We have been creating these podcasts only since last November. Yet, we have been very lucky to have had some excellent guests who have shared their passion for one aspect of this job or another. And we are very grateful to them for having done so.
If you have followed some of our "tweets" on Twitter from @Dalmatprod, and/or rerad some of our messages here in the Blog, you know that there are two areas we are dedicated to: leadership and premature LODD's due to preventable health issues. Well friends, we're adding a third area as of today - the immediate reduction of firefighter cancer incidences.
Earlier this week, we interviewed a new guest, Bill Banks of Fire-Tec in Margate FL. he was a Ft. Lauderdale firefighter for over 20 years and retired a few years ago as a battalion chief.We had a great interview and even though we had previously said we were going to release a new "5-Alarm Task Force" podcast every other Monday, we're going to work our butts of to get Bill's interview on the air by this Monday.
We didn't find Bill on our own. A couple of months ago, we had a new follower, Cindi Ell, who is the president of the International Firefighter Cancer Network. Their goal? "Working to Extinguish Firefighter Cancer Throughout the World" We also were followed by the people behind the new, "Cool Towel." And they told us about Cindy and her work and Bill and his work.
Now to many of us, when we think of firefighter cancer, we immediately look back at the terrible tragedy of 9|11 and the brave men and women who worked that pile, day in and day out. We now know that many of them contracted all different types of cancer and other afflictions, all due to their selfless efforts. However, that assumption would be incorrect. Here's a cold hard fact for you: The cancer rate in the U.S. general populace is 22%. The cancer rate among U.S. firefighters is 68%!!!
So, in the next few weeks, look for our interview with Bill Banks, Cindy Ell and the team from "Cool Towel."
Stay Safe
Everybody Goes Home
Showing posts with label PPE. Show all posts
Showing posts with label PPE. Show all posts
Thursday, March 2, 2017
Tuesday, February 9, 2016
"Are You Kidding Me!? You Want Me to Do What?"
Firefighter Health Initiative 2016
Do You Have the "Guts" To Do It?
As firefighters, a lot of folks look at us with a special eye; they often see us a heroes. Most of the time, like the gentle folks that we are, we brush it off saying, "Thanks, but I was just doing my job." However, some of us, actually see our selves as heroes. Big, strong, brawny men; tall, strong and fit women, who climb any ladder, hold onto a powerful and wild firehose and other feats of great prowess. There's almost nothing we won't do. Except one.
We hesitate and often refuse, to take care of ourselves.
Thanks to so many of our great fire service leaders and many of our fire-related organizations, some of us are beginning to not only hear, but listen to their message. Just as we are not impervious to injuries and even death from flames, from smoke and from falls, we are not impervious to the most insidious disease that wreaks it terror on man and animal alike: CANCER. And it doesn't discriminate whether you're career, volunteer or on-call, neither does it matter if you're still on the job or retired.
As of late, there has been a good push for those of us still active on the job, to be more aware of what our PPE looks like. We all remember the each time in our careers that we received brand new PPE, clean beige, clean black, clean mustard-yellow, clean white. Not anymore. It's dirty, grimy, smoky, covered in all types of burnt residual material that very likely contains numerous carcinogens.
All too often, we've used our dirty, grimy, filthy PPE as a badge of courage. We can no longer afford to do that. We must make a real effort to create a set schedule for making sure that our PPE is cleaned to the standards set by both fire and health officials. Good, but that's just one step.
Here's another. Although the American Cancer Society recommends that both men and women have their first colonoscopy at age 50, it might do us well to realize that our chances of developing cancer are greater as firefighters as are those of "Joe," the barber or "Nancy" the owner of five pack & ship centers. No one can deny that even with our PPE, we still average a higher exposure rate to carcinogenic material that our "friends" mentioned above. And with that in mind, we never know what type of cancer we may be diagnosed with. Just one quick review of our dearly departed brothers and sisters who worked on the 9|11 pile and the vast array of cancers that they suffered, should be enough of an incentive for us to be proactive.
