QA Systems Related to Quality Enhancements: Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service - Example

Appraisal Report on the QA Systems Related to Quality Enhancements – Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service This report asses the Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service’s current Quality Assurance System and make proposals for Quality enhancesment so that industry best practices can be delievered to the stake holders in an efficient way. The report assess the gaps and suitability of current QA measures and make proposals for effective methods to respond to challenges faced by the sector. It also assess how internal staff development aspects are handled currently and how to include goals for internal development into the implementation plans. The report is focusing on prevention and protection elements of the fire and rescue services. The accountability of individual Fire & Rescue Service Units have dramatically changed and increased with the implementation of Fire and Rescue National Framework (FRNF) coming into effect under the new Fire and Rescue Act UK 2004. With fire and rescue incidents in the increase, UK needs to have its individual FRS’s gear up to face risks efficient. Cheshire FRS too needs to comply with the FRNF stipulations that each FRS needs to plan and formulate their annual Integrated Risk Management Plan (IRMP). Cheshire FRS can use its IRMP to plan risk mitigation and resource supply. This will help the FRS to plan whether the existing resources have to be adjusted according to various risk levels of households, special risk locations and urban areas. Cheshire FRS will also have to consider collaborations with other authorities and local bodies such as police, traffic police and urban council planning divisions etc to reduce risks, assess risks and respond to risks effectively. The IRMP should also be used as a tool to guide capacity building through purchase of new equipments and also recruitment of more staff (Fire & Rescue National Framework 2012). Goals to be Set through Cheshire IRM With the new responsibilities laid out on the FRS, Cheshire FRS can include the following goals in its annual IRMP focusing on interventions to manage fire risks as well as to build capacities to manage and mitigate fire risks in the Cheshire area. Risk assessment - Identifying high risk vs. low risk Business vs. individual households Children and schools National level catastrophes Risk mitigation plans – Setting response time targets for each fire scenarios Resource management a. - Resource assessment b. Resource upgrade c. Manpower – recruitment/internal development d. Resource collaboration and pooling with other local agencies. Cheshire FRS should implement its IRMP goals with supportive tactical actions as outlines above. When allocating resources, it should be done in view of highest risk areas such as the over 65 age demographics. Collaborating with other authorities such as the NHS will help identify various demographic profile groups at high risk, with debilitating illnesses etc. that makes fast rescue crucial. Proposals for Intervention and Mitigation Cheshire FRS has already implemented a number of Quality Assurance programs in terms of its intervention and mitigation process to ensure best service and protection to its community. In order to achieve the set objectives and goals in the IRMP, it is proposed that the following measures are implemented targeting various aspects of Fire and Rescue Management Process. Identification Program for Most Vulnerable Households - Cheshire FRS has achieved a monumental task of completing 60,000 home safety assessments (HSAs) up to 2010. However, in a bid to enhance its intervention and mitigation performance, the FRS should now focus on identifying most Vulnerable Household groups in the community. Cheshire needs to set short term smaller targets to identify most high risk homes so that resources can be allocated to these top priority vulnerable households. This can be done using enhanced risk identification software and data obtained through partner agencies such as the NHS and local authorities. Online Fire Risk Assessment Register - Another major effort taken up by Cheshire FRS to ensure Quality Assurance of its risk mitigation objectives is the “Online Fire Risk Assessment” facility which calls on Cheshire residents to take a 5 minute test of their fire risk assessment. This provides the FRS with valuable data on risk readiness as well as risk levels of various residents. This online program has great merit and is a very effective step towards compliance with Point 1.5 of Fire & Rescue National Framework Document which calls on FRS to compile a Community Risk Register so that all foreseeable fire and rescue hazards are identifies and prepared for within the IRMP. However, Cheshire FRS can create more awareness among the community through leaflets, demonstration sessions in WiFi spots such as cafes and malls so that community sees how easy and user friendly the online registry is. They can also carry out mobile online registrations by conducting events specially targeting seniors, who may not have equipment and access to the internet. Setting Up of Cheshire Response Standards - One of the most notable Quality Assurance steps implemented by Cheshire FRS is the ‘Cheshire Response Standards’(CRS) which is a localized response time standard set up based on the risk levels. The emergency response times for all communities should be classified in to risk levels using various data. Following table presents Cheshire service’s current set standards. Risk Level Response time Very high 0 to 5 minutes High 6 to 10 minutes Medium 