Unit 6

Personnel Roles and Responsibilities & Safety Program Development and

Management

Chapter 9 and 10

Learning Objectives

• List the roles and responsibilities of the individual responders and their relationship to the overall safety and health program.

• List the roles and responsibilities of the supervisors and their relationship to the overall safety and health program.

• List the roles and responsibilities of the emergency service management and their relationship to the overall safety and health program.

Learning Objectives

• List the roles and responsibilities of the incident commander and his or her relationship to the overall safety and health program.

• List the roles and responsibilities of the safety program manager and his or her relationship to the overall safety and health program.

• List the roles and responsibilities of incident safety officers and their relationship to the overall safety and health program.

• List the roles and responsibilities of the safety committee and its relationship to the overall safety and health program.

Learning Objectives

• List the essential elements of a safety and health program.

• Describe the process required for the development of goals and objectives.

• Develop an action plan based on the goals and objectives.

Learning Objectives

• Perform a cost-benefit analysis.• Describe the relationship of training to the safety and

health program.• Describe the process for developing standard operating

procedures.

Individual Responders

• Individual responders are probably the most important link in the safety and health program

• Attitude• Teamwork • Active involvement• Do’s and don’ts

Supervisors

• Front-line supervision– Grassroots person that supervises the team – Ensures that team members stay together– Maintains accountability– Seeing that seatbelts are fastened prior to apparatus moving– Ensures that proper protective clothing for the job at hand is

worn– May also be responsible for inspection of protective clothing

and seeing that regular maintenance procedures are followed

Supervisors (cont’d.)

• Link between organization management and the individual responder

• Need the necessary mix of experience and education to recognize dangers inherent in the occupation

Emergency Service Management

• Fire or EMS chief, or the director of emergency services

• Many roles in the safety and health program• Must give the safety program priority in terms of

support, both financial and administrative• Development of the organization safety policy

Incident Commander

• Highest level of the IMS • Responsibility in ensuring safety at the incident• Overall incident strategy and strategic goals and

assigning tactics to meet these goals• Risk benefit analysis• Offensive or defensive attack strategy• Knowledge of fire dynamics, building construction, and

accepted tactics • Recognition-primed decision (RPD)

Safety Program Manager

• Focal point for safety related activities• Oversees the program and all associated components• Sufficient experience and education in risk

management principles, cost/benefit evaluation, and emergency service operations in order to be fully effective

Incident Safety Officer

• Knowledge of the type of incident at hand• Part of the IMS command staff• Various functions and responsibilities

Safety Committee

• Involves employees• Representation from all levels and divisions• Meet regularly—publish minutes• Policy development• Recommendations to senior management

Essential Elements

• Top management that is committed to the program• A safety and health program manager• A comprehensive risk management plan• A safety and health policy• Some type of record-keeping system for data analysis

Essential Elements (cont’d.)

• Incident safety officer(s)• A training program• Standard operating procedures• Proper equipment and PPE that meets requirements

and standards• A safety committee• A department physician

Essential Elements (cont’d.)

• An accident and injury investigation process• Infection control program• Provisions for critical incident stress management• Access to local, state and national injury and death

statistics• A process to analyze and implement policies to comply

with local, state and national regulations and standards

Setting Goals andObjectives of the Program

• The first step in this process is to set goals.

– Broad based statements with a measurable outcome and time frame

– Goals can be developed by the safety program manager and the Safety Committee

• Objectives– More specific statements of action developed in order to meet

a goal.– These specific statements, or objectives, will provide the road-

map to reach a goal

Action Planning

• A step-by-step written guide to meeting an objective• Each objective should have an action plan

Cost-Benefit Analysis

• Often used to show that the initial outlay for a program will save in future reduction of risk.

• Will typically allow the safety program manager to evaluate the cost-effectiveness of a program

Training

• Direct and close relationship between training and safety

• In many organizations the training officer or division has assumed the safety program functions

Developing Standard Operating Procedures and Safety Policies

• Necessary to meet some goals and objectives• Conduct a needs assessment• Develop the SOP• Implement the SOP• Evaluate the SOP

Summary

• Each member of the organization has a role in the safety and heath program

• Roles should be specific with defined responsibilities• Safety and health program has many components• Program manager uses these components to develop

processes to implement the program