I'm not a doctor. But I will tell you to speak with either your fire surgeon or your personal physician and ask him/her what their opinion is regarding when to have your first baseline colonoscopy. And let's not forget that the dangers are not just from our jobs, but from all the crap in our food, water and environment. Sure, everybody is exposed to that, but we have that extra exposure from our work. Put them together and you'll start playing, "Go to the head of the class!"
I've been off the "active" job since 1985. That was pre-AIDS, pre-BioHazards, pre-gloving & masking, etc. However, since my late father worked for major supermarket chain up north and was a former meat cutter, we ate steak every Monday night, meatloaf every Wednesday. On the weekends, we had plenty of eggs, white bread and real butter; not to mention real ice cream (frozen yogurt?) So, I was concerned when I had to go for my test.
I was concerned for what might be found, I was concerned about the "horrible, painful" ordeal I was about to go through. But you know what, it was all hype! That's right, there was no pain, no discomfort. The cleansing plan was relatively easy to follow and no, I wasn't running to the head every 10 minutes!!
And when I went in for the test, your put under with what is called, "MAC" anesthesia, which stands for Monitored Anesthesia Care, otherwise knows as "twilight sleep." It's a very light sedation. You have no idea of what's being done. Best of all, you wake up clear-headed and bright, if if you have a great nurse like we did, she'll yell, "You wanna go home" Fart for me! As soon as I hear you pass gas, you're out of here. So start farting!"
Listen, what we do is dangerous enough. We've know that from day one. And it didn't stop us. We joined up anyway. But you can't shirk your responsibility to your family and loved ones, as well as your comrades and your job. Just do it!
BTW - one small favor: If you haven't made it over to Amazon Studios to help support our effort to get a really great show about the fire service on TV, please do. We really need your support. It doesn't cost a penny. It takes just a few minutes of your time.
Just head back to the list of posts on this blog and find the one with the instructions on how to give us your support.
Till next time...
Stay Safe and Every One Goes Home!
Thursday, August 6, 2015
"LUCKY THURSDAY" Has Returned (Even if it came on Wednesday night!)
Thursday - August 6, 2015
Finally, we have some news of a couple of fronts. As some of you know, last evening we held a company conference call, as the partners in Dalmatian are from Florida, Delaware and California. With everyone's schedules it's not always an easy task to do and we managed to have a successful one last night.
STUDIO NEWS - Our L.A.-based partner brought us up-to-date with where the project is floating out there. One excellent contact at one of the larger talent management/production companies, did indeed receive a promotion, in title. He's still awaiting the company to make good on the financial side of his deal. Whether he stays there or moves, the fact is that he loves the show and will take it with him to present to anyone he may get to listen.
In the meantime, our partner and his associate are sending the script to two large and very well-known production companies. However, as we have come to learn (and as I wrote about recently) those wheels in Hollywood turn very, very slowly.
COMPANY NEWS - The main reason for our conference call last night was to discuss the possibility of turning to crowd-funding (Kickstarter, IndieGoGo, etc.) to raise funds for us to produce a elongated "trailer." A "trailer" is a preview that you seen online, in commercials on TV and "COMING SOON" previews at the theater. We initially talked about producing a 6-8 minute trailer that would provide the viewer with a few key elements of what the show would be about.
Our show has been designed to be what's called today a, "limited series." For example, shows like "Under the Dome," "Proof," and "Falling Skies" only air 8-12 episodes for their season. Currently, it is a very popular way for many networks to air programs, they're less expensive that shooting and air a full season of 20-22 episodes. However, right now, we have already drawn up a three-year plan of the direction the stories will go, keeping the main theme and mystery alive throughout.
There's another important point we want to make sure everyone knows about. First, all of us either are, or have been emergency first-responders. We just regular belly-crawling, snot-nosed nozzle-jockeys like everyone else. We're not big Hollywood producers or moguls looking to make a buck off of firefighters.
