Cosumnes CSD Fire Department

Folsom (Sacramento), CA Management Consultants Standards of Cover and Headquarters Services Assessment for the Cosumnes CSD Fire Department Volume 1 of 3 Executive Report May 26, 2015 2250 East Bidwell St., Ste #100 Folsom, CA 95630 (916) 458-5100 Fax: (916) 983-2090

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TABLE OF CONTENTS Section Page VOLUME 1 of 3 Executive Summary (this volume) 1.1 Policy Choices Framework... 1 1.2 Citygate s Overall Opinions on the State of the District s Fire Services... 1 1.3 Challenge Field Operations Deployment (Fire Stations)... 2 1.4 Overall Deployment Evaluation... 3 1.5 Overall Headquarters Services Evaluation... 4 1.6 Deployment Findings and Recommendations... 7 1.7 Headquarters and Support Services Findings and Recommendations... 11 1.8 Next Steps... 16 1.8.1 Short-Term Steps... 17 1.8.2 Long-Term Steps... 17 Table of Tables Table 11, Volume 2 Dispatched to 1 st Arrival Minutes/Seconds for FY 13/14...2 VOLUME 2 of 3 Standards of Cover and Headquarters Services Assessment Technical Report (separately bound) VOLUME 3 of 3 Map Atlas (separately bound) Table of Contents page i

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VOLUME 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY The Cosumnes Fire Department (the Department), a division of the Cosumnes Community Services District (the District) retained Citygate Associates, LLC to perform a Standards of Cover Assessment for field deployment and a review of headquarters staffing functions for the Fire Department. This study included reviewing the adequacy of the existing deployment system from the current fire station locations. This report is presented in two volumes, including this Executive Summary (Volume 1) summarizing our findings and recommendations, and a Technical Report (Volume 2) that includes a Standards of Coverage (deployment) assessment and a headquarters staffing review. 1.1 POLICY CHOICES FRAMEWORK First, as the District s Board of Directors understands, there are no mandatory federal or state regulations directing the level of fire service response times and outcomes. The body of regulations on the fire service provides that if fire services are provided, they must be done so with the safety of the firefighters and citizens in mind (see regulatory discussion in Volume 2). Historically, the District has made significant investments in its fire services, and as a result, has good fire and emergency medical services (EMS) response coverage in the most populated sections of the District in the cities of Elk Grove and Galt. 1.2 CITYGATE S OVERALL OPINIONS ON THE STATE OF THE DISTRICT S FIRE SERVICES In brief, Citygate finds that the challenge of providing fire services in the District is similar to that found in many suburban communities: providing an adequate level of fire services within the context of limited fiscal resources, competing needs, growing and aging populations, plus uncertainty surrounding the exact timing of future development in areas of both cities that have not yet built out. The District today is currently meeting its needs through its own fire response resources and, on occasions, through the use of partnerships with its neighbors in the automatic and mutual aid system. The deployment system largely meets the District s current demands but needs adjustment as growth occurs and both cities (and to a smaller extent, the unincorporated areas) continue to evolve to build-out of their current General Plans. Throughout this report, Citygate makes observations, key findings, and, where appropriate, specific action item page 1

recommendations. Overall, there are 34 key findings and 30 specific action item recommendations. 1.3 CHALLENGE FIELD OPERATIONS DEPLOYMENT (FIRE STATIONS) Fire department deployment, simply stated, is about the speed and weight of the attack. Speed calls for first-due, all-risk intervention units (engines, ladder trucks, and/or ambulances) strategically located across a department. These units are tasked with controlling moderate emergencies without the incident escalating to second alarm or greater size, which unnecessarily depletes department resources as multiple requests for service occur. Weight is about multipleunit response for serious emergencies such as a room and contents structure fire, a multiplepatient incident, a vehicle accident with extrication required, or a heavy rescue incident. In these situations, enough firefighters must be assembled within a reasonable time frame to safely control the emergency, thereby keeping it from escalating to greater alarms. In Volume 2 of this study, Standards of Cover and Headquarters Services Assessment Technical Report, Citygate s analysis of prior response statistics and use of geographic mapping tools reveals that the District has adequate fire station coverage for the existing most populated areas. The maps provided in Volume 3 and the corresponding text explanation beginning in Volume 2 describes in detail the District s current deployment system performance. For effective outcomes on serious medical emergencies and to keep serious, but still-emerging, fires small, best practices recommend that the first-due fire unit should arrive within 7 minutes of fire dispatch alerting the fire unit, 90% of the time. In the District, the current fire station system provides the following unit coverage, across a variety of population density/risk areas for emergency medical and fire incident types: Table 11, Volume 2 Dispatched to 1 st Arrival Minutes/Seconds for FY 13/14 Station Dispatched to 1 st Arrival Time 45 06:26 46 09:59 71 06:48 72 09:35 73 07:00 74 07:21 75 07:52 76 07:04 page 2

