USFA & IAFF Contributing Factors to Fire Fighter Line-of-Duty Injury Study

The U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) and the International Association of Firefighters (IAFF) released a comprehensive study that compiled and analyzed two years of data from nine geographically diverse metropolitan fire departments to identify and quantify the major factors that contribute to fire fighter line-of-duty injuries. Titled: Contributing Factors to Fire Fighter Line-of-Duty Injury Study, the objective of this study was to analyze retrospective data from a group of geographically diverse metropolitan fire departments for the years 2005- 2006 (two years) to identify and quantify the major factors that contribute to firefighter line-of-duty injury (LOD injury).

http://www.iaff.org/08News/080708Injury.htm

The identified contributing factors were examined for frequency of occurrence and clustering with other factors.

Results should be used to alert participating fire department leaders of the primary factors that contribute to firefighter injuries in their respective departments and to identify clustering patterns of those factors. Results should be used to develop or enhance risk management programs within the participating and similar departments.

Analysis of the roles of various factors suggests that the most prominent contributing factors to firefighter line-of-duty injury in metropolitan fire departments in the United States are lack of situational awareness (37.3%), lack of wellness/fitness (28.5%), and human error (10.6%). When clustered according to contributing factors most often occurring together, the most prominent cluster is cluster 4 including decision-making, lack of communication, standard operating guidelines/procedure breach, protocol breach, human error, lack of situational awareness.

Contributing factor clusters identified explain 94.49% of firefighter LOD injury in the departments studied between the years of 2005-2006. The results presented hold implications for fire department risk management priorities. At the most basic level, they compel examination of the way the departments track injuries. Most of the contributing factors identified in this study were based on those tracked in each department and those used in the “Firefighter Near Miss Reporting System.” Individual departmental tracking of injuries and accumulation of factors and definitions will be essential to quality data collection and analysis in future studies. Based on the results of this study, participating departments can make efforts to interrupt or eliminate factors leading to a firefighter LOD injury.