REGIONAL firefighters are renowned for looking out for each other as well as the community and District 4 is in the spotlight for its support of its brothers and sisters-in-arms with the latest Spirit of CFA Awards.

The ‘Stressful Incident After Action Review’ was initiated by Group officer for Merino, Wayne Munro and a district planning committee meeting in early 2019, consisting of group officers and commanders throughout CFA District 4.

The review and resulting document were celebrated as an Excellence in Innovation at the latest state CFA awards ceremony and Mr Munro said he was “very happy we got recognised for the work that the DPC have done”.

Discussion leading to the resource’s development was triggered by a report tabled to the committee meeting, which indicated while the previous year had been quiet for fires, there was a large increase in CFA attendance at motor vehicle accidents with fatalities or serious injuries.

The remoteness of some accident scenes meant CFA members could be on the scene for up to an hour before an ambulance arrived and the key issue raised was members taking home the burden of what they had dealt with, which could spread to family members as secondary Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

“I wouldn’t think there’d be a volunteer who has attended critical incidents who hasn’t been affected in some way,” Mr Munro said.

“You go to a big fire or you go to a car accident and you spend a lot of time thinking about what happened and how it happened and what you could have done better.”

The resulting review document was designed to provide better support and debriefings with members before they went home.

District 4 officer, Tim Phillips said local members were “very happy” to use it.

“It just starts the conversation of what they’ve seen, what they could’ve done, what actually happened, what worked well and what didn’t work well,” Mr Phillips said.

Mr Munro added it was breaking down barriers.

“It also highlights the fact that they’re not on their own and everyone’s going through these things together, which is critical,” he said.

The document lists seven important points to be considered in debriefings, beginning with the goals and objectives of response to an incident, what really happened and why it happened.

It also recommends encouraging members to reach out for support if they wish and maintaining contact with them.

Finally, it encourages leaders to contact private and confidential support services if they need help as looking out for others adds another layer to their work.

The document stresses the importance of not forcing members to talk about incidents.

Mr Phillips highlighted the additional self-assessment tool included in the document, which allowed members to compare their health signs.

“If you’re actually starting to show different signs, it’s something to basically tell you to start looking for a bit of help or start looking for somebody to talk to,” he said.

The document has since been distributed to all volunteer fire brigades in District 4 and has been hung in motor rooms and offices and placed in vehicles for easy access.

Other CFA districts in Victoria also subsequently adopted the resource in their brigades and Mr Munro said CFA headquarters had requested a copy to consider deploying the initiative statewide.

CFA and community mentor

THE innovation award is not the only accolade for District 4 at the Spirit of CFA Awards.

District 4 Commander, Terry Heafield’s commitments to mental health support and awareness saw him recognised with the Inclusion and Fairness Champion Award.

Mr Heafield actively mentors people both inside and outside the CFA – offering guidance and support to people with challenging life situations – and gives his time to many individuals and volunteer organisations across the region.

He consistently participates in mental health awareness raising initiatives and activities, including bike rides, long walks and guest speaking opportunities.

In 2016, following his own personal struggle with mental health and as part of his own journey of recovery, Mr Heafield embarked on a ‘Don’t Do It Alone’ bike ride around Victoria to raise awareness about mental health issues in the fire services.

In 2018, he received a standing ovation for his part in the Emergency Service Foundation Volunteer Leaders Forum and was also interviewed for Foxtel’s ‘The Sally-Anne Show’.

Mr Heafield has also presented at several United Firefighters Union forums and facilitated several R U OK? Days, while also undertaking an ambassador role for White Ribbon.

He has lived in Portland since 2017 and been a career firefighter with the CFA for almost 20 years.