As Volume 2 of this report will detail, the dispatch and crew turnout times are good. However, the travel times are long, resulting in total response times past a Citygate recommended and best practices consistent goal of 7 minutes from fire dispatch receiving the 9-1-1 call. In the District, the travel times are long, reflective of the size of some station areas and for road network design and open space areas. Short of adding more stations or peak-hour activity units for simultaneous incidents, for a modest number of emergencies between the 7 th and 10 th minute of total response time, given the District s geography, there is no way to appreciably lower the travel times. The Department is staffed for two serious building fires at a time and multiple medical calls for service at the same time. The regional automatic and mutual aid response system delivers greater alarm and multiple-incident support, when needed, although with longer response times. 1.4 OVERALL DEPLOYMENT EVALUATION The Department serves a diverse land use pattern in a geographically challenging area in the Sacramento Valley. Permanent open spaces, freeways, and waterways bisect the communities served. Population drives service demand and development brings population. The outer, more lightly-populated and rural areas of the District have slower response times typical of rural areas in similar sections of California. While the state-mandated Fire Code requires fire sprinklers in dwellings, it will be many more decades before enough buildings are added, replaced, or remodeled using automatic fire sprinklers. For the foreseeable future, the District will need both first-due firefighting unit and Effective Response Force (First Alarm) coverage in all parts of the District, consistent with current best practices for differing population densities and risks to be protected. The District has appropriately looked ahead and already obtained land for additional fire stations in growth areas. As this study will show, the stations are generally well located, but fine-tuning could be necessary as final subdivisions are given final design approvals and actually built. If the District wants to provide the three outcomes below, the District needs the current eight fire stations and at least three additional stations across southern Elk Grove. Provide equitable response times to all similar risk neighborhoods Provide for depth of response when multiple incidents occur Provide for a concentration of response forces in the core for high risk venues. For its current risks and desired outcomes, the Department has the correct quantity of fire engines (pumpers) and ladder trucks, partially due to its strong automatic aid partnerships with the neighboring fire departments. The Department has enough ambulances, except at peak hours of the day, when the four ambulances in the core of Elk Grove have reached capacity. This study will set out a roadmap for adding ambulance resources over time to maintain response times as page 3

populations and incidents increase. The staffing per unit and daily total Department-wide is appropriate and consummate with the risks in urban/suburban areas. The first deployment step for the District in the near term is to adopt performance measures from which to set forth service expectations and, on an annual basis, monitor Fire Department performance as part of its annual budgeting process. Then the District should strive to fund the addition of a seventh part-time ambulance, and over time, provide for the needed replacement or repair of fire stations as they continue to age. New stations can be built with impact fees and staffed when there is enough increased revenue to do so from aggregate new development. 1.5 OVERALL HEADQUARTERS SERVICES EVALUATION Citygate s review of headquarters programs revealed three over-arching issues facing the Department: 1. Becoming a data-driven organization The Department has significant problems with the quality and completeness of incident response data, and that is only one of several issues with the Department s current Records Management System (RMS) (Firehouse). In addition, the Department had a paramedic patient Electronic Patient Care Report (epcr) for a period of time and reverted back to a paper PCR system due to significant issues with the program. The Department is implementing ImageTrend, a web-hosted RMS that also includes an integrated epcr and electronic fire inspections. The challenge now is the staff time to complete the configuration of the system and then presenting training for the new RMS and ensuring compliance. This will be a first step in becoming a data-driven organization. 2. Training and Development There is a training facility and a training schedule, but there is no comprehensive training plan or comprehensive career development program. The training section provides a lot of training appropriate for a department of this size. The Battalion Chief in charge of the training program understands the critical issues on which the firefighters need to focus, but without a comprehensive career development based training program, there is less consistency. For example, the recruit academy for this year will be 22 weeks long, the prior academy was 16 weeks long; the Department recently had emergency vehicle operation training at the Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District (Metro Fire) training site for which it traded use of its tower to Metro Fire, but given the out-of-district time and cost, now the Department is wondering if it should travel to Metro Fire s site again. In addition, the Department now provides technical rescue and paramedic-based EMS, and the Department struggles to keep training page 4

