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Essential Policies For Limiting Your Risk
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From the first day at the firehouse, firefighters are barraged with a host of standard operating guidelines, standard operating procedures, acronyms that correspond to specific actions at fire and emergency scenes, forms that must be completed at medical calls—and of course, the fire department traditions that so often govern how things are done.
Curiously, many departments that do well in documenting and training on procedures lack comprehensive policies that govern department operations from a strategic level. While policy is important across all operations, there are specific areas where a lack of sound policy leaves the department—and its leadership— especially vulnerable. Think of them as policy “hot spots”—if you don’t extinguish them, they can develop into burning issues.
Risk management expert Gordon Graham refers to the “problems lying in wait” in public safety that lead to lawsuits and personnel grievances, and can even cause fire chiefs to lose their jobs. Fortunately, fire service leaders can take steps to reduce the risk these problems pose. One critical step, which lays the foundation for all others, is putting effective, legally sound policies into place.
Following are seven policy areas that directly address the root causes of many fire department lawsuits, forced resignations and negative publicity. As you read through the list, ask yourself, “How confident am I that our department’s policies and practices adequately address these issues? Are our polices current, and are we training on them?”
