Suspended After Reporting Safety Violations and Poor Training

HONOLULU FIRE DEPARTMENT CAPTAIN GEORGE KAOPUIKI had no recourse but to file a lawsuit against his employers Friday following a series of harrasing investigations and a suspension.  Following a fire late last year in which an elderly woman was saved by firefighters yet died later at the hospital, Capt. Kaopuiki attended a staff meeting in December and told the five captains and a battalion chief that several costly errors were made by the companies on the scene that could have been prevented with proper training and guidlines.

Capt. Kaopuiki  (KHON-TV image)

The Honolulu Star-Advertiser continues:

The mistakes include not hooking up to a fire hydrant to ensure an ample water supply, and not starting a rescue search sooner because a sufficient water supply had not been secured early on, Kaopuiki told five fire captains and an acting battalion chief during a December meeting.

Fire personnel did not call Emergency Medical Services for 19 minutes after Kaopuiki carried the woman out of the fire, alive and breathing, he said at the meeting. He blamed the department's lack of training for the errors.

"Acting Battalion Chief Mark Nakagawa cautioned everyone present, 'This is an internal meeting. This information stays in-house with lessons learned,'" the lawsuit said.

The suit alleges Kaopuiki was retaliated against when he was subjected to an investigation Jan. 16 for false allegations of mistreating a firefighter at the Kakaako station, which he was told was at the direction of (Fire Chief Kenneth) Silva. That firefighter told Kaopuiki he never made a complaint against him.

Kaopuiki alleges he was retaliated against by being subjected to investigations based on false allegations, being suspended and being transferred, which resulted in loss of pay.

Kaopuiki says that he reported the errors up through the chain of command and then the harrassing actions began.  He is suing the City and County of Honolulu, the Honolulu Fire Department, and Fire Chief Kenneth Silva. 

KHON-TV filed this video report Friday that includes a good interview with Capt. Kaopuiki:

He also said that he was reprimanded and warned for writing a 2008 memorandum to an assistant chief about a firefighter who created a safety hazard by taking an unreasonably long time to respond to emergency calls, being unable to drive the firetruck into a correct position to raise a ladder in an emergency situation and being unable to provide medical emergency care.

He has been a member of the HFD for 23 years.

Do I know a few people who need to read this! Too bad they wouldn't recognize the significance of it.

Objectionable Image of EMS Responder

Last week Candice King, a staff writer on the student-run The Ithican, wrote about freshman Joshua Cource's experience as a member of the all-volunteer Newton Volunteer First Aid Squad.

The first paragraph was troublesome for many EMS providers:

Freshman Joshua Couce has violated the speed limit on occasion. Couce might exceed 100 mph, but he is not behind the wheel of a sports car. He is driving an ambulance with an injured patient in the back.

You may want to stop and read the entire article: Voluntary response: College freshman focuses effort on providing emergency relief

(cue waiting music) Welcome back. Yeah, it got worse. 

More than 50 posted responses to the article, including this one, from Ben Abo (Pittsburgh) wondering about the level of certification for Mr. Cource:

My first shift in EMS was the day after I turned 16 in South Jersey. I, too, loved it. In fact, I've since had a great career as a paramedic, then physician and done a lot of EMS lecturing, mentoring, and research. I'm a huge supporter of collegiate EMS (in fact, I happily spend my Bday weekend every year to lecture at and take part in the National Collegiate EMS Foundation).

Again, there are a number of benefits even beyond patient care of having a squad on campus. But IF the ambulance can even get that fast, it shouldn't. There isn't a need. Furthermore, 40 hour course is for first responders… 110-120 for EMT basic, and a whole lot more for paramedic. Sooooo… which is it? @Michael Hayoun: right on. (Please see his posting below). @Josh Couce: Keep on the passion, but always be learning from things.

Accuracy, clarity and tone – the undergraduate challenge

The on-campus undergraduate experience includes testing limits, exploring options and making mistakes in a relatively secure environment. While far less insular than the campus of the 1960's, it still resembles a bubble of " near-adulthood."

This news article will serve as a "life lesson" for both Cource and King.

Just like the premature announcement of the death of Penn State Coach Paterno by student-run Onward State created a national media frenzy and the resignation of Managing Editor Devon Edwards.

Spending the last seven years working with undergraduate students, and their limit-testing learning, have made me less sensitive to the outrage expressed by many others.