and continuing education current with mandated training requirements for both services. A career development plan that mapped out the basics of a career from Firefighter through Battalion Chief would encourage employees who wished to get ahead and pursue development. It would also provide all employees with a clear road map for career development; senior employees could use it to mentor junior employees; and junior employees could map out their careers from the start. 3. Organizational Design Imbalance Due to Recession-Induced Constraints What are the Department s strategic priorities in a new economy? Pre-recession, over years of explosive community growth, the District was able to fund a generous level of fire services, especially in administrative programs, which is frankly atypical for most suburban fire departments with eight fire stations. Many programs were added for an all-risk response system, even if the actual risks and probabilities of some incident types were small. The Department still has programs at some levels that only large departments provide. The recession caused serious personnel reductions, first in headquarters and then in line fire station staffing. In all, 11.5 full-time headquarters positions were eliminated. Three 24-hour shift-based Battalion Chiefs were eliminated who covered the southern District and Galt areas. Three line firefighter positions (one per shift) on both Rescue Engine 45 and Rescue Engine 71 were eliminated. Since April 2013, the Department has been browning-out (closing) one engine per shift. As a result, the affected companies are not staffed 87% of the time. The Department is beginning to phase-out of this reduction. The current organization chart shows an organization that is somewhat out of balance. The Fire Chief has two direct reports, the Deputy Chief and Fire Marshal, and in theory, co-responsibility for the entire Administration section. The Administration section contains 4.75 positions; however, no one person is in charge of overall administration. The reporting in this area is split between the Fire Chief and Deputy Chief. The Administrative Battalion Chief reports to the Deputy Chief and the Senior Management Analyst (budget and finance) reports to the Fire Chief. Both of these two positions have large responsibilities. Then the Assistant to the Fire Chief, while reporting to the Fire Chief, is one of only 3.5 office support professionals in the entire headquarters unit. One of these positions is dedicated to ambulance billing. The Assistant to the Fire Chief is also tasked with assisting the Deputy Chief and some of his direct reports. page 5

The Deputy Chief has ten direct reports including the three Duty Battalion Chiefs, Special Operations, EMS, Training, Fleet Management, an Administration Battalion Chief, and logistics. The span of control for the Deputy Chief is an issue that both the Fire Chief and Operations Chief realize and understand is untenable for long-term organizational effectiveness. For the Operations Chief, it is beyond the organizational span of control norms utilized by the Incident Command System (ICS) of 3 to 7 personnel reporting. There is also, by any measure used in Citygate s experience, an insufficient number of Office Support Professionals at a total of 3.5, one of whom is totally committed to ambulance billing. As a result, office support work not completed either remains incomplete or flows to the Assistant to the Fire Chief, who has to work extra hours frequently to keep up. During the recession-caused reductions, one Administration Specialist was cut which leads to the workload challenges today and going forward faced by the office support team. The result is that many of the Department s headquarters staff feel overwhelmed with administrative work, a growing new development and emergency incident volume, and yet, not a dramatic economic recovery in overall revenues. The normal human feeling is, if we only had the lost positions back, everything would be fine. The reality is that the Department has persevered, gained efficiencies, and headquarters personnel often work outside normal working hours to complete the administrative work. Revenues have not yet completely recovered and may not for a long period of time. In the near future, it is not possible, nor necessary, to add back every reduced position; however, a balance must be achieved. However, the economy based on housing wealth has been permanently damaged. Recovery, if at all, will not be as rapid as the downturn. Citygate believes that some members in the Department have yet to confront and address the new economic realities. For the first time in years, in the current members careers, the Department really has to determine service priorities and methods to triage them in importance against realistic revenues. Some services may have to stop, be curtailed, or performed increasingly on a shared basis with regional partners. This study and the accompanying strategic plan will guide the Department members and District leadership through these issues and solidify a data-driven, cost-beneficial fire and EMS services plan for the future. The recession-caused reduction in headquarters and line supervision positions cannot all be restored immediately or completely, given current revenue forecasts. The Department has to triage its remaining headquarters capacity to the programs that deliver day-to-day services first, page 6

