five Classes for EMS Providers

1.  National Incident Management System (NIMS) - Forget that this is a free course and forget that you don’t even have to get out of your pajamas to take it if you don’t want to. If this course cost and you had to travel, I’d still recommend it. The NIMS training, while not federally mandated, should be made a mandate by agencies for their members. It provides an understanding of the frame-work of response, from the basic to the large-scale incident. It takes out the actual operational efforts and describes the organization fo the efforts and the resources/agencies available. Anyone who might EVER respond to an event should have this training. Check out: http://www.fema.gov/emergency/nims/NIMSTrainingCourses.shtm for more information

2.  Incident Command Systems (ICS) - While NIMS talks about the ICS structure, the application and implementation of ICS is covered in other. Many of the courses offered are actually specific to the field, so you can take an Incident Command/Operations Course aimed at a target audience of EMS providers. This will provide scenarios that are EMS based and allow you to better understand the fact that you have a role in ICS, even if you only ride on the ambulance.  The National Fire Academy (NFA) offers a wide variety of these courses, and is an experience every emergency services member should have!  Visit http://www.usfa.fema.gov/nfa/index.shtm for additional information on National Fire Academy courses

3.  Hazardous Materials Awareness - Every EMS provider should take a hazardous materials awareness course. We need to understand how to recognize a haz-mat situation, how to identify a hazardous material (from a distance) and how to look that same hazardous material up in the Emergency Response Guide (ERG) to assist in the treatment of our patients. This is a course that can be taken online and is often taught in person by the state Emergency Management agency or Fire Programs office.

4.  Vehicle Extrication – This is a hard one to explain. Some of you  readers are actually doing extrication off the ambulance. In some jurisdictions though, extrication is a fire department activity (probably in more localities than there are EMS doing extrication). Even if you never place your hands on a spreader, cutter, ram, etc, you need to understand the process of extrication. Extrication is a patient care driven issue (that’s another argument I could write about). We wouldn’t be doing extrication if there wasn’t a patient in the car. An EMS provider with an understanding of the process of vehicle extrication can be prepared for the impacts on the patient, understand the time issues associated with different techniques, and use their knowledge to provide information to the patient (if conscious) about what the extrication team is doing.

5. Critical Incident Stress Management - This training, whether through International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF), the Red Cross, or some other agency, provides not only the ability to help others deal with the impacts of the job, but also provides a foundation for recognizing when you are personally impacted as well. We focus so much on the reactive approach (treating things AFTER they happen). If we could provide this training, or even a simpler form, we may be able to PREVENT individuals from being impacted emotionally/mentally by a critical incident.

So, those are the trainings (beyond first aid) that I truly believe EVERY EMS provider should have. You may or may not agree with me, but I think we can all agree, that the training is out there and we should definitely take advantage of it. Why would you not want to be the best provider you can be?

Do you have any classes you would add to this list?  Feel free to share your thoughts here or on twitter!

Until next time, stay safe and don’t forget to follow on twitter (@stickysidedwn)

Friday Five – My Five Favorite Lectures

Okay, so as an Instructor I’m pretty lucky to teach many different topics.  Especially with EMT covering everything from scene safety to delivery babies.  This is a list of my five favorite lectures:

1. OBGYN – This is MOST DEFINITELY the lecture I enjoy the most and am most disappointed if I don’t get to teach it during EMT class.  I mean who doesn’t love to teach a class where when you want the video most students begin to squirm in their seats and get a little squeamish.  And there is ALWAYS a video.  I also have to admit that six years ago, before I had my own children, this lecture would have probably NOT been on this list. Having had kids of my own, I’m definitely MUCh more comfortable teaching this class.

2.  Mass Casualty/START Triage - I enjoy this not only because it’s a class that I’ve helped write, but also because it’s one taught not only across my state, but has been adopted by other states and jurisdictions.  I also enjoy doing the tabletop scenarios with students and seeing them begin to put together the concepts in a practical application. Even better is when I hear back from students who have run MCIs in the field and have been able to put the concepts together

3.  ICS for EMS – Part of my love for tis is probably because of the research I did to put together the class, which is also based on my book of the same topic. As a young member of the EMS service (many years ago), I wanted scenarios that impacted me, and there were none. To be able to assist the younger generation (and even the not so young generation) to understand their roles is great!

