October 20, 2009 -- Captains Meeting
1. Agenda
1.1 Captains Present
Kettle
Wright
Cupp
Myers
Salisbury
Close
Herrington
Ewy
England
Fisher
Garcia
Salmon
1.2 Chiefs Present
1.2.1 Gress
1.2.2 Demint
1.3 Dispatch - Carol Workman
1) Looking for three new supervisors; process is going on now. Assessment center this Thursday; one from inside the rest from outside. They hope to be onboard by January.
2) They are down six dispatchers. One in training at this time. Amy will be on line by January.
3) They hope to do an academy in 2010
4) Preparing for pandemic, assess daily
5) Staffing down from long history. Most couldn't get through training process. They looked at interview process and training program to determine where the problems may be. Not as much a budget issue as a personnel or training problem.
6) They are assessing their training ways and determining how the incumbents train, and are they all training the same way?
7) I asked Carol how they certify, and how she sees their growth to professionalism. She said there is not state certification; they have no SOPs in place, but are writing them; and they are trying to build their academy processes to develop their new people. They also need to have solid continuing training.
8) Everbridge - Reverse 911 program: video presentation. Can be launched via IE browser. She overviewed the 911, test, and non-emergency aspects. She said the text and email signup goes immediately; phones take longer. I asked if sub groups can be created that would text our folks for a 3rd alarm on their cell phones. Yes, this is possible to do. REQUEST to have this discussed at OPS. Graphic: they are able to select 1/2 mile radius to select contact info for, then send it out.
9) Herrington asked about notifications in Weld county, and if our LETA Everbridge program notifies them. Carol didn't know, and she indicated the program is far from perfect with many types of phones not in the system.
10) Any officer can initiate this dial back to their effected area; Request through BC to have done. Patrick Love is able to radius polygon and do this.
11) Each supervisor and many dispatchers can initiate these calls through Everbridge; they each send a monthly test to stay current.
1.4 PVH - Herb Brady
No Herb
1.5 EMS - Makris
1) New waterless hand sanitizer that we can request. No alcohol, doesn't break down your skin. It has pesticide in it, so it's really good for you! :)
2) Interim Guideline H1N1: See handout:
3) Card 36 - Pandemic response: there will be no card 36 used in our system per Physician Advisor. We will have the same information on our screens, so please read it to find it. You will find additional information on our notes, later in the call as they determine status of flu.
4) Assisted Living: no licensed medical personnel; same as calling from any other residential non-medical entity. We will be dispatched as at least an alpha to assist these patients. Mary and Mike meeting with these entities: 1) Pattern of abuse we will begin charging the organization, not the individual. Greeley went to this for the same reasons. Many pre-billing notifications will be made to the organization prior to billing. They may embrace this as a methodology to request patients status change within an organization such as assisted living to nursing home care status. Lucky is an example, and will be moved to the nursing home in one month. Our input to Mary is how this gets moving. Mary wants us to send an EMS concern form reference these types of calls who might qualify. After much discussion, we need to send Mary an EMS concern form with the run number, address, circumstances each time we run one that might qualify as a simple lift-assist. Mary doesn't know how much the charging will be: Greeley charges $180.00 per. No persons will be billed, including if the pattern is at a personal home setting.
5) Responding out of district to Alpha responses: Brad to fix this so it wouldn't happen.
6) No H1N1 vaccine in LarimerCounty. PVH has the flu mist; their hospital staff have received their doses yet. First tier: pregnant women; physicians, nurses. Secondly will be first responders. Most troubling problems is with the young and very young, born after 1968. This virus goes deep into the lungs, don't underestimate. I asked about having a crew member who has a family member that has H1N1, but they are not showing symptoms themselves. Require hand washing, and as long as no coughing and fever, they are not contagious.
7) Ralph: EMT riders, stay home if have any symptoms. They should have their own PPE, send home if don't.
1.6 Captains Role - Demint
1) Tom chewed A... over incomplete reports. He handed out a data sheet where all those needing to have reports completed were listed. Tom is going to begin looking for incomplete reports, and begin calling if they are listed. I advised the difference between A and B shifts, and C shift is that their BCs are running the Quality Assurance tab reports that show this data. I advised Gil that there were no cheat sheets, and that our captains want to know how to do this. Gil gave a short class some time ago, but that was dependent on the captains being there. It was verified there were captains that missed that short class, which contributed some to this cause. I requested Gil show the captains again, and he gave a class to us. Procedure: Incident Reporting, Other Applications, Quality Assurance Tab, Missing Reports. Gil offered to come out for any company that might need it. Call Gil if we need a class to help figure it all out.
2) When we are missing reports that don't come across; still call or email Gil to have him force it. It's a Tiberon Cad issue, and they haven't figured it out yet. It's increasing to 4 or 5 calls per day, from 1 or 2 per week. Please be patient.
3) Mutual aid or on-view calls: we still need to initiate a call; Dispatch is supposed to begin a call for us but we need to verify with them.
4) Open Enrollment: It is the captain's role to ensure our firefighters choose their options.
5) Captain's Role?:Apparatus Checks - paperwork isn't getting done... captain's role to ensure they are
Training Records
Turnout Times > about 1:00 national average
Report writing
Captains Meetings
Chain of Command
Much discussion about the captains roles, responsibilities, with D/O check sheet as example....
Idea to have all three captains sign off on the D/O check sheet before it's submitted to JM
Ralph - PFA vision booklet; says we are not perfect, yet the question is how do we get to 100%???
Excellent discussion about organizational importance, consistency, standards, and how excellent our employees are.
Question: Do we still want to have captains meetings: They show the organizations value of the captains position in leading and managing the organization?