Two - We are dedicated to show only the best of the fire/rescue service and EMS. If we didn't stick to our guns about that, we could have had several shows on TV already. But we refused. We will never do anything that doesn't show the best of who we are and what we do.
Three - Besides the main theme of the show which is XXXXXXXXXXXXX, we also have several others that are very important to us, i.e., juvenile fire starter education programs, LODD's, the National Fallen Firefighters' Foundation and more. Moreover, we're going to show that sometimes, we make mistakes. Certainly not on purpose, but they happen and how we have to deal with them. Mistakes in our lives, our tactics, our abilities, etc. Also, we'll try to deal with the public's perception of the fire service, what's true and what isn't.
All of this is part of what we will bring to our show.
THE "HOW WE'RE GOING TO DO IT" PART - Well gang, this might be the most important part. As I said, we initially were talking about producing a 6-8 minute trailer. After some discussion one of the guys said, "Well, if we can raise enough to produce a trailer, why should we not be able to raise enough to shoot the entire PILOT!!?!?!!?!?!
There was a long pause before everyone chimed in, "You're right!" "Good idea!" "We didn't think of that before!" As it turn out, it was unanimous. We all agreed that instead of just a trailer, we're going to shoot for the whole thing, shoot the pilot for the show. The script is written, which is one-half of the two largest tasks. The second large task? Finding the "scratch" to put it together.
To that end, we've decided to take a long and serious look at crowd-funding. Some of you may have heard that when fans of the former TV show, "Veronica Mars," wanted to see a motion picture to help tie-up all the loose ends that occurred when the series was canceled, they went on KickStarter and in less than a day, they raised over $2 Million!
We would have to set a goal, which two of the guys are working on, that would cover all the costs involved for shooting a 46-minute show. "Forty-six minutes? I thought it was going to be an hour show?"
It is an hour show. Any hour show today is only 46 minutes of programming. The rest is used for commercials and previews. Nevertheless, it will require a significant budget and a great deal of work.
We also looked at this fact: There are nearly 1,000,000 firefighters in the U.S. and Canada (career, volunteer & on-call). Then add in their spouses, significant others, parents, etc. Now add to that all the EMT's and Paramedics, and Rescue Squad members; then add their families to it.
If every member of the broadly defined fire-rescue-EMS services donated one dollar ($1.00), we would have over a million dollars!! And that's not even including all the "buffs", the people who belong to CERT programs, and viewers who like firefighters and firefighting quality shows!
Now wait! Don't start opening your wallets or writing checks yet! This is not a certainty yet. As I said, two of our guys are going to work to develop a budget and present a strong argument which way we can go. We've scheduled another meeting in two weeks. We'll see what happens. Keep your fingers crossed. Remember, Stay Safe.
Finally, we have some news of a couple of fronts. As some of you know, last evening we held a company conference call, as the partners in Dalmatian are from Florida, Delaware and California. With everyone's schedules it's not always an easy task to do and we managed to have a successful one last night.
STUDIO NEWS - Our L.A.-based partner brought us up-to-date with where the project is floating out there. One excellent contact at one of the larger talent management/production companies, did indeed receive a promotion, in title. He's still awaiting the company to make good on the financial side of his deal. Whether he stays there or moves, the fact is that he loves the show and will take it with him to present to anyone he may get to listen.
In the meantime, our partner and his associate are sending the script to two large and very well-known production companies. However, as we have come to learn (and as I wrote about recently) those wheels in Hollywood turn very, very slowly.
COMPANY NEWS - The main reason for our conference call last night was to discuss the possibility of turning to crowd-funding (Kickstarter, IndieGoGo, etc.) to raise funds for us to produce a elongated "trailer." A "trailer" is a preview that you seen online, in commercials on TV and "COMING SOON" previews at the theater. We initially talked about producing a 6-8 minute trailer that would provide the viewer with a few key elements of what the show would be about.