11 to 15 minutes Low 16 to 20 minutes Very low within 21 minutes Road traffic accidents 11 minutes Major incident Mobilization of 25 appliances within 1hour of declaring a major incident However, it is recommended that these response times are revisited and reevaluated as response time to an incident is one of the key indicators of best practice delivery in the industry. Community Awareness and Empowerment - According to the new Regulatory Reform Act 2011 which replaced most of fire safety legislation, the new Fire Safety Order 2005 is that “any person who has some level of control in premises must take reasonable steps to reduce the risk from fire and make sure people can safely escape if there is a fire.” (Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005). This new legislature Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005 placed new responsibilities not only with FRS but the civilians too for the fire safety. It is recommended that Cheshire FRS take steps to educate and empower civilians including the youth and children to be better aware of , and be responsive to fire and incident risks. School demos, role play of fire incident mocks to educate how to behave during a fire etc, should be given priority among high risk groups in the community. Cheshire FRS QA Measures – Staff Development Apprising the Cheshire FRS operations, a number of measures can be identified that needs to included and implemented to enhance the internal development and staff aspects of the FRS. Cheshire Fire and Rescue Services should consider the importance of staff development as it carries great implecations on the motivational levels of the the employees. As Fire and Rescue is a high risk carere, it is important that the employee motivational levels are kept high to increase retention levels of staff. Planning and providing career advancement and skill aquisition is important for firemen. Funding for higher eductaion with industry relevant studies can be useful and help personal and career development. Other traininging programs on team performance, communication, disaster management, crisis response, leadership etc. Will also be useful. Financial aid or shcolarships to engage in such courses will motivate the staff and develop the internal resources greatly. Manpower Restructuring and Duty Planning - The Cheshire’s IRMP also identified a new program of Duty System known as “Day-Crewing Plus” aimed at enhancing the effectiveness and quality of service delivery of the fire and rescue missions. This creates additional manpower positions apart from fulltime fireman positions within the FRS. It is proposed that under manpower restructuring, Cheshire implement new job profiles that are multi tasking, to provide enriched job experiences as well as cost effectiveness. Firemen need not just be fire fighters but managers, with general office skills too, so that it helps them develop their career path Implementing QA Systems Inorder to be successful in implementing the proposed measures to enhance QA measures targeting intevention as well as internal staff development, it is necessary that Cheshire FRS implement systematic QA Systems and methododlogies. By incorporating International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards into the system, this can be achieved in a globally accepted manner. Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service derive standards through the ISO standards a regulatory requirements relevant to construction, safety and disaster managemnet. Through ISO regulations, Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service can make stakeholders in the community such as local governments and action groups to induce companies such as petrol stations, gas dealerships, power companies, high rise building constructors, care home service providers etc to adopt ISO standards for safety requirements. This will reduce overal community risk levels and fires and indicents erupting due to poor quality. As ISO provides a standardized national or global framework, it is easy to implement and also helps standardize safety measures accoross different industries. Since such quality accreditations add value to company image, it is worthwhile for any busienss to adhere to such strandards and recieve ISO logo and accrditations, which will be beneficial to tehir business and also to the community. Conclusion It is evident from this assessment that Cheshire FRS has implemented a large number of QA measures to achieve the set goals and targets in terms of fire and rescue interventions as well as internal development of the organization. This is especially so for intervention sector where many appropriate and effective measures are in place. There still exists a gap in terms of QA measures put in place for staff development although plans are underway to develop other internal structures and processes including the IT system which is very appropriate. To sustain its quality performance and excellence in the National Fire and Rescue Service, Cheshire FRS should consider incorporating additional measures for staff development, so that people will be equipped and geared with competencies to take forward the operational excellence being developed through the QA measures. Bibliography http://www.cheshirefire.gov.uk/Assets/irmp%209%202012%20web.pdf Cheshire Fire & Rescue Website, 2013 http://www.cheshirefire.gov.uk/ Fire and Rescue National Framework for England 2012. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fire-and-rescue-national-framework-for-england Making your premises Safe – A Short Guide https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/14879/making-your-premises-safe-short-guide.pdf Read More