1.7 Choice vs. Need - Demint
What is PFA's philosophy or direction:
What is the Captains role to create interest in all that PFA is committed to perform for the public we serve?
- What can the Department do?
Appealing:Not as appealing:
Tech Rescue Hazmat
Truck Companies 40 hour positions
FIC Car Seat Techs (50% not recertifying; organization will pay to keep this up; all can do this)
Wildland
Good discussion.
Chief Gress gave example of expectations for some who had been in the Car Seat tech class when hired, that they were needed to maintain for 4 - 5 years. This is how some were enrolled automatically.
Discussion about captains clearly expressing the departmental, and company importance of the car seat tech's role and service. Concerns of a culturally limiting issue of right-of-passage where our folks are dropping their tech to be "less rookie" ????
Much discussion about organizational trust, and why some of the lower desirable positions being filled. Kelly described support issues and appreciation being a huge motivator.
1.8 Operations - Gress
1) See email about Ron Lindroth's interview, November 9th. Promotional date November 16, ceremony later.
2) New job description for Captains position is now available; it clearly states 40 hour positions are a reality for all who are promoted to captains positions.
3) Budget will be what we thought, zero % increase; this is exactly what we thought it would be.
- We have saved some funds for equipment from fuel costs; not sure exactly where the money will come from, more on this later.
4) Station 4 completion signed over to PFA: January 11, 2010.
5) Prefire plans - next year. Data was just transferred to High Plains. Randy asked for forms we will be using so we can collect data that will enter into the program.
1.9 Goals - Demint
Goals Set by Captains:
1) Split Captains meetings, increase communication, decrease unuseful information
2 x year
In person meetings first week of each quarter.
2) ICS Training for Captains and for Acting BC's
3) Strive for 90 second response times
4) Utilize expertise on shift to train
2 x day to day OPS subject: Meet with crews and come up with subjects for conference call
2 x specialized training : Meet with crews and come up with subjects for conference call
5) Preplanning
2 x seasonal subjects: Meet with crews and come up with subjects for conference call
6) 100% of apparatus check sheets and apparatus checks being done; Captains sign off before send in a possibility
7) Be Positive as leaders, and encourage our crews with becoming involved in less desirable organizational needs.
1.10 BC Info and Training - Demint
1.11 Station Reports
1) Ralph to schedule soft scheduled by calling each crew.
2) November 30 - split captains meeting
3) December 22 - split captains meeting
All is on the calendar at this time.
PFI introduced on B-Shift: Alpha Cone to designate the Alpha side of the structure.
Gil presented the scope of this proposal to solicit input.
Send your input to Tom via email for OPS team consideration
Open Enrollment: Per Tom, if they don't get it in they will default to the basic plan. Login to JD Edwards and follow instructions.
1.12 Patrick Love
1) If we notify with 911 call back, Patrick can run a report of all who were notified. Yes we can, but it has no mapping system, only addresses.
2) Shopping page updated for Pub Ed, let him know if see needs or changes.
3) Send in the form post service request to Susan, so she can keep track of what was requested and what happened. Some have requested one thing and then shows up with another. This should be caught when we call and confirm with the RP requesting the service request.
4) Normal Pub Ed events this month. Encourage all new people to sign up to work Pub Ed for Patrick.
5) PVH started their part time position to install car seats before people leave the hospital. Patrick and Wayne had worked hard to get PVH to do this. Right now, PVH is doing this all on their own; no PFA Techs working at PVH on the car seat program. Car seat installation is on the hospital checklist before people leave. They are doing about 30 seats a week. This should drop ours by 1/3.
6) Home safety survey (walk through's of peoples homes - detectors, will be coming next week. Patrick is in charge as development and implementation for this project. Training will take 1.5 hours; voluntary program. I asked how we will handle tenant landlord disputes for smoke or CO detectors. Patrick will be developing the process to have clear guidelines for us as a department.
1.13 EMS VTC - 11:00 Pediatrics; Training Event #54
1) PAT: Patient Assessment Triangle: Assessment appearance from across the room; circulation to skin; Stay or Go
Patient appearance
Work of Breathing
Circulation of the Skin
2) Mal Treatment
Munchausen by Proxy
3) Respiratory
Strider (upper airway)
4) SIDs PAT: new protocols allow us to acknowledge infant is gone and take care of the parents. Keeps them from false hope. See protocol.
5) Trauma
6)Newborns:
APGAR
- Appearance, Pulse, Grimace, Airway, Respirations
- 2 patients, baby and mom
- clamp 8" and two more inches, clamp and cut both ends.
- keep baby warm; cover head always
- Meconium stain suction baby a lot
- give O2
- Stimulate baby, after minute assist resps and evaluate; use two thumb method for CPR on babies.
7) Special needs kids
Baseline from caregiver is very important; Equipment, DNR?, meds, handling may be special
8) Case Study: 4 year old not responding appropriately
Dehydrated
Flu
Tx: O2, cool down, IV, check sugar, transport
1.14 Gil: RMS
1) Incident types: Make sure we are changing the incident type to reflect exactly what we go on.
- Ex: if respond to EMT call and find no patient, change to no patient found.
- Top box can be changed and needs to be correct
- bottom box can't be changed.
Len's call with motorcycle on fire, and code red pt.
If faced with a call that has two major incident types, the fire trumps the incident type for RMS; write PCR within the report.
Casualty is written as injury from the fire event, PCR can be filled out separate.
2) On the reports screen of the RMS now comes up in yellow and red. Yellow represents already entered address. Red still means we have to place the address in the second lines. Let Gil know when we get a red one so he can look at it. Apparently, red means the address isn't matching up with what was typed in.
3)