Fire Department Metrics

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Due to the inadequacy of currently utilized statistical analysis, the Mountain Fire Department to use the Top-Down Function Analysis (TDFA) in evaluating performance in order to further demonstrate to the city council that further fire department cuts would be detrimental to the public.

Although not involved directly in combat situations like the Navy who first used TDFA, fire departments are somewhat similar to the military in that they are a paramilitary organization which deals with life and death issues under a command and control organizational structure. They are also structured administratively in a manner similar to that of the military. Therefore, it appears that the nine analysis parameters not only fit well for the military also apply well to public safety agencies. A performance measurement system such as TDFA determines if a department is successfully performing the various functions associated with emergency response. According to Duke, Guptill, Hemenway, and Doddbridge (2006) those nine parameters are:

- Mission analysis

- Human performance goals and analysis

- Function analysis

- Function allocation

- Task design and analysis

- Interface concepts and designs

- Crew or team concepts and designs

- Performance, workload, and training estimation

- User and requirements review

(pp. 1070, 1071).

This particular type of analysis fits well as it examines the environment in which the department functions, the mission of the department brought about by the environment, the resources the department needs to fulfill its mission, the human-technology interface with its equipment, the quality of the human performance, training necessities the firefighter needs to perform the mission essential tasks, and the satisfaction of the people it serves. For example, is the city primarily a metropolitan area requiring a lot of ladder trucks and high volume engine companies? Is the city, like Mountain in an wildland-urban interface area requiring smaller, yet more versatile engines which can fight both structure and vegetation fires? Does the community need water tenders because their rural nature eliminates the option of an adequate fire hydrant system? This is the function analysis phase of TDFA, fitting the right resources into the environment to complete the mission at hand.

Next, the human performance goals analysis phase looks at the abilities of the staff and must design resources to meet the mission and the staff-resource interface so that man and machine can function at an optimal level to provide for the ultimate in public safety. As progress is made and technological improvements are brought forth, more interface assessments must be done to update the co-functionality of man and machine. With the function allocation phase the correct staffing can be chosen to interface with the mission and the machine (or technology) necessary to meet that mission. This is the reason that Mountain Fire Department designs, utilizes, and maintains fire engines and water tenders with dual-function capabilities for both wildland and urban firefighting. This phase can also coincide with the interface concepts and design phase as both phases appear to mirror each other in purpose and effect.

Are paramedics needed in every station due to increased response times between stations in a rural atmosphere? Or is the department in a municipality where stations are closer together and can share a medic unit? Mountain Fire Department is a combination of both with four of its stations in the dense downtown area of the city and the rest strategically positioned to provide the best possible response for the allocated budget. These stations need the paramedics in every station due to the distance from the station to the patient and the patient to the hospital.

Paramedics require 15-18 months more training than firefighters and need specialized equipment to complete their mission. Additionally, because of increased education and responsibility, they are paid more than firefighters of the same rank. Usually, medics are an addition to base staffing so the department does not lose fire and rescue capabilities as it takes on emergency medical services for the community as well. However, Mountain has a combination of firefighter/paramedics staffed on some of the engines and some on ambulances in order to save the community money. All of this requires budget allocations. Such allocations need to be planned out a year in advance for most departments, especially those in competition with other city departments for funding.

Allocations determined in the functions allocations phase are co-relational with the crew and team concepts and designs phase. Again, using the examples of ladder trucks, fire engines, and paramedic units, staffing of crews and crew make-up are determined through the mission analysis and the equipment types and numbers needed to complete that mission. Individual workloads are determined in both intensity and the amount of work to be completed. Teams consist of more than fire crews as dispatchers, administrative support staff, mechanics, and other ancillary personnel are required to function as part of the overall team, and as functional subunits within the department as well. Will the teams be able to function in a disaster situation? This scenario requires the other City of Mountain departments such as roads, building and safety, planning, recreation, finance, human resources, and the water departments to interact with the public safety agencies which require a whole additional thought process to be analyzed in this phase.

The next phase, the performance, workload, and training phase (PWTP), the MFD examines the necessary qualifications that personnel need to accomplish their mission. There are positions in the department which require formal educational degrees in public or fire administration, prehospital care, or education. Other positions need multiple certifications that are not only requirements to fulfill the performance and workload components of the job, but also to meet local, state, and federal requirements for licensure, certification, and safety issues. Training schedules and requirements based on prerequisites need a training strategy especially when it comes to interacting with other fire departments in multi-company drills and exercises. The PWTP assists in this by looking at the overall training requirements of the department and incorporating them into master plan.

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