Texas vs. National Statistics and a Culture of Safety

Our first two injury reports compared injuries reported to us by Texas fire departments with those reported from around the country to the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA).   We had some interesting findings.

In their report, the NFPA identifies five major Activities leading to injuries, while our report identifies more specific Activities.  Despite this, we’ve found a way to compare them.  The table below shows how their categories compare to our categories.

NFPA Activities	TCFP Activities
Responding to/Returning from an incident	same
Fire Ground	Fire Suppression and Rescue – Fire Related
Non-Fire Emergency	Rescue Non-Fire and Hazmat
Training	Skills Training
Other On-duty	Fire Prevention, Station Duties and Wellness/Fitness

Check out how our 2011 statistics compared to the NFPA’s 2010 statistics (these are the most recent available from the NFPA). 

Injuries by Activity - TX vs. NFPA - click to enlarge

As you can see, our statistics are very similar to the national statistics except for Fire Ground and Non-Fire Emergency.  Texas runs a significant number of first responder/medical type calls and we believe that this leads to a majority of the Non-Fire Emergency injuries reported to us.  In 2012 we will be able to see further trends in this area.   We are evaluating why Texas has fewer fire ground injuries.  We would like to think it is because the Texas fire service is required to follow safety regulations, has training requirements, and has committed to focus on safe practices.  

Culture of Safety

A lot of people talk about avoiding firefighter injuries by changing the culture of the fire service.  What does that really mean? It’s more than simply stating that we all need to be more careful.  It’s about the core values of everyone within your department.  It’s about valuing ourselves, and our teams, enough to put aside egos and some beliefs about our worth.  You all are heroes, especially if you don’t take unwise chances by endangering yourselves. 

In 2010 the TCFP made it a requirement for all certified firefighters in the state to go through the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation’s Courage to be Safe program.  We believe it will assist in leading to cultural change in our departments, assuming everyone takes it seriously.

Have you, or your department, gone through the Courage to be Safe program?   

If so, what did you think?

Do you think the Texas fire service’s culture of safety impacts how you view injuries?

Do you know the injury reporting process at your department?

Lost Money Due to Injuries

As we discussed earlier this month (Cost of Injuries), injuries can cost fire departments a lot in both immediate costs and future budgeting costs.  Avoiding injuries is the most cost-effective strategy and that’s what this blog is all about!  With this blog post, though, we hope to bring you some financial specifics surrounding the value of making a concerted effort to avoid injuries.

Considering the Cost

The cost of injuries includes both direct and indirect costs.  Department heads must be aware of both of these costs.  Take note of the following information.  Although it addresses the worst case scenario, a fatal injury, the types of losses listed could apply to any incident.  According to Society for Human Resource Management:

“The NSC estimates that each fatal work injury costs approximately $790,000.  This figure includes lost wages, medical insurance and administrative compensation claims, which would also be significant.

For every dollar lost in direct costs, $3 to $10 can be lost in indirect costs.

Examples of indirect costs include:

·          Expense of accident investigation

·          Expense of hiring and training replacement

·          Time lost by others involved in accident or investigation

·          Lost efficiency

·          Lost production time

·          Overtime costs

·          Tool and equipment damage

·          Lost orders

·          Legal costs

·          OSHA civil and criminal penalties

Safety Programs

    Calculating direct and indirect costs of accidents is desirable, because having those numbers helps top management justify the cost of safety programs. “ (The SHRM Learning System: Module 6, Risk Management.” Society for Human Resource Management (2009), pg. 6-56.)

How Does Your Department Stack Up?

