NFPA Journal - May/June 2012 - (Page 66)

— . CODES IN REVIEW . — NFPA 1500 + 1582 didates, while Chapter 9 contains the medical requirements for fire department members when getting their annual medical physicals. Of all the fire service occupational safety and health documents, NFPA 1582 seems to attract the most attention, mainly because the standard contains requirements that can be somewhat controversial, depending on your perspective. That isn’t likely to change with the next edition of NFPA 1582, which includes three areas where significant revisions have occurred: amputees and joint replacement, diabetes and endo- jobs. That is simply no longer the case, however. Due to rapid advancements in technology, such as prosthetics having a higher failure threshold when exposed to heat and the improvement of some joints in joint replacements, the committee realized it was time to re-evaluate the requirements of the standard. The committee’s discussions revolved around a central question, which was essentially this: “If the military allows certain prosthetics to be used in combat, why can’t the fire service do the same?” The committee recognizes that with state-of-the-art prosthetics and joints available, a more thorough evaluation must take place when assessing the fire department The quesTion was, ‘if the military allows certain prosthetics to be used in combat, then why can’t the fire service do the same?’ p Advancements in prosthetics and artificial joints led to changes in NFPA 1582 that could benefit people who use the devices, like this firefighter in Washington who lost his legs to diabetes. crine/metabolic issues, and pregnancy. While each issue could generate enough discussion for a master’s thesis, it is important to understand why these proposed changes are significant and how they align the document and its requirements with current medical thought, application, and technology. In the area of amputees and joint replacement, the committee recognizes that technologies of the past might have precluded individuals from being considered as candidates for the fire service, or even that existing fire service members might not be able to safely perform their candidate or member that might have one of these adjuncts in place. It is because of these advancements that the committee has significantly changed these requirements. The same held true for diabetes and endocrine/metabolic issues—the committee again had to recognize that practices of the past were not as applicable today, and that the current requirements needed to change to reflect advancements in medicine and treatment modalities. The current edition states that medical conditions such as Type 1 diabetes disqualify candidates from consideration, unless they can show or prove that over a period of five years there has been no more than one hypoglycemic event. In the next edition, the committee has shortened that to three years and increased the hypoglycemic episodes to two. The current edition of NFPA 1582 includes a chapter with requirements for fire service candidates who are pregnant—described as a category B medical condition that could preclude a person from performing in a training or emergency operational environment by presenting a significant risk to the safety and health of the person or others—but there is no information in the standard about fire department members who are pregnant. What the committee has attempted to do is to establish the need for the pregnant firefighter and her physician to recognize the inherent dangers of firefighting and the potential negative impacts they may have on the mother and the unborn child. The intent of the changes is for the fire department member, her physician, and the AHJ, such as a fire chief, to work together to reach a decision on the duties the firefighter is able to perform, a decision based on all parties knowing the potential risks those duties entail and at what point those risks outweigh the benefits of being able to safely perform the job. Despite the significant changes to the new editions of NFPA 1500 and NFPA 1582, there is still a lot of work to be done. The overarching goal, after all, is to minimize the number of firefighter injuries and deaths through the development, adoption, and application of our occupational safety and health standards. Considering the ever-changing landscape of the fire service and the risks faced by firefighters on every call, it is essential that the requirements that revolve around occupational safety and health must also change. Kendall Holland is a fire service specialist at NFPA. 66 NFPA JOURNAL MAY/JUNE 2012 PHOTOGRAPH: AP/WIDE WORLD

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of NFPA Journal - May/June 2012

Nfpa Journal - May/june 2012
Contents
First Word
In a Flash
Perspectives
Firewatch
Research
Heads Up
Structural Ops
In Compliance
Buzz Words
Outreach
Electrical Safety
Wildfire Watch
Treasurer's Report
Signal Concern
Giant Steps
13^3
Sprinklered Menagerie?
Free Samples
Eye on Health Care
Membership: The Sections
Expo Preview: Exhibitors' Showcase
Looking Back

NFPA Journal - May/June 2012