By Todd Muth
This is the second in a multi-month series of articles focused on the thinking side of technical rescue. Technical rescue isn’t just a name for the special skill sets that firefighters practice, it’s a specific differentiation from fireground rescue work. Although there is nothing easy about performing a rescue on the fireground, technical rescue is truly a special calling, requiring a tremendous amount of training and, more importantly, understanding. It is, at its core, technical. It is the element of understanding that we are focused on here.
Our initial training in any of the technical rescue disciplines is a tremendous first step. That first step introduces us to the work ahead and the beginning of understanding the physics and techniques involved. Ideally, it should spark our interest to take an even deeper dive into learning. Technical rescue training is tough, and it requires a lot of physical work and mental preparation. Additionally, it can be psychologically taxing at times. The more we train, the more we can alleviate some of the challenges that come with technical rescue through competence and comfort. This will allow us to work on handling the stressors that we cannot control, such as heights, confined spaces, weather, and many others that come with the territory. Special operations fall into the “high-risk/low-frequency” category of our risk-benefit analysis. This is why we stress the importance of training and education to better prepare ourselves, and our department, for these low-frequency events that require an extremely high level of competency.
- A Technical Rescue in Rush-Hour Traffic
- Technical Rescue Size-Up: Where Do We Begin?
- Rescue Is Not Always Technical
The ’Why’ Behind Tech Rescue
What motivates any firefighter to take technical rescue classes in the first place? It could be a department directive. Maybe it’s a skill requirement for a position on a desired truck, or maybe it’s the intrinsic desire to do more for our community. For most of us, being able to offer more of ourselves is what drives us to take the extra steps in any training, be it rescue, hazmat, EMS, or anything else. We take the classes to broaden our capabilities so that we can be a valuable resource when the unexpected occurs.
Part of stepping up to that plate is understanding the self-investment and the commitment that we are making. The most important of these investments we must make is that of our time and dedication. We must commit to not only learn but also understand so that we may be able to share our knowledge with others. We must be able to communicate what we are learning and why we do things the way that we do. We must commit to taking classes, from the best instructors available, and sharing the information that we have learned with our team. We must commit to trying new equipment and staying on the cutting edge of technology.
Among all the commitments that we make, one of the most important is a commitment to staying humble. While it is critical to learn and pass on knowledge through teaching others, it is also important to be open minded and willing to listen to new ideas and techniques. This commitment to humility will help us to stay relevant with industry changes and it provides others with the opportunity to take classes and bring back what they have learned to us. Think of a self-proclaimed expert in your agency. Are others quick to share new ideas with that person or do they shy away for fear of being told why they’re wrong? We are at our best when we collaborate as a team to put together the best service model for our customers. Remember, all of us are smarter than any one of us alone.
Operations-Level vs. Technician-Level Training
It is important to understand the fundamental difference between operations-level training and technician-level training. In addition to a separation between complexity of job-performance requirements (JPRs), there is also a difference in the expectation of knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs). While both have specific value for various operational needs, let’s look at the expectations of the technician level. This is where we can focus on putting the “technical” back into technical rescue. While a certification class is of course the start to becoming a technician, it certainly is not the end of our training. Are we truly skilled technicians when we are handed our certificate of completion? Not likely, no. In fact, this is just another step along the journey into a deeper understanding of the discipline and the application of those JPRs. We must ensure that we have a true understanding of systems, safeties, capacities, capabilities, and best practices so that we are always working toward greater proficiency. Only through education and experience will we truly reach the technician level.
Consider: Are you comfortable answering tough technical questions during training, or do you find yourself looking to someone else for help? When prepping for a training, do you get nervous in anticipation that someone will ask a question that you don’t know the answer to? It’s absolutely fine if you answered in the affirmative. Every single technical rescuer has been there. As technicians, however, it’s our job to dive into the disciplines fully so that we have that information at our disposal. It is important that we never accept the ease of brushing past the details. If we don’t understand a particular aspect, then we need to put in the work and learn it. We need to research, use social media, talk to our peers, check with instructors we trust, and make the effort to develop that deeper understanding to be technically sound. If we are asked a question that we don’t know the answer to, we can accept that as an opportunity to dig in and bring the correct answer back to the individual and share it with others. Once we develop our knowledge and understanding, it becomes easier to share information with others and it will become easier to compare and contrast different ideas and concepts. This level of readiness is critical to ensure that you and your department are staying on the cutting edge and able to provide the most effective service to your community.
Getting Technical with Training
Now let’s talk about the technician approach to training. When we send our personnel out for training, are we sending them to the best options available? We should strive to ensure that we are learning from experienced instructors and in the most realistic environment. Learn from instructors who are more interested in teaching people how to understand concepts and equipment rather than just “their way” or simply the way they were originally trained. Just as we need to focus on being humble and open minded, we also want to learn from like-minded people. Many departments already have instructors on their team who fit this description, which is a great opportunity to pass along the knowledge within the department. This is also a great opportunity to develop instructors by having them teach in a comfortable environment along with other instructors whom they know and respect.
While having internal instructors is extremely valuable to the organization, it is still import to send people to outside trainings to ensure we are staying up to date and receiving the most current information and technology. When we do take outside classes, it is also important to bring back all the information that we have learned and share that among the team. Some people take a misguided approach to the old adage, “knowledge is power,” and will hoard information, thinking that will increase their perceived value. In fact, we know the importance of being approachable and willing to share our information. Along with information sharing, we also need to be able to listen to others’ ideas about the things that they have learned. Be willing to try their ideas and new equipment reinforces to our people that their experience matters and that the time they have spent is valuable and useful. Many things change rapidly in the technical rescue arena, so it is critical that our team is exposed to a wide variety of trainings. This collaboration and information sharing drives the development of best practices.
Everything that we have discussed here is easily lumped into one simple concept: being a great team member. It is important that we all do our part to become that team member, including doing our part to be technically sound in our rescue disciplines. We must have the discipline to learn on our own, outside of the classes that we take. We must share the information, knowledge, and references that we pick up along the way. And we must be approachable, humble, and willing to explore. Working together to make sure that our team is functioning at the highest level possible with the best equipment available is the job of the entire team and every member assigned to it. As Mike Brown said, technical rescue takes special training, special equipment, and, most importantly, special people. No one becomes the best in their field from experience alone. The motivation to learn, to understand, and to develop is the key to putting the “technical” into technical rescue.
Todd Muth is a veteran of the Fishers (IN) Fire Department where he serves as the A Shift battalion chief. Todd served for seven years as the dive team leader and special operations coordinator. He has been a member of the Hamilton County Rescue Task Force since 2001 and is a former member of INTF1. He also serves as a shift training officer for Fishers Fire Department. He is a member of the FDIC International HOT team and Advanced Rescue Solutions.