The Bureau of Labor Statistics provides information on industry standards for injuries and illnesses.  According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), you can compute your department’s incidence rate for safety management and, “Incidence rates can be used to show the relative level of injuries and illnesses among different industries, firms, or operations within a single firm. Because a common base and a specific period of time are involved, these rates can help determine both problem areas and progress in preventing work-related injuries and illnesses. “

The BLS calculation for incident rate (IR) is as follows:

IR =      Number of Recordable Injuries X 200,000 (this number does not change)

               Number of Employee Labor Hours Worked (# of employees X 2000)

Example:

Injuries – 61

Employees – 223

IR = 61 x 200,000      =      12,200,000      =      27.35

             223 x 2000                    446,000          

Use this rate to compare your department against the industry for your size.  See the BLS report – Total Injuries Cases (Firefighter information is located on the last page). This information will give you a general idea of how your department is doing against the standard for the industry.

Invest in Safety

What does all this mean?  Departments would be smart to invest in safety.  Some departments invest money in wellness programs, or even robots to avoid injuries and it is worth the money.  Many departments invest time and energy in developing a “culture of safety” that puts value on taking care in every day situations and emergency incidents.  Valuing this type of culture, from the top ranks down, helps lower chances of injuries and we’ll be discussing this further in our next blog post.  Stay tuned!

Are your department’s budget issues shared with the whole team?

Does everyone in the department, regardless of rank, understand how injuries impact them?

Does everyone in your department feel comfortable voicing safety concerns or ideas for safety improvement?

How are safety changes implemented in your department?

Staffing Issues Surrounding Injuries

Lost time due to injuries, as we’ve been discussing this month, forces your departments to examine their staffing policies and practices.  With today’s blog post we hope to provide you with some food for thought surrounding staffing issues.

Staffing Models

Overstaffing vs. Constant Staffing

Nowadays, most departments can’t afford to follow the overstaffing model where they employ enough firefighters to cover an injured firefighter’s shift without incurring overtime cost.  Today, most departments are forced to follow a constant staffing model, meaning when a firefighter is injured another firefighter will have to work overtime to cover.  This model, while saving the department money up front, can be costly in the end.

Making Staffing Projections to Cover Lost Time

According to the Fire Protection Handbook, 19^th ed (vol. 1, pgs 7-21 to 7-24) there are many factors to consider when staffing your departments.  “Staffing levels for fire departments vary considerably and are influenced by such things as the population protected, population density, firefighters’ work hours per week, response distances, and fire fighter safety” (pg 7-21).

Your department needs to assess your situation to determine the amount of staffing you need. 

Some issues to consider:

• Staffing below four firefighters, including an officer, may compromise fire ground effectiveness. 
• Whether or not your department runs EMS.
• Your area’s population and types of structures.
• Whether or not mutual aid is called on-demand or pre-scheduled.

For interior structural firefighting, NFPA 1500 and OSHA recommend that for firefighter safety four firefighters, including an officer, be staffed before an interior attack is commenced.  

Staffing Calculations Example for 3 Shift department (With Minimum Manning Policy)

Firefighter (365 days x 24 hours)		= 8760 hours per year
Annual Leave
Vacation	09 days x 24 hrs	= 216 hours per year
Kelly Days	18 days x 24 hrs	= 432 hours per year
Sick Time	06 days x 24 hrs	= 144 hours per year
Training	02 days x 24 hrs	= 48   hours per year
Other Leave	03 days x 24 hrs	=72   hours per year
Total	38 days	=912 hours per year

8760 hrs per year/ 3 shifts = 2920 total hrs for one employee

2920 total hrs for one employee – 912 leave hrs per year = 2008 working hrs

8760 hrs per year/ 2008 working hours = 4.36 relief factor

4.36 relief factor x 3 shift positions = 13.08 required personnel

The 4.36 staffing factor is a product of the required staffing time 24 hours per day times 365 days a year.  This is derived from the number of hours in a year subtracting the estimated time off due to sick, vacation, PTO, injury, etc (as defined by NFPA).  Consequently the 4.36 staffing factor would be what is required to fill 1 seat on a vehicle on a 24 hour basis to meet minimum manning requirements for the year. Then the minimum staffing per unit would be multiplied by the staffing factor to come up with the total staffing required to account for all time away from work, for example if an engine company is staffed with a minimum of 3 personnel, it would take (3 * 4.36) 13.08 personnel to fill those 3 seats for the year.

