"If the fire service is to be successful in reducing firefighter casualties, there must be a determined and sustained effort by those individuals and organizations that care about the fire service to change the way we think about who we are, how we measure the value of what we do for the communities we protect, and how our constituents think of the fire service".
- Chief Bill Pessemier (ret.)

Chief Pessemier with Miami Dade Fire and Rescue Safety Health Organization. Pictured from left to right: Captain Rick Bond, Lt. Jeff Rouse, Captain Manuel Dominguez, Lt. Brian Lynch, Chief Fernando Olivera, Chief David Downey, and Firefighter David Vanburen. Photo by Chief Anderson

Chief Pessemier with Tampa Fire Rescue Truck 14. Photo by Chief Anderson

In his seminal work on fire department culture for Oklahoma State University, funded in part by the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation's Everyone Goes Home® Program Year 3 funding, Bill Pessemier argues that changing a fire department from a "risk based identity" to a "safety based identity" is a transformational process. Pessemier notes that it "requires a comprehensive understanding of the underlying issues involved with organizational identity" (International Journal of Fire Service Leadership and Management, vol 2, no.1, 2008, 13-14).

In Chief Pessemier's view, in order for a department to begin this transformation, it must do three things: understand its own organizational identity, understand how the department adapts to significant challenges and, finally, recognize how the department resists change. Each of these three steps involves a commitment to learn how the organization understands itself and what it is willing to do to make the changes necessary to foster the adaptation of a safety based culture.

Miami Dade and Tampa Fire & Rescue Departments stepped up to participate in a Safety Survey designed to do just that: Chiefs Bill Pessemier and Richard Anderson visited both departments to kick-off the process last month.

The first step of the process includes conducting confidential interviews with randomly selected members of the department from a variety of stations. The second step is participation of all members in a safety survey. The survey is designed to allow all members of the department to anonymously express their opinion on the department's safety management systems, safety related behaviors and organizational safety culture. Lastly, the process includes review of documents that relate to safety.

The results of these surveys, interviews and document reviews are then analyzed to identify opportunities in these three key areas. This will enable a custom Safety Improvement Plan to be developed. Safety Improvement Plans not only help ensure that Everyone Goes Home ®, they also result in maximum operational effectiveness.

Everyone Goes Home ® will be exploring projects like these in the future. For more information on this project contact the Everyone Goes Home ® Program at info@everyonegoeshome.com.