Newton Volunteer First Aid Squad response

The Newton First Aid Squad regrets the comments that were made by Member Joshua Couce in the article published at www.theithican.org. The Squad would like to assure the members of the public and fellow emergency services workers that the actions described in the article are not in any way condoned by the Newton First Aid Squad. Mr. Couce had this article published without the knowledge or consent of the Squad and his actions described within the article were unknown to the Officers of this Squad until the publication of this article.

The Newton First Aid Squad does not condone the divulging of personal details of EMS calls to the public in any form nor does it condone the motor vehicle operations described within the article. The Newton First Aid Squad and its volunteer members strive to uphold the highest standards of EMS and these comments and actions are being taken extremely seriously.

Currently Mr. Couce has been suspended from the squad until a full investigation has been completed and any necessary disciplinary actions have been concluded. We regret that such statements were made as it negatively reflects on all aspects of EMS including both paid and volunteer EMS professionals and the Newton First Aid Squad who has proudly served the citzens of the Town of Newton since 1957.  FaceBook link HERE

The Scott Kier manifesto

A former New Jersey EMT, Scott "medicsbk.com" Kier posted a response on his blog that was promoted by The Happy Medic.

Bad Publicity and Saving Face.

Scott makes three annotated points:

1. The Newton First Aid and Rescue Squad – First of all, a full admission of what knowledge of the article prior to its publishing needs to be explored and put into public record.
2. Joshua Couce – Joshua needs to post an apology to all that were affected by this article. (Including a personal apology to Scott). [see Scott's comment]
3. The New Jersey State First Aid Council, Maybe it is time to step in and offer them some guidance in how to handle the situation at hand.

<<<<<<< >>

Wow, Scott, this really got you angry. From my "keyboard commander" spot, it looks like using a 20 pound sledgehammer to swat a fly.

Organizational "Life-Lessons"

Scott makes some excellent points once you get past the anger.

The volunteer organization will need help in both responding to this crisis and in improving their public image. There may be issues with some of the incident pictures (license plates and patient faces) on their FaceBook page.

The state organization has an opportunity to move beyond clinical training. While NJSFAC provides college scholarships and reduced tuition, maybe some focused training on running a volunteer first aid squad in the 21st century would be helpful.

While the article did not provide identification of any patients, the description of a unique fatal event in a small town is far from anonymous.

Supervision and mentoring of younger members should continue until they are real adults, around 25 years old. Cource joined the first aid squad when he was 16. He is an 18 year old Senior Emergency Technician.

According to the article, Mr. Course is making a 400 mile round-trip from college to provide 12 hours of responder coverage to his hometown on Sundays. That's dedication!

Not sure that we need "the nuclear option" to resolve this issue.

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

Retiring Before the Report Comes Out

PEACHTREE CITY, GEORGIA, ASSISTANT FIRE CHIEF Peki Prince, 46, has been on paid administrative leave since February 3, six days after she was accused of groping three co-workers, including two women and a man, at her department's Installation and Awards Dinner.

Peki Prince
(Metro Atlanta Fire Chiefs Assoc. photo)

An internal investigation into the charges was begun and last week, one day before the report from the investigator was to be released, Prince turned in her retirement papers.  The Atlanta Journal-Constitution is reporting:

(The investigtor) attorney Laurel Henderson of Decatur, recommended that disciplinary action be taken against Prince, according to the investigation report obtained by the AJC.

"The fact that three people were subject to unwanted touching is significant," the report states.

Prince will not face formal charges for the allegations, but a complaint has been filed with the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission against the city.

Reportedly, she was accused of groping the breasts of at least two women at the dance, and of grabbing the crotch of a male firefighter.

Prince will be using accumulated leave until April 8 when her retirement becomes effective.

The Fayetteville Citizen has a detailed report HERE.

*  *  *  *  *  *  *

More than 40 city employees were interviewed and gave varying accounts of the night's events, according to the report. Prince told Henderson she was intoxicated at the party and did not remember specific events, but she did not dispute others' claims, the report states.

"World class people"

A link to his appointment as the Fire Commissioner by Mayor Daley:

http://youtu.be/V4Oq3TZFOEU

Meanwhile, in Carol Stream:

A February 28 article from Christopher Placek at the Daily Herald points out where Chief Hoff will be hanging out:

Hoff was hired Monday as the deputy chief of the Carol Stream Fire Protection District, which has a 15-square-mile coverage area that includes all of Carol Stream and parts of Bloomingdale, Winfield and Glendale Heights.

Hoff and his new boss, Carol Stream Fire Chief Rick Kolomay, taught classes at the Illinois Fire Service Institute and Chicago Fire Academy, and they co-authored a firefighting training manual in 2003. 

full article HERE

Former Chicago fire commissioner to be Carol Stream deputy chief

The 2003 book is Firefighter Rescue and Survival, published by Fire Engineering.