Staffing Resources

• NFPA Fire Protection Handbook, 19^th ed. (Available for borrowing by local users from the TCFP Library)
• Fire Department Staffing: A Need, Not a Want (Fire Engineering, 2009)
• Staffing Studies (The TCFP Library has a collection of staffing studies that can be useful to you for planning, but also for bringing to policy-makers at budget time.)
• NFPA 1500 Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program
• NFPA 1710 Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations and Special Operations to the Public by Career Fire Departments
• NFPA 1720 Standard for the Organization and Deployment of Fire Suppression Operations, Emergency Medical Operations and Special Operations to the Public by Volunteer Fire Departments

How are these staffing issues and models affected by injuries in your departments? 

Does your department’s staffing model cover injured firefighters, or is your department left scrambling?

How do you communicate budget and response time issues to your constituents and higher ups?

Breakdown of Top Injuries Costing the Most Time Lost

Throughout the year, our users have expressed an interest in learning more about the lost time occurring due to injuries being reported to us by Texas departments.  We’re happy to share this information with you!

Types of Injuries and Activities leading to injuries leading to the most Lost Time from 2010 - 2011

The graphs and table below represent those injuries that led to lost time beginning in either 2010 or 2011, and returning in 2011.

Top 5 Types of Injuries Leading to the Most Lost Time 2010 - 2011 - click to enlarge

As you can see below, the top four activities leading to the most lost time are the same as the top four activities being reported overall.

Top 4 Activities Leading to the Most Lost Time 2010-2011 - click to enlarge

 

Body Part injuries leading to the most Lost Time from 2010 - 2011

The chart below shows the number of injuries by Body Parts, the average number of days missed for the injury (from the date of injury until the date of return), and the minimum and maximum number of days missed.   The actual shifts missed varies by department schedules. 

Body Part	# of Injuries	Avg. Days Missed	Min # days lost	Max # days lost
Back	183	49.77	1	356
Knee	94	65.99	2	432
Ankle	71	30.13	1	141
Shoulder	62	62.48	1	366
Grand Total	410

What Do You Think is the Next Step?

So, the next step could be to examine these numbers, and then ask yourself or your department the following questions:

• How do I/we avoid these Types of injuries?
• How do I/we avoid injuries occurring in during these Activities?
• How do I/we avoid injuries to these Body Parts?

We Want Your Feedback

We’ve covered some of these issues in past blog posts, and will cover the rest in the future. 

• Strains & Sprains (September 2011)
• Station Duties (February 2012)
• Wellness/Fitness (March 2012)
  

If you have specific issues you’d like us to cover sooner rather than later, let us know by commenting below!

Cost of Injuries

Last week we discussed the total injury numbers we had reported to us in 2011.  This week we want to focus on their cost.  While we’d all like to avoid injuries, and in fact, that is the goal of this blog, it’s also important to examine the cost of injuries and even plan for them when considering your department’s budget.

Injuries impact everyone in the department.  The injured individual has many direct costs, including medical (and sometimes counseling) bills, possible litigation costs, and lost wages that exceed any disability he or she might be paid.  He or she also has pain and suffering.  It is a strain on them, both financially and emotionally. 

The rest of the department staff is also impacted by lower staff levels. There may be reduced manning issues, leading to difficulty, or even inability, to complete critical tasks at emergency scenes  Sometimes the occurrence of an injury might allow for the uninjured staff to get some overtime which, from the covering individual’s perspective, can be beneficial, but can impact the department as a whole negatively.  Overtime impacts morale by putting a strain on the compensating staff having to cover shifts. 