4.  Soft Tissue Injuries - I always love teaching this, again because of the squeamish aspect mostly, but I also enjoy finding pictures of real life scenarios. I also enjoy finding videos too. In this day and age, all you have to do is internet search for various injuries. Heck, almost every monday you can probably find a highlight reel from the previous night’s football games to assist in this lecture!

5. Psychological Emergencies - As a psychology major, this is a great lecture to me. Not only do I love the uncertainty brought by a psychological emergency call, but I also enjoy making sure that my students are ready to handle that uncertainty.  Getting students to understand the various nuances of the psych patient almost makes me feel like I actually went into psychology instead of emergency management.

Honestly, I love every lecture that allows a student to learn new things, but these are my top five!

Don’t miss a great training opportunity!

I’m a firm believer that you can never be too old to learn. That’s probably part of the reason why I’m currently taking an EMT-I class.  That and there is always something new to learn. learning doesn’t need to only be done sitting in a classroom listening to an instructor read some slides. Learning includes reading magazines, checking out websites, interacting with others just to find out new and exciting information.  Things are constantly changing in this field. Granted, some times new things are really old practices reapplied, but if you don’t continue to learn you’ll never know what is out there.

If you have never attended the Fire Department Instructors Conference (FDIC) you are missing a great opportunity. Fire, EMS, Emergency Management, and public safety are offered the opportunity to take classes from nationally and internationally known instructors. You have the opportunity to take classes on topics you may have never thought about and see vendors that you might never get a chance to interact with, were it not for this conference. On top of that you are given an opportunity to network and socialize with public safety members from around the world. You get to form relationships and make friendships that can last a lifetime.  While the name may say “Fire”, this is a conference for all members of emergency services!  For more information you can visit www.fdic.com

On a second note, the Virginia Office of EMS holds one of the largest EMS specific conferences on the East Coast every November.  While registration for the 2011 Symposium is closed, the planning committee is currently accepting proposals for the 2012 program.  If you, or someone you work with/know, is interested in presenting EMS related topics, visit https://oems-notes.vdh.virginia.gov/SymClass2012.nsf/Welcome?OpenForm and submit your topics. The Call For Papers ends December 15, 2011, so act fast!

As always, stay safe, and feel free to follow me on twitter – @stickysidedwn

Taking Care of Your Own – Recognizing Stress

Have you ever been this guy?

Maybe you aren’t sitting at a computer screen with your stress.  It’s hard not to have felt stress in the job we do. From the calls we run, the people we deal with, the administrators we would prefer NOT to deal with there’s stress.  Add to that the roles we fill outside of our jobs. As I was thinking about this post, I thought about the various different roles that add stress to my life. They include: Wife, mother, employee, boss, Instructor, Student, Author, Daughter, Sister, Friend, Homeowner, Bill payer.

And that’s just daily stress! Add to that the unexpected, the stressors that we can’t plan for (which as a planner can really throw me into a tailspin) and a normal person can really be thrown off. Heck, in just the past month I’ve dealt with a hurricane (no power for 5 days), start of EMT-I Class, my five year old starting kindergarten, the first anniversary of my mother’s death, and the list could go on.  As EMS providers, Firefighters, Emergency Managers, the expectation is that we can deal with stress, that we know how. But do we really?

I’m putting together a new program for my office that focuses on Health and Safety for responders and in doing so am trying to figure out what the focus needs to be. We are looking at physical and mental well-being, as well as overall incident scene safety. One of the biggest issues is figuring out how to teach maintaining mental well-being.  We are GREAT at recognizing individuals who are having PTSD symptoms.  We have plans in place in many areas on how to offer help to those individuals.  But, why do we wait until they have already been impacted to offer help? Why aren’t we preparing them for the field first, then offering help IF something happens (not WHEN)?  Why do the basic training courses only skim over the emotional impact of the calls we run?  We’ve got to start being more proactive instead of reactive, even though it’s what we are used to. One of the ways to do this is to offer resliency training.