Carol Stream is an 8.9 square mile village within DuPage county with 41,000 residents.

The Fire Protection District provides fire and ambulance service from three fire stations.

In the news article, Chief Hoff said:

There are more opportunities to work with younger firefighters and “pass on experiences” through training.

We will be better because of his desire to pass on experiences.

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

Ruminations on outcome based research

Spent time as a first-line supervisor on a haz-mat rescue company, when being a "glo worm" was new and cool.

The first response with the rescue was weird. A box alarm dispatch to a mid-rise senior facility was sending four engines, two trucks, an ems unit and the rescue … and my crew was S-L-O-W-L-Y walking to the rig.

Was this a test for the new officer?

Welcome to the Toast Patrol

The chauffer explained that they ran this address two to four times a day. The first due company is a few blocks away.

On almost every incident the first engine is returning the box alarm assignment within a minute.

It would be the first of hundreds of times the rescue would pull out into traffic, with me wailing the 2QB and stuttering the air horns. We drove the length of the shopping center parking lot next to the fire station before going in service.

Pretty dumb – why not just send the first engine and truck?

Apparently, we used to … until a 1+1 dispatch during a severe winter storm became a two alarm fire with rescue of an occupant in the fire apartment.

Looking at the details

The mid-rise facility was constructed in 1973, before fire sprinkers were required by the code to be installed within the apartments.

Built in an "in-field" property, truck company access to the rear of the building is tight.

The facility has almost 300 bedrooms.

A smoke detector is mounted in the kitchen, near the refridgerator. Every extra crispy toast and overbrewed teapot generated an alarm … breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Lean Manufacturing Model

Dylan Scott, writing in the February 2012 issue of Governing magazine, described the application of best practices by Patricia Gabow, MD, to improving Denver Health operations.

The lean manufacturing model is based on five principles, according to the Lean Enterprise Institute:

1. Identify the value of the product for the customer
2. Map the process for creating the product and eliminate elements without value
3. Create a flow for the value-creating steps
4. Let customers pull value from that flow
5. Begin the process again and seek perfection.

Put more simply, it’s about eliminating wasteful actions. Anything that doesn’t add value for the ultimate customer is considered wasteful. “The philosophy is that waste is disrespectful to humanity because it squanders scarce resources, and waste is disrespectful to individuals because it asks them to do work with no value,” Gabow says. “We’ve added that waste is disrespectful to our patients because it asks them to endure processes with no value.”

Denver Health Becomes Profitable After Using Toyota As A Template

It it valuable to send seven fire companies two to four times a day for extra-crispy toast?

Wonder what the cost comparison and risk analysis would be if we placed a fire-rescue person at the facility to immediately respond to activated fire alarms? Maybe an ems credentialed responder with AED?

An example from Denver Health Medical Center:

Lean also inspired a restructuring of the Denver Health Medical Center’s rapid response system for patients who go into cardiac arrest. At most hospitals, a dedicated team is on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week for rapid response, and temporarily assume care of those patients from their primary nurses and doctors.

But in applying the lean principles, the medical center’s staff recognized an opportunity to cut costs while ensuring continuity of care. A regular assessment schedule was established for nurses to monitor their patients, and criteria were developed for nurses to determine if a patient was at risk. Then a specific protocol was outlined for staff to follow if a nurse made that determination, providing guidelines for moving up the chain of command if the immediate attending physician is not available or the patient’s condition did not improve.

An analysis by Denver Health staff found that the number of non-ICU cardiac arrest incidents decreased significantly following the implementation of the new procedures. And it bestowed rapid response responsibilities on staff members who were already working, rather than requiring an entirely separate team.

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

This post dedicated to Technician Mark Baban, Rescue 401, B-shift. You left too soon.

Godspeed to the members of the Pontiac, Michigan, Fire Department

April 23, 1883 – January 31, 2012

After nearly 180 years, "Pontiac Fire Department" will no longer be the name on the side to the engines or on the front of the Stations, but it will be the name that every pontiac fire fighter past and present will never forget because it is in our heart and soul.

Once a pontiac fire fighter always a pontiac fire fighter.

http://youtu.be/CL8MHzpSTPE

Pontiac Fire Department's Last Day

PONTIAC (WXYZ) – A lot of history hangs in the halls of Pontiac’s main fire station. Pictures showcase the brave men who risk their lives daily for their community.