along with ensuring safe, effective operations for the workforce. Overall, Citygate suggests the Department s leadership both command and union adopt the theme of Meet Mandates, Live Within Your Revenues. 1.6 DEPLOYMENT FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Citygate s deployment findings and recommendations are listed below. For reference purposes, the findings and recommendation numbers refer to the sequential numbers as these are presented in the technical report volume. Finding #1: Finding #2: Finding #3: Finding #4: The District Directors have not adopted a complete and best-practices-based deployment measure or set of specialty response measures for all-risk emergency responses that includes the beginning time measure from the point of fire dispatch receiving the 9-1-1 phone call, nor a goal statement tied to risks and outcome expectations. The deployment measure should have a second measurement statement to define multiple-unit response coverage for serious emergencies. Making these deployment goal changes will meet the best practice recommendations of the Commission on Fire Accreditation International. The Department has a standard response dispatching plan that considers the risk of different types of emergencies and pre-plans the response. Each type of call for service receives the combination of engine companies, truck companies, ambulances, specialty units, and command officers customarily needed to handle that type of incident based on fire department experience. Apparatus staffing is appropriate for the size and risks present in the District. Using the current eight fire station locations, not including automatic aid stations, the highest population density developed areas are within 4 minutes travel time of a fire station. This does not occur in southeast Elk Grove, where an additional station is planned. Finding #5: A neighborhood-based fire unit within a best practice recommendation of 4 to 5 minutes travel time covers all of the District s neighborhoods, except for small outer-edge areas. Finding #6: Finding #7: The District s urban population density areas are within 8 minutes travel time of an Effective Response Force assignment of 4 engines, 2 ladder trucks, 2 Battalion Chiefs, and 1 ambulance unit. The three proposed additional fire stations in southern Elk Grove would improve first-due unit and multiple-unit coverage. Given the unknown timing of growth in page 7

each station area, it cannot be determined at this time which station will be needed first. Finding #8: Finding #9: Eventually, the District will be too large for one ladder truck once at least two of the three new southern Elk Grove stations are opened. The best-fit location for a second ladder truck would be Station 78b for southern Elk Grove coverage and to provide a closer ladder truck to Galt. While Galt has long-term plans to develop more, especially in the northeast area, the need and location for a third fire station cannot easily be determined at this time. When final subdivision plans are approved and funded for construction, a fire station location could be determined. Finding #10: When the third fire station is open in Galt, the City is too far from the southern Elk Grove ladder truck at site 78b. Finding #11: The District s time of day, day of week, and month of year calls for service demands are very consistent. This means the District needs to operate a fairly consistent 24/7/365 response system. Finding #12: The Sacramento Regional Fire/EMS Communications Center s dispatch processing times are very good and meet national recommendations. Finding #13: The District s turnout times are consistently under 2 minutes from station to station, which is very good. As such, no corrective action is needed. Finding #14: The travel times in the District are long which is reflective of the size of some station areas and other reasons. Short of adding more stations or peak-hour activity units for simultaneous incidents, for a modest number of emergencies between the 4 th and 7 th minute of travel, given the District s geography, there is no way to appreciably lower the travel times. Finding #15: The Department is presently tracking incident response time stamps for units by chassis IDs which does not allow determination of first-due unit total response time measures and Effective Response Force (First Alarm) time measures. Finding #16: Due to high daylight hour ambulance utilization and multi-unit commitment demand, the Department is close to needing to field a part-time ambulance during weekday business hours in Elk Grove. Recommendation #1: Given the uncertain timing and location of new development in southern Elk Grove, the Department has to retest the existing three page 8