Resilience is an individual’s ability to adapt well and recover quickly after enduring stressful, life-changing situations. It provides mechanisms to allow an individual to deal with the incident AS it occurs, not after. Most resliency training provides training on building four types of resiliency:

• Cognitive — preserving attention, memory, judgment and problem-solving skills.
• Physical — maintaining well-being through regular exercise, a healthy diet and restful sleep.
• Emotional — approaching life with a realistic, balanced and flexible disposition and addressing rather than avoiding problems.
• Spiritual — practicing and keeping in mind the concepts of forgiveness, acceptance, compassion, true meaning and purpose.

I once asked “Why can’t we add reslience training to basic EMT courses, Fire Courses, or even agency orientation?” The answers I got focused mostly on money and time. Really? Consider the time and money spent providing assistance to the provider who ends up suffering from PTSD and maybe it will seem like a much better investment.

Providing this type of training will build stronger providers, develop a better relationship with the provider, and hopefully allow individuals to stay in the system longer.  We are so great at getting the community ready for a big event or emergency, why aren’t we doing more of that for our own?

Incident Command Training for EMS

When I started in EMS 15 years ago, it seemed as though training (outside of patient care courses) were geared specifically to the firefighter. Scenarios were written around personnel arriving on the fire truck. I took my first ICS training long before NIMS came into the picture and felt lost. At that point I was an EMS purist. I only rode of the ambulance, and while I understood the basic functions of the fire service (wet stuff on red stuff…ha ha ha), I certainly didn’t know enough to work exercises that put me in charge of a fire incident.  I felt lost.

Fast forward a few years. Through my job I was introduced to Mass Casualty Incident Management training. Now, here was an incident whose main goal was the treatment and transport of patients. That was more like it! Initial courses unfortunately still placed the EMS provider specifically in the EMS role and didn’t allow them much flexibility outside of the patient care positions. As the MCI courses have been rewritten in my state, we’ve been able to ensure that EMS providers have scenarios that fit their knowledge and their roles, but ensures they can “flex” their knowledge outside of the patient care roles (i.e. serving as Incident Command, Operations, Staging, etc). This provides a much more realistic view in the training realm. So, the training is there, but what about publications that can be used as reference material? Because we all know that we don’t remember everything after we leave a class.

Over a year ago I was offered the opportunity to begin the process of writing a book for Pennwell Publishing. The book, titles Incident Management for EMS, focuses on the EMS roles in the ICS structure.  While it brings in the expectations of the basics (since everyone should be ready to serve as the Incident Commander), the focus is on the roles the EMS provider may fill.  The book also covers various types of incidents from single unit response to mass casualty to disaster.  Information on preplanning are also covered.  Here’s a link to information on the book, and if you are interested, it is in presale, with a hopeful release this fall (fingers crossed); http://www.pennwellbooks.com/inmaforems.html.

Thanks for letting me do a little self promotion. I’ll be back with a post this week on Hurricane Irene!

 

Call for Presentations – 2012 EMS Symposium

Each year the Virginia Office of EMS sponsors a training symposium that provides hundreds of hours of education over a five-day period. The courses focus on emergency services and emergency management issues and run the scale from field skills, operational issues, management training, legal issues, and a range of other topics.

The Virginia Office of EMS has opened a “Call for Presentations” for the 2012 Virginia EMS Symposium.   This year, the Symposium Committee will collect data on potential presentations electronically through the OEMS website.

If you or someone you know is interested in submitting an idea for one or more presentations, please visit the OEMS web site today!!  The
OEMS web site can be found at:   http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/oems/

On the right-hand side, in the “EMS News” box, click on the link titled “Call for Presentations for the 2012 Symposium”.

Remember that registration for this year’s Symposium has already opened!  Good luck!