Our show has been designed to be what's called today a, "limited series." For example, shows like "Under the Dome," "Proof," and "Falling Skies" only air 8-12 episodes for their season. Currently, it is a very popular way for many networks to air programs, they're less expensive that shooting and air a full season of 20-22 episodes. However, right now, we have already drawn up a three-year plan of the direction the stories will go, keeping the main theme and mystery alive throughout.
There's another important point we want to make sure everyone knows about. First, all of us either are, or have been emergency first-responders. We just regular belly-crawling, snot-nosed nozzle-jockeys like everyone else. We're not big Hollywood producers or moguls looking to make a buck off of firefighters.
Two - We are dedicated to show only the best of the fire/rescue service and EMS. If we didn't stick to our guns about that, we could have had several shows on TV already. But we refused. We will never do anything that doesn't show the best of who we are and what we do.
Three - Besides the main theme of the show which is XXXXXXXXXXXXX, we also have several others that are very important to us, i.e., juvenile fire starter education programs, LODD's, the National Fallen Firefighters' Foundation and more. Moreover, we're going to show that sometimes, we make mistakes. Certainly not on purpose, but they happen and how we have to deal with them. Mistakes in our lives, our tactics, our abilities, etc. Also, we'll try to deal with the public's perception of the fire service, what's true and what isn't.
All of this is part of what we will bring to our show.
THE "HOW WE'RE GOING TO DO IT" PART - Well gang, this might be the most important part. As I said, we initially were talking about producing a 6-8 minute trailer. After some discussion one of the guys said, "Well, if we can raise enough to produce a trailer, why should we not be able to raise enough to shoot the entire PILOT!!?!?!!?!?!
There was a long pause before everyone chimed in, "You're right!" "Good idea!" "We didn't think of that before!" As it turn out, it was unanimous. We all agreed that instead of just a trailer, we're going to shoot for the whole thing, shoot the pilot for the show. The script is written, which is one-half of the two largest tasks. The second large task? Finding the "scratch" to put it together.
To that end, we've decided to take a long and serious look at crowd-funding. Some of you may have heard that when fans of the former TV show, "Veronica Mars," wanted to see a motion picture to help tie-up all the loose ends that occurred when the series was canceled, they went on KickStarter and in less than a day, they raised over $2 Million!
We would have to set a goal, which two of the guys are working on, that would cover all the costs involved for shooting a 46-minute show. "Forty-six minutes? I thought it was going to be an hour show?"
It is an hour show. Any hour show today is only 46 minutes of programming. The rest is used for commercials and previews. Nevertheless, it will require a significant budget and a great deal of work.
We also looked at this fact: There are nearly 1,000,000 firefighters in the U.S. and Canada (career, volunteer & on-call). Then add in their spouses, significant others, parents, etc. Now add to that all the EMT's and Paramedics, and Rescue Squad members; then add their families to it.
If every member of the broadly defined fire-rescue-EMS services donated one dollar ($1.00), we would have over a million dollars!! And that's not even including all the "buffs", the people who belong to CERT programs, and viewers who like firefighters and firefighting quality shows!
Now wait! Don't start opening your wallets or writing checks yet! This is not a certainty yet. As I said, two of our guys are going to work to develop a budget and present a strong argument which way we can go. We've scheduled another meeting in two weeks. We'll see what happens. Keep your fingers crossed. Remember, Stay Safe.
Saturday, July 11, 2015
A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words & A Big "Thank You!"
First, I must thank my youngest daughter for a wonderful surprise. We were visiting her in NYC and we went out to lunch. She had wanted me to attend a show, but there was nothing that really called out to me. So, she, her boyfriend and my wife were going to the show after lunch and I was headed back to her apartment via a NYC cab.
After we finished lunch, we started walking so she could show us a couple of sites and, I presumed, to grab my cab. But we kept on walking, crossing this block and that avenue.Finally, she said, "We're here!" I looked around and found myself in front of the FDNY Store! That was the real reason why she shlepped me along. She wanted me to see the store. It was like taking your kid to a Toys 'R Us! So, thank you, my sweet Miryam for helping your Dad enjoy his visit even more!