proposed station sites to determine if they are still in the best locations as final subdivision streets are approved and better fire unit time-overdistance analysis can be conducted. Recommendation #2: Recommendation #3: Recommendation #4: Recommendation #5: Recommendation #6: Recommendation #7: When the District adds at least two more fire stations and becomes too large for one ladder truck, the District should add a second ladder truck at Station 78b for southern Elk Grove coverage and to provide a closer ladder truck to Galt. If the proposed growth in Galt occurs, especially in the northeast area, a third fire station location should be planned. It is too soon to locate the exact best fire parcel. Once a third station in Galt is added, the District can determine if risks and incident workloads require staffing a third engine and an aerial ladder truck as a fourth unit in Galt, or having the third station unit be a single crew quint (pumper/ladder truck). The Department has to stop tracking time stamps by chassis IDs and convert to tracking fire engine unit numbers that align with fire station area IDs. The implementation of the ImageTrend Records Management System will address this problem. Due to high daylight hour ambulance utilization and multi-unit commitment demand, the Department is close to needing to add a part-time ambulance during weekday business hours in Elk Grove. Adopt Updated District Board of Directors Deployment Measures Policies: The District elected officials should adopt updated, bestpractices-based performance measures to direct fire crew planning and to monitor the operation of the Department. The measures of time should be designed to deliver outcomes that will save patients medically salvageable upon arrival; and to keep small, but serious fires from becoming greater alarm fires. With this is mind, Citygate recommends the following measures: 7.1 Distribution of Fire Stations: To treat medical patients and control small fires, the first-due unit should arrive within 7 minutes, 90% of the time from the receipt of the 9-1-1 call in the regional fire dispatch center. This equates to 1 minute page 9

dispatch time, 2 minutes company turnout time, and 4 minutes drive time in the most populated areas. 7.2 Multiple-Unit Effective Response Force for Serious Emergencies: To confine fires near the room of origin, to stop wildland fires to under three acres when noticed promptly, and to treat up to five medical patients at once, a multiple-unit response force from the regionally agreed to response plan consisting of a minimum of 4 engines, 2 ladder trucks, 1 ambulance, and two chief officers (one from automatic aid) totaling 20 personnel should arrive within 11:00 minutes from the time of 9-1-1 call receipt in fire dispatch, 90% of the time. This equates to 1 minute dispatch time, 2 minutes company turnout time, and 8 minutes drive time spacing for multiple units in the most populated areas. 7.3 Hazardous Materials Response: Provide hazardous materials response designed to protect the community from the hazards associated with uncontrolled release of hazardous and toxic materials. The goal of the Fire Department response is to minimize or halt the release of a hazardous substance so it has minimal impact on the community. It can achieve this with a travel time in urban to suburban areas for the first company capable of investigating a HazMat release at the operations level within 4 minutes travel time or less than 90% of the time. After size-up and scene evaluation is completed, a determination will be made whether to request additional resources from the Department s multi-agency hazardous materials response partnership. 7.4 Technical Rescue: Respond to technical rescue emergencies as efficiently and effectively as possible with enough trained personnel to facilitate a successful rescue. Achieve a travel time for the first company in urban to suburban areas for size-up of the rescue within 4 minutes travel time or less 90% of the time. Assemble additional resources for technical rescue capable of initiating a rescue within a total response time of 11 minutes, 90% of the time. Safely complete rescue/extrication to ensure delivery of patient to a definitive care facility. page 10

1.7 HEADQUARTERS AND SUPPORT SERVICES FINDINGS AND RECOMMENDATIONS Citygate s headquarters services findings and recommendations are listed below. Finding #17: The Fire Chief s and Deputy Chief s spans of control are too big, leaving them not just with too many direct reports, but requiring them to perform day-to-day technical supervision instead of advance planning, labor relations, budgeting, and intra-agency coordination. Finding #18: The Department s headquarters has an insufficient number of office support professionals. Of the 3.5 personnel, one is dedicated solely to ambulance billing. Finding #19: The Fire Prevention Bureau does not have solid data upon which to conduct a workload analysis or to develop service priorities. Finding #20: The Fire Prevention Bureau tries to perform everything it did pre-recession where it could use a risk probabilities based approach, including different inspection time cycles for some services. Finding #21: The Fire Prevention Bureau does not have even one full-time general office support position. Finding #22: Other than for new development plan check fees, the Fire Prevention Bureau does not issue operating/inspection permits to the higher risk of fire businesses, nor collect fees for these permits. Other agencies of a similar or larger size do operate permit and fee programs. Finding #23: Due to the volume of paramedics and incidents, the EMS Division staff is inadequate to meet County and State mandates. Finding #24: The Department s leadership structure in EMS should not depend on volunteer Battalion Chiefs and Captains in two-year rotations. EMS is a very specialized profession and should be managed as such. Finding #25: The EMS Division, similar to the Fire Prevention Bureau, is operating without a clear services master plan, set of priorities, and multi-year funding for capital equipment. Finding #26: The best practice of NFPA 1500 Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program is a critical element in a comprehensive fire department safety and health program. The Department has not officially adopted this best practice. page 11

