These are the first responder situational awareness and decision making issues and opportunities related to situational readiness.
I have many opportunities to talk with first responders about the importance of having Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) or Standard Operating Guidelines (SOGs). These documents are essential to the safety of responders because they set the standard for training and for incident operations. [clickandtweet handle=”RichGasaway” hashtag=”#situationalawareness” related=”samatters” layout=”” position=””]Let’s look at why SOPs or […]
No SOPs = No Game Plan Read More »
It has often been said: “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” [tweet this] This is true. Regardless of how fortified the individual links are, when the chain is stressed under a load, the breaking point will be the weakest link. The same can be said of situational awareness at an emergency scene.
Situational Awareness of Your Weakest Link Read More »
This website is dedicated to improving situational awareness of first responders. The precursor to situational awareness is situational readiness. I define situational readiness as: Having the ability to anticipate what things need to be in place to be well-prepared for an emergency response; and then, taking the steps necessary to ensure those things are done
Ten Things to Develop Situational Readiness Read More »
We develop and maintain situational awareness by being perceptive about what is happening around us. To be perceptive, we must pay attention to what is going on in our environment. We can employ all of our senses to help us pay attention – seeing, hearing, feeling, tasting and smelling. However, if we let our guard
Complacency – a barrier to situational awareness Read More »
If you are a student of near-miss and casualty reports then you know, without a doubt, that flawed communications is a major contributing factor when things go wrong and flawed communications is often a factor when the quality of situational awareness erodes. In fact, flawed communications was the second most frequently cited barrier to flawed
19 Ways Communications Barriers Can Impact Situational Awareness Read More »
In this episode I interview Dr. Burt Clark, author of the recently released book “I can’t save you but I’ll die trying: The American fire culture” shares his passion for firefighter safety and the need to change our culture. Length: 79 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen _____________________________________________________ If you
Episode 38 – Interview with Dr. Burt Clark Read More »
On this episode, I interview technology guru Darrell O’Donnell. Darrell runs a successful technology coaching and consulting firm where he works to bridge the gap between technology experts and first responders. Darrell has a special passion for technology that helps first responders develop, maintain and improve situational awareness by providing rapid access to critical information
Episode 28: Interview with technology guru Darrell O’Donnell Read More »
On this episode, I interview Fire Chief Gord Schreiner and he shares valuable lessons from his “Safe and Efficient Scene Management Class” which by many departments throughout Canada has become known as the “StopBad” program. Length: 57 Minutes click the YouTube icon to listen _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding
Episode 26: StopBad! An interview with Comox Fire Chief Gord Schreiner Read More »
Episode 16: The impact of fatigue on situational awareness Back in episode 7 I answered a listener question about the impact of fatigue on situational awareness. I promised in that episode that I would dedicate more time to this topic in an upcoming episode. So I want to explore the issue of fatigue some more.
Episode 16: The impact of fatigue on situational awareness Read More »
Episode 14: Interview with Dave Casey, Director of Louisiana State Fire & Emergency Training Institute on the need for realistic training. Length: 57 minutes click the YouTube icon to listen _____________________________________________________ If you are interested in taking your understanding of situational awareness and high-risk decision making to a higher level, check out the Situational Awareness
Episode 14: The need for realistic training Read More »