As we were traveling this past week, I was able to catch snippets of news here and there. Several of the stories dealt with fire departments around the country. A couple were humorous and some very serious. Speaking of serious, it was great to see Fresno CA Captain Dern on television, after undergoing more than a dozen surgeries to treat his 2nd and 3rd degree burns he received when he fell through the roof of a blazing garage! We wish him a speed and full recovery!
I'm not addressing the actual news stories in this post. Rather, I want to talk about the several PIO's that addressed the press after various events. In the first case, the PIO was an older gentleman, with a full head of snow-white hair. Unfortunately, he must have weighed nearly 300 pounds. "Well, he's only a PIO. What are you bitching about?" you may be asking yourself. The viewers have no idea of the difference between a PIO and any other firefighter other than, perhaps, the chief. What they see is a fat fireman.
On another story, the person speaking to the reporter was quite obese and he was a lieutenant, a front line officer. Now, let's add 60 pounds of PPE, gear, tools and some heavy exertion. Hmm?? Any ideas?
We recently discussed the number, "40%," the percentage of FF LODD's that are caused by mostly preventable health problems. Obesity, HTN (hypertension or high-blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, elevated cholesterol levels, etc. are just a few of the causes being listed by those fighting this scourge of the brave men and women who put their lives on the line.
Listen, we all know that almost anything can, will and has happened on the way to or from a call, and during the call itself. However, for the most part, we can reduce the number of LODD's due to health causes by taking better care of ourselves. When did you take your last CPAT test? Two years, three years, four years ago? Longer? What if on your next duty day your captain tells you that you have two days and will take it again? Can you do it? Can you even do part of it?
None of us can answer for anyone else. The only one you have to answer to is the man/woman in the mirror, because he/she never lies!
So, ready for that test?
After we finished lunch, we started walking so she could show us a couple of sites and, I presumed, to grab my cab. But we kept on walking, crossing this block and that avenue.Finally, she said, "We're here!" I looked around and found myself in front of the FDNY Store! That was the real reason why she shlepped me along. She wanted me to see the store. It was like taking your kid to a Toys 'R Us! So, thank you, my sweet Miryam for helping your Dad enjoy his visit even more!
As we were traveling this past week, I was able to catch snippets of news here and there. Several of the stories dealt with fire departments around the country. A couple were humorous and some very serious. Speaking of serious, it was great to see Fresno CA Captain Dern on television, after undergoing more than a dozen surgeries to treat his 2nd and 3rd degree burns he received when he fell through the roof of a blazing garage! We wish him a speed and full recovery!
I'm not addressing the actual news stories in this post. Rather, I want to talk about the several PIO's that addressed the press after various events. In the first case, the PIO was an older gentleman, with a full head of snow-white hair. Unfortunately, he must have weighed nearly 300 pounds. "Well, he's only a PIO. What are you bitching about?" you may be asking yourself. The viewers have no idea of the difference between a PIO and any other firefighter other than, perhaps, the chief. What they see is a fat fireman.
On another story, the person speaking to the reporter was quite obese and he was a lieutenant, a front line officer. Now, let's add 60 pounds of PPE, gear, tools and some heavy exertion. Hmm?? Any ideas?
We recently discussed the number, "40%," the percentage of FF LODD's that are caused by mostly preventable health problems. Obesity, HTN (hypertension or high-blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, elevated cholesterol levels, etc. are just a few of the causes being listed by those fighting this scourge of the brave men and women who put their lives on the line.
Listen, we all know that almost anything can, will and has happened on the way to or from a call, and during the call itself. However, for the most part, we can reduce the number of LODD's due to health causes by taking better care of ourselves. When did you take your last CPAT test? Two years, three years, four years ago? Longer? What if on your next duty day your captain tells you that you have two days and will take it again? Can you do it? Can you even do part of it?
None of us can answer for anyone else. The only one you have to answer to is the man/woman in the mirror, because he/she never lies!
So, ready for that test?
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