February is American Heart Month, and we’re marking the occasion by highlighting the importance of cardiovascular health and spreading awareness for the unique cardiac risks facing Minnesota’s firefighters.

Heart disease is a leading cause of death in the U.S., but did you know it’s also the number-one killer of firefighters nationwide? More than 12% of all firefighters will develop heart disease at some point in their lives. General risk factors for heart disease include smoking, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, age, gender and family health history – but firefighters are at an even greater risk for cardiac issues due to the following occupational risk factors:

1. High physical exertion

Most people who have heart disease don’t experience the levels of exertion that firefighters face daily. Firefighters experience sharp bouts of intense physical activity on a regular basis, and when the heart has to work harder and there’s plaque obstructing the arteries, heart attacks occur.

2. Chemical hazards

While on the job, firefighters encounter a variety of chemical hazards, including carbon monoxide, hydrogen sulfide, fine particulates and more that can lead to cardiac problems. Even though firefighters use self-contained breathing apparatuses, high levels of exposure to these chemical hazards demand more oxygen from the body.

3. Environmental issues

During firefighting activities, a firefighter’s heart rate is elevated, there’s extreme heat