PACIFIC UNIVERSITY STUDENTS WORKING TO IMPROVE FIREFIGHTER HEALTH AND SAFETY

For the last few months we have had the pleasure of working with an exceptional team of students from the Pacific University Exercise Science Department on a series of studies that we hope can lead to improvements for the health and safety of firefighters. It's often easy to think of the dangerous parts of being a firefighter involve rushing into burning buildings or rescuing victims trapped in perilous situations, but in all reality it's the little things that more often lead to injuries and death. That's why this unique year long study is taking a look at three different ways that firefighters can get hurt in the hopes that we can gain information to help prevent injuries and death from occuring in the future.

The first portion of this study focused on the heart rate of firefighters. Career firefighters at Forest Grove Fire & Rescue wore heart rhythm monitors during their 24 hours shift as well as their 48 hours off and kept a journal of what they were doing throughout the day. This was intended to take a look at what effects being on shift at the fire station has on the heart. The fire service has often wondered about the effects of a 24 hour shift on your body and how your heart reacts to being asleep during the night time and then having to wake up suddenly and be completely responsive for an emergency need.

The second portion of the study involved evaluating the exercises and work out regiments of the firefighters and finding ways to improve the methods to ensure that our firefighters are in tip top shape and ready when you need them. Each firefighter was evaluated and work was completed to develop a personalized work out plan that the firefighter could use to improve their well being.

C Shift Lieutenant Chris Woodford is on the balance evaluating machine while a Student from Pacific University assits him with his test.

Lastly, and perhaps most unique, is the study of how the protective equipment that a firefighter wears effects things like balance and range of motion. Firefighters were asked to put on their protective clothing and climb on board a special machine that put them through a grueling series of tests to determine how well they balanced and how easy it was for them to move in various directions. Based on these tests the students hoped to be able to provide information to protective clothing manufacturers to improve the ergonomics and comfort of firefighter gear all in an effort to prevent injuries caused by improperly fitted, designed, or worn protective clothing.

We want to especially thank our partners at Pacific University and the Hillsboro Fire Department for helping complete this study and working so hard to improve the safety and well being of firefighters. Hopefully information gained here can prevent an injury down the road and improve the fire service in the United States.