Health + Wellness in Fire Protection

​The fire protection industry is built on grit, long days, grueling schedules, and a strong work ethic. It’s a trade that spans generations. Many of us grew up knowing we’d get into this field, and once you’re in, it’s hard to imagine doing anything else. But over the last few years, I’ve started asking the question – What’s the long-term cost of that hustle?

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I’ve worked in this industry for 13 years, serving in roles from engineer to technical trainer and adjunct college professor, to sales rep. For the past three years, I’ve also run an online nutrition coaching business, Changes Made Simple, Wellness + Nutrition, helping people to improve their health and lifestyle through small, sustainable changes. From that dual perspective (fire protection professional and nutrition coach), I started to notice a trend.

 

Our industry is steeped in a culture of overindulgence and convenience. Whether it’s calling late-night drinks at industry events ”networking” or surviving the workday on coffee and gas station snacks, we’ve normalized habits that actively work against our health.

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We skip meals, we run on little sleep (normalizing the “grind”), grab another energy drink or coffee instead of lunch, carry high stress with no healthy outlets, and often rely on alcohol or other substances as a coping mechanism. The gym gets skipped, fast food or “convenience” meals becomes the fallback, and chronic health conditions creep in quietly. This is how many people in the field are getting through the day. The truth is, we know this. We recognize the patterns. But we rarely talk about it, and most people have no idea where to start making a change.

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Now add in the looming workforce shift. A large percentage of our professionals are set to retire in the next five to 10 years, and we are already struggling to recruit the next generation. Younger workers are more health-conscious and looking for careers that have a work-life balance. The writing is on the wall. If we don’t evolve to meet that shift, we’ll fall behind. Until now, this hasn’t been measured in a way that reflects the reality of the job.

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In mid-2024, I set out to change that. I began researching and developing the framework for a short, completely anonymous survey designed specifically for our industry that would give us an honest picture of where we really stand. While the CDC/NIOSH BRFSS (Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System) survey collects data on chronic health issues in construction, fire protection in my opinion, has unique demands. We needed something more specific.​​

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Listen to The Dope and Tape Show where we discussed this project in more depth

Read the SprinklerAge article on this project

Read the NFSA NFSM Member Takeover Article on this project

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Stay tuned for an episode of The Fire Sprinkler Podcast!

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The survey is LIVE! Click the link above to participate.

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This can only have an impact if you participate. So far, we have responses from Africa, Asia, Europe, Central/South America, Canada, and 42 of 50 States! Can we get at least one response from each state?!

 

We would love to get at least 500 total responses, and we're just about halfway there. Please take the 10 minutes to complete the survey, and forward to your colleagues and crew.

 

Thank YOU for showing up for the industry. Your support means everything. This project doesn't work without you - and the thousands of people who show up every day to keep our industry moving.

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