Finding #27: The best practice of NFPA 1403 Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions is the result of tragic training incidents where firefighters were killed or seriously injured. While aware of and using NFPA 1403, the Department has not officially adopted this best practice in total. Finding #28: Outside of the various policy and procedures statements based on the best practices, the Department does not have a comprehensive safety and health program plan. Finding #29: The Department is not using its incident and employee injury records to compile data and identify potential safety problems before they cause injuries or property damage. Finding #30: While many of the components of a training program that meet best practices are in place in the Department, there is no overall training policy/program that provides general guidance to the employees, the program manager, and the budgeting process. Finding #31: The Department s training program staffing is sufficient for the Department s current size, with the following caveats: 1. The EMS program needs the additional recommended position in the EMS section of this study to allow for the impact on EMS for new firefighter training. 2. The technical rescue captain remains part of the training team. 3. The Battalion Chief continues to be a program manager, not an instructor. 4. The use of station personnel to develop expertise in a specific training area (ladders, ropes, salvage covers, hose lays, hardware, elevators, etc.) is continued. They teach that subject as directed by the training officer. The permanent training captains would oversee the more advanced and intense delivery of training such as live firefighting practice, driver operator, etc. Finding #32: The technical rescue program has a very limited number of responses (averaging 6 per year) and the Department does not directly provide all of the required training; interested personnel have to obtain the training on their own time. Finding #33: The Department has a fire apparatus replacement program, partially funded with supplemental ambulance transport revenues for the replacements when they become needed. page 12

Finding #34: The Department s fleet apparatus and specialty tool preventive maintenance and repair program is excellent and meets the Department s needs. Recommendation #8: Recommendation #9: Recommendation #10: Recommendation #11: Recommendation #12: To reduce the span of control on the Fire Chief and Deputy Chief, as funds allow, an Administration Manager should be added to supervise all general administration functions. Add one office support position as soon as possible to be shared with field operations and fire prevention. Conduct an internal discussion regarding the final form, duties, and types of mid-manager positions to improve the balance of the Fire and Deputy Chief direct reports and overall workloads of the headquarters team more equitably. Set up and annually fund incremental payments to capital fleet, tool, and building repair/replacement funds. Include IT, radios, selfcontained breathing apparatus (SCBA), and EMS electronics in addition to fleet and stations. Management oversight needs to stress: 12.1 Developing a data-driven decision-making culture. 12.2 Scheduling time monthly for shared leadership and decision making, not just informational meetings. 12.3 Preparing a retirement schedule for all positions at the Fire Captain level and above. Design a partial succession plan to involve interested parties in organizational work above their current job descriptions. Recommendation #13: Recommendation #14: Recommendation #15: The Fire Prevention Bureau needs to immediately begin collecting solid data upon which to analyze its time efforts on all of its services. At least an additional half-time general office support (clerical) position, shared with field operations, is needed in the Fire Prevention Bureau in the next budget cycle. Slightly increase the number of existing personnel trained to basic fire investigator level to improve the after-hours rotation system that currently only has two positions assigned. page 13

Recommendation #16: Recommendation #17: Evaluate, design, and gain approval for an expanded operating permit and fee system for fire prevention maintenance of code inspection activities for existing commercial/industrial buildings. Once effective workload measures are established, the Fire Prevention Bureau needs to develop a prevention services master plan that should consider, at a minimum: 17.1 Prioritizing services to risks. 17.2 Establishing an operating permit and fee program. 17.3 Placing commercial maintenance inspections on a triaged 1- to 3-year cycle. 17.4 Contracting out for major plan checks. 17.5 Training city/county building inspectors to perform residential fire sprinkler inspections on subdivision production housing. 17.6 Performing self inspections. 17.7 Returning some inspections to the line fire crews. 17.8 Implementing a robust e-data system and a process to scan or eliminate paper records at legal retention intervals. 17.9 Adding an Assistant Fire Marshal / Lead Inspector position as finances and workload dictate. Recommendation #18: Recommendation #19: The EMS Division, as soon as possible, needs another 40-hour/week technical position for Quality Assurance and Continuous Quality Improvement programs. Once good workload measures are established, the Department needs to develop an EMS services master plan that should consider at a minimum: 19.1 Total staff needed. 19.2 Identification of a leadership plan that is not as rotational and uses some if not all non-sworn EMS professionals. 19.3 Service and training priorities. 19.4 Emphasizing data-driven Quality Assurance and Continuous Quality Improvement. page 14