The department itself has to deal with potentially increased insurance premiums, possible litigation costs, disability/retirement income (for those who do not come back to work), as well as the cost of overtime.  Administrative costs (including time and travel) surrounding injuries can be burdensome also.  Someone, usually a department head or administrative assistant, is required to deal with the paperwork and reporting of incurred injuries.  And, if necessary, completing injury investigations and near-miss reports add to these administrative costs.  Finally, increased injuries can lead to costs surrounding safety officer costs, new safety technology, safety-training costs, and union/management negotiation costs.

Aside from the individual firefighter, the team, and the department, society and taxpayers are also affected by injured firefighters greatly and people are starting to take notice.  

More Food For Thought

The Economic Consequences of Firefighter Injuries and Their Prevention (NIST Study, 2005)

Next week we'll look at the injuries causing the most lost time.  These can be quite costly to your departments.

What are your department’s biggest concerns regarding the costs of injuries?

What do you think a proactive department head needs to consider when planning for future injuries?

How do you rank the importance of the various costs associated with fire fighter injuries, and what should be the fire services’ first priority in reducing injuries, thus reducing costs?

Injuries Reported to the TCFP Injury Reporting Program in 2011

2011 was a very successful first FULL year of injury reporting.  A big part of the injury reporting mandate comes from the need to analyze historical injury data and identify trends surrounding these injuries.  By gathering accurate and timely information on firefighter injuries, the Commission will be able to assist departments by disseminating facts concerning these trends, hopefully helping them make changes that will lead to fewer injuries.  Remember – injury reporting is non-punitive.  There are no hidden agendas in the program.  Departments are asked not to report the firefighters name or personal information.  This layer of anonymity allows local control of internal issues and keeps the reporting process altruistic in nature.  The overall safety of the Texas fire service is the only goal!

The 2011 Injury Reporting Program year-end report was presented to the Fire Fighter Advisory Committee on March 8, 2012.  After they review the trends we saw, they will present their recommendations to the Commission for input and approval.  The final report will be out later this year. 

Thank You!

We had a lot of participation in the injury reporting program this year.  We want to thank all those departments who reported injuries and near-miss reports to us.  We also want to thank those who participated in the user focus groups we held, as well as everyone else who provided feedback to us throughout the year.  We implemented some of the requested changes and received some great ideas about to how to improve the program in the future.  We look forward to seeing the program grow and look forward to providing quality information back out to the community. 

Highlights from This Year’s Preliminary Report

A total of 4,180 injuries were reported to us during 2011.  As you can see, these injuries occurred most often during Fire Suppression and Rescue-Non Fire activities.  Sprains & Strains and Environmental Injuries were the most common types of injuries reported.  The Back/Neck and Legs/Knees/Ankles were the most commonly injured body parts. 

Severity of Injuries by Activity 2011 - click to enlarge

Types of Injuries 2011 - click to enlarge

Injuries by Body Location 2011 - click to enlarge

Injuries with Lost Time

Types of Injuries Leading to Lost Time 2011 - click to enlarge

Throughout 2011 we got requests from the fire service for information on lost time in relation to injuries.  Of the 4,180 injuries reported in 2011, 18% of the injuries resulted in missed days.  The commission defines missed work as “lost time” when an individual misses more than one full duty period as a direct result of an injury and does not return to the duties to which they were assigned prior to the injury.  

 The areas included in the “other” category are: broken spine-neck, debris/penetrating, electrocution, exposure airborne pathogen, exposure chemical, smoke and smoke-gas inhalation, and stroke.

Sprain & Strain Injuries

As you can see above, Sprains & Strains lead to the most missed time.  And as you can see below,  Rescue Non-Fire activities were the most common activities leading to Sprains & Strains.   

Activities Leading to Sprains & Strains 2011 - click to enlarge

Stay Tuned

The lost time mentioned above, and many other factors surrounding injuries, can cost your department a great deal of money.  Over the next few months this blog will focus on these issues and we’d love to get your feedback surrounding the data we’ve provided, the costs of injuries, and the effects of injuries on the fire service as a whole.