A small volunteer fire department noticed an increase in kitchen fires and food-on-the-stove calls from their elderly population. They developed a fire prevention strategy that dramatically reduced these fires, and the program grew to be quite the success.

As these calls decreased, the program began to decline as the problem seemed to go away. After a short time, the problem started to increase again. When the problem was drastically reduced, the department virtually let the program go. They immediately reinstituted the program and the problem was reduced again.

While firefighter safety should be the primary concern of risk management, this scenario show there are many other elements that must be considered. These elements can be broken down into internal and external risk management.

Internal risk management includes firefighter safety, training, health and wellness programs, personnel management, and all other administrative matters that deal directly with the running of the department. External risk management includes fire inspection and education, public relations, partnering, and administrative concerns that deal with people and matters not solely within the department.

Both internal and external factors come down to the main element of risk management: firefighter safety at a scene. Many, if not all, of the things done in fire departments should be considered risk management, and everything can be related to firefighter safety.

Let's start with training. A well-trained firefighter is a safe firefighter, but have we considered how training is conducted as being an important element in firefighter safety? We need to spend time on the basics. We need to insist on having all our firefighters seatbelted. All live burns must be up to NFPA standards. We should train our people to perform in the streets. We should have well-established procedures dealing with how to do the everyday jobs we perform in the real world.

I'm not a believer in training by the hour. By that I mean automatically assuming that a person masters a skill by merely putting in the number of hours prescribed for that skill. A person masters a skill only when he or she completely understands it. So long as the skill is mastered, it doesn't matter if it is done in more or less time than the assigned hours.

Instructors need to be well-prepared, and training needs to be interesting and worthwhile. Firefighters should come away from training satisfied that they learned something and that the training session was worth their time. Training is not risk management per se, but what and how we train has a direct effect on firefighter safety.

Health and wellness is obviously risk management because a healthy firefighter is a safe firefighter. What type of program do you have for your firefighters? Is it voluntary or mandatory? Do you feel that simply providing fitness equipment or a membership to a gym is a health and wellness program? This is a good start, but accountability is just as important here as it is on the fireground. Firefighters need to be monitored for their physical condition. Too many firefighters die of heart attacks that could have been prevented with a well-organized health and wellness program.

Personnel management is definitely a component of risk management, as a content firefighter is a safe firefighter. One of the largest reasons for poor retention is poor leadership. Younger firefighters need the leadership and example of more experienced firefighters to learn firefighter safety at a scene. These experienced firefighters are very valuable, and we can't afford to lose them due to poor personnel management.

Risk management also should include making a solid effort to manage the younger firefighter effectively. These firefighters are the future of our business. We must remember that they, too, are our brothers and sisters. Personnel management should definitely be considered a key part of our risk management program.

Everyday administrative practices also have an effect on morale. A smooth-running department relieves stress on everyone, which has a direct bearing on firefighter safety. These administrative practices should be part of the department's risk management program.

Another key part of a department's risk management program should be fire prevention. All too often, fire prevention gets pushed aside. The three Es in fire prevention — education, enforcement and engineering — are integral parts of firefighter safety. By making such things as fire inspections and smoke detector and sprinkler installation priorities, we can reduce the number and size of fires.

Public relations are also a key part of risk management. The department's image has a direct effect on budget, recruitment and retention. The media plays a key role in this image, so the department needs to have a good relationship with local news outlets. A positive image in the community will help get the money necessary to run our department safely and efficiently. This positive image also will get the public and elected officials on our side during key public issues.

Partnering with businesses and community organizations should be part of a risk management program. These relationships require tact and creativity. They work by obtaining goods and services that mutually benefit the department and the partner. Working with a collision company to obtain vehicles and training for extrication is an example of a business partnership. An example of an organizational partnership is working with a local civic association to promote community health, which includes the firefighters in your department. There are many examples of partnerships that a fire department can make that will have a direct impact on firefighter safety.

The example department with the kitchen fire prevention strategy found out quickly that everything that is done in the department should be included in a risk management plan if a department is to have a comprehensive risk management program.

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Chief Mike Chiaramonte is a 35-year member of the Lynbrook (N.Y.) Fire Department and a past chief of the department. He's currently the chief fire inspector, where he's responsible for code enforcement and prevention education. Chiaramonte was a past chairman and board member of the IAFC Volunteer and Combination Officers Section Board and New York State Director to the IAFC Eastern Division. He's also a National Fire Academy Instructor and an adviser to the National Fallen Firefighters Foundation. Chiaramonte is a state EMT-CC and an instructor at the Nassau County EMS Academy. He has a bachelor's degree from the University of Houston and a master's degree from Hofstra University, both in communications education.