Recommendation #20: Recommendation #21: Recommendation #22: Recommendation #23: Recommendation #24: Recommendation #25: The Department should consider officially adopting specific relevant portions of NFPA 1500 Standard on Fire Department Occupational Safety and Health Program, which is a critical element in a comprehensive fire department safety and health program. The Department should consider officially and completely adopting NFPA 1403 Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions, which is the result of tragic training incidents where firefighters were killed or seriously injured. The Department has to expedite the design and approval of a comprehensive safety and health program plan with the understanding that it is a living document and that over time it will be amended and edited as necessary. The wellness program appears to operate by itself separate from the Department s safety and health and training efforts. As part of a comprehensive risk management program review, the Department should examine this relationship and determine if it is working or if the wellness program needs to be more closely coordinated with safety and health and training. Train employees on the value of an accident and injury prevention program and how reporting is a key element to the understanding of accidents and injuries and how they can be prevented in the future. Develop a Board of Directors policy that directs the training and safety program s key requirements that, at a minimum, should include a career development path as well as necessary knowledge, skills, and abilities education and training at each level of responsibility from firefighter through chief officer. Utilize current best practice standards as guidance and reference. Simultaneously ensure that the program is realistic and reasonable for both necessary funding from the District and time commitments from the employees. NFPA 1001 Standard for Fire Fighter Professional Qualifications, NFPA 1002 Standard for Fire Apparatus Driver Operator Professional Qualifications, and NFPA 1021 Standard for Fire Officer Professional Qualifications should form the foundation for the Department s training and career development program. page 15

Recommendation #26: Recommendation #27: Recommendation #28: The Department should officially adopt NFPA 1403 Standard on Live Fire Training Evolutions in total. Consider working closely with the other three Sacramento County region career departments to pool resources and policies and, over time, develop a regional fire training program. Training Planning and Priorities: 28.1 Review the content and needed length of the 22-week fire academy versus new firefighter intake certifications minimums. 28.2 Design and implement an annual training calendar that revolves around a 3-year cycle with regulated mandates occurring annually. Track and enforce make-ups for all mandates. 28.3 Once the mandated training schedule is set, compare it to a typical incident frequency. Consider shrinking or ending services that cannot be kept OSHA-compliant (technical rescue and water rescue). Contract with the City of Sacramento or Metro Fire to perform the services the Department cannot economically provide. Recommendation #29: Recommendation #30: The Department should conduct an in-depth review of its higherprobability rescue incident risks and consider whether a comprehensive program capable of handling everything is costeffective for the District, given its size. The District should strongly consider incrementally funding a capital apparatus replacement plan, in lieu of waiting, and if cash is not available when a unit is needed, then using debt financing at an additional cost. The current supplemental ambulance revenues being deposited into this reserve account will be inadequate for the necessary purchases. 1.8 NEXT STEPS The purpose of a Standards of Cover and Headquarters Services Assessment study is to compare the District s current performance against the local risks to be protected as well as to compare against nationally recognized best practices. This analysis of performance forms the base from which to make recommendations for changes, if any, in fire station locations, equipment types, page 16

staffing, and headquarters programs. Citygate recommends that the District s next steps be to work through the issues identified in this study over the following time lines: 1.8.1 Short-Term Steps Absorb the policy recommendations of this fire services study and adopt revised Fire Department performance measures to drive the deployment of firefighting and emergency medical resources. Add the following two positions as soon as possible: another office support position and EMS Quality Assurance position. Designate a temporary Administration Manager and assign the duties suggested in this report to balance the span of control load on the Fire Chief and Deputy Fire Chief. Develop a job description and recruit for an Administration Manager. Meet with the current and potential managers and employee representatives to determine the final upper management organization chart design and job titles. Prepare the Fire Prevention internal assessment and master plan for services and fee recommendations. Determine the funding and timing for the addition of a part-time seventh ambulance in Elk Grove. 1.8.2 Long-Term Steps Develop the training and EMS internal master plans. Consider the use of non-sworn personnel in the EMS program. Monitor the performance of the Fire Department s deployment system using the adopted deployment measures and the methods in this study. Plan for the staffing, operating, and maintenance cost for the addition of three fire stations in southern Elk Grove in the Capital Improvement budget. page 17