Tuesday, a photographer documented the last day the building will be running as part of the Pontiac Fire Department.

Wednesday morning, the Waterford Fire Department will take over and respond to calls in the city of Pontiac. A decision made by an Emergency Manager to cut costs.

Read more of Tara Edwards article HERE

History of the Pontiac Fire Department

http://youtu.be/noBc9aC-G-w

According to the agreement, the top 13 Pontiac firefighters will be granted the opportunity to take early retirement rather than working until their 25th year. The 44 remaining firefighters are eligible for employment with Waterford Township. The city of Pontiac will grant them one-time bonuses of up to $15,000.

Leslie Shepard (2012 January 4) Pontiac firefighters accept Waterford service pact. SpinalColumn

There were 57 Pontiac firefighters. Tara Edward's article today stated that 42 firefighters got jobs at Waterford.

In the FY 2009 – 2010 budget there were 103 approved positions, shrinking to 80 positions in the FY 2010 – 2011 budget. 22 of the 23 positions eliminated were firefighters.

In 2010 the city police department was disbanded, replaced with Oakland County sheriffs.

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

Volume 2, Issue 1, hits the intertubes

Dear Blue Card Subscribers:

Check out B Shifter’s latest installment at http://bshifter.com/SelectMagazines.aspx.

Our latest installment features Joe Starnes discussing flashover causes and prevention. Some firefighting friends from Oz talk about the Australian fire service—complete with a lessons-learned tale of communications gone wrong. Bruno introduces two new reader-response columns, and Vincent Dunn discusses fire-supression techniques in single-family residences. Lots of free downloads! Take a look!

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

Andy Mannix, writing in yesterday's City Pages, reports on the planned retirement of Fire Chief Alex Jackson in February, before the Minneapolis City Council decides on a two-year extension of his appointment:

Last month, Jackson was criticized for a $1 million overtime bill for firefighters in 2011, and a failed program that tasked firefighters with boarding up vacant houses. The latter was supposed to bring revenue to the department, but instead lost about $300,000 in its first year, according to city data.

Minneapolis Fire Chief Alex Jackson retires amid criticism

Earlier coverage of the Minneapolis Fire Department:

• Jan 2, 2012:  Problematic Firefighters
• October 13, 2010: Is Minneapolis Fire Still boarding up buildings?
• October 1, 2010: Saving Money Raises Costs in Minneapolis
• April 30, 2011: Minneapolis steals one firefighter from front-line staffing for unprofitable board-up project
• July 28, 2011: Minneapolis Set To Whack Fire Department
• August 22, 2011: Minneapolis Decimates FD. Local’s Pres. Fires Back
• August 30, 2011: Heat’s On in Minneapolis

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

Charlie LeDuff posts an update

One Year Later: Detroit's EMS System Still in Need of a Cure: MyFoxDETROIT.com

DETROIT (WJBK) – It's a story we've been covering for more than a year — FOX 2 taking a closer look at the way Detroit manages its ambulance service. What we uncovered was a deadly system on the verge of collapse.

Posted December 20, 2011

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward

Earlier posts:

July 02, 2011: “More Ambulances, More Training, Less Fear” New Detroit Fire Commissioner Donald Austin reaches out to medical community, says 22 new transport units will start arriving in January. Not writing up guys for minor uniform infractions

Yesterday's report raises questions if the ambulances have been ordered.

The Excitement of 2 am

Another tale from the Houston Press, written by John Nova Lomax November 14th:

While police and medics were clearing up that disaster (a 1:30 am Sunday morning fatal collision), 27-year-old Matthew Mitchell attempted to navigate his Chevy Impala through the swirling sea of flashing lights of the fleet of police cruisers and ambulances on the scene.

Unfortunately, he plowed into the life-flight chopper's tail fin.

A DPS trooper on the scene quoted Mitchell thusly:

"Why was the helicopter flying so low?"

East Texas DWI Mayhem Kills One, Injures Three, Damages MedEvac Chopper, Spawns Stupid Quote of Year

Related News Articles:

KTRE ABC 9: One killed, 4 injured and medical helicopter damaged in wreck

KCBA 11 NBC: Multiple charges filed in Anderson Co. DWI wrecks

Link to KCBA news video HERE

UPDATE yourEastTexas.com: Update: Drunk driver held on bonds totaling $800,000, more charges possible  audio interview with DPS Trooper.

The trooper who worked the wreck even mentions in the audio clip that the road was completely blocked off in both directions. The driver actually went into the ditch and around the trucks before getting back on the road and crashing into the helicopter.

Mike "FossilMedic" Ward