Rehab

[Guest Close Fireguy2000]

Hello Everyone,
I was wondering what your departments protocol on Rehab is. Here in Northshore Mass it is considered an essential part of firefighting. I was just curious to see what others thought. Thanks Be safe!

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**Thirst is a late sign of dehydration**

[Guest Close Adler]

What kind of Rehab are we talking about?

[Guest Close Adze]

What kind? Drug Rehab...LOL...j/k

Being serious for a moment...we set up rehab at our structure fires and some brush fires. We will also set up rehab for other incidents depending on the need.

[Guest Close Fireguy2000]

What do u have for rehab units, are they part of the fire dept? Is it a rehab station or just canteen work? Let me know thanks

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**Thirst is a late sign of dehydration**

[Guest Close Adze]

We set up a rehab station to basically change air bottles and take care of exhausted or injured firefighter's.

[Guest Close flash32]

in my dept our first responders and dispatched out along with the fire dept to any fires.they normally the last group that goes out withthier rig. the reason for this is because they load up the rig with a lot of water and sports drinks, that we have in the station. they also bring many wash cloths and towels for us. when i joined one of my first calls i had to go out with the first responder rig, i thought that it wasn't going to be that big of a deal. i was worng! when you have 10 guys that are there trying to get cooled down and rest and there are only three of us to help them. those people on the depts who do rehab should really need to be thanked for all that they do to make sure that we are doing well and ready to go. thanks to all of those people. thanks.
Flash32

[Guest Close NozzleHog]

Rehab? Rehab is for sissies.

[Guest Close Fyresq50]

Thats okay Nozzlehog, skip the rehab, we can give you CPR in lieu of it.

Take Care and Stay Safe,
Jim

[Guest Close ffnbs]

Our rehab consists of a bottle change and one or two glasses of water. Then we get our butts back in to overhaul.

[Guest Close jim whitfield]

We provide rehab on fire scenes year-round using the following "schedule":

April/May through October/November: every working structure fire or major grass fire. Oct/Nov through Apr/May: on request by OIC.

Generally, if the heat index is above 90F or wind chill below 10F we provide rehab.

Humid Mississippi summers can be brutal! Heat indicies over 90 for days or weeks at at time are nothing new. An accurate measurement of what the firefighters wearing full PPE is to add 10F for being in direct sunlight, and another 10F for the PPE itself. Add this to the day's heat index, and it adds up really quickly.

We started our Rehab Services as a means to monitor firefighter health during fires. Since about 1/2 of all firefighter fatalities nationally are attributed to stress-related injuries/illness (heart attacks, etc), we felt like rehab would give us a good opportunity to monitor vitals, and possibly catch any problems before they become serious.

Generally, our Rehab SOG outlines a 2-bottle work time, followed by a minimum 10-minute rehab time. During rehab, the FFs are given a 50/50 mix of sport drink & water (faster absorption). During this time, they are evaluated for heart rate & temperature. If a FF has a pulse of over 110, a temperature is taken. Temp over 100.6F means they come completely out of their turnouts. In-Rehab time is increased as necessary to get body temp below 100.6F and heart rate below 110. (Rehab is staffed by 1st Responders.)

If you visit the US Fire Administration's web site, you can order an excellent rehab guidebook from their publications area.

Email me if you'd like a copy of our Rehab SOG.

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James A. Whitfield, Jr., MCEM
Sunflower County Fire Coordinator
Indianola, Missisippi
(662) 887-6253
[email protected]
Battalion 1 - The Pride of the South

[Guest Close Fireguy2000]

Thanks Jim but im way ahead of you lol. That guid book from the Fire Administration and F.E.M.A. is what we have based out SOG's on for the last 15 years we have provided rehab. Our program is almost a carbon copy of yours. We also have the teo bottle rule, the firefighters take a 10 minute rehab. Days with a heat index over 90F we automatically have the bunker gear taken off and check there vitals signs. We like you give the 50/50 mix of water and sports drink. Also we have the Firefighters Drink called "Take-up" not sure if u use it. It is a high quality energy drink much better then gatorade or any sports drink I know of. We usually stick with the 50/50 mix and allow only one drink of Take-up per firefighter per rehab session cause medical doctors have found to much may cause heart problems, But it is really something to reenergize them.

Our schedule is much like yours except We respond on all working fires in the spring and summer and second alarms during fall and winter. We have a lot of woods up here so woods fire are not uncommon. We resopnd to all woods fire where units will be tied up more then and hour, and usually they are. Up here the average woods fire will take a good half of a day to contain if not longer.

We are a private unit of the department staffed by off duty firefighters and And E.M.T's. We cover over 200 square miles of land which makes up 22 citys and towns of northshore massachusetts. Fore more on our department please visit our web site http://hometown.aol.com/firefiter9/Rehab5.html

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**Thirst is a late sign of dehydration**

[Guest Close mike021]

Change the bottle and get back to the fight. Here the medic's grab you as soon as you leave the building on a worker, and I know alot of guys that get very ****ed at the ambulance guys who tell us what to do. I guess it's a pride thing. I know from being both fire and EMS that when I'm at a fire I sit back and wait for the firemen to come to me, I don't force anyone away form the fire scene. People know their limits and should not be told them by someone who doens't know what their bodies can handle. It's good when you need it but when it's forced I know we all sneak around it.

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This is your brain... Pierce
This is your Brain on drugs..... E-One
http://www.nfco1.freeservers.com

[Guest Close Fireguy2000]

Well Mike you make a good point. Some people don't like to be pulled for rehab. However it is a necessity and in my area is well needed, respected, and appreciated. We DON'T make the decision for rehab the OIC at each scene in each community we assist determines when each unit/division is to report for rehab and here, you listen to the OIC.

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**Thirst is a late sign of dehydration**

[Guest Close mike021]

Please don't get me wrong it's nice sometimes. But there are times when all I need is a drink or two while my bottle is being changed and that's all. But at alot of fires I have been at the medics are very pushy, and demand that gear is stripped off and sit for ten minutes. Sometimes manpower levels cannot accomidate 5 guys stopping for ten minutes while a house burns. Just my thoughts =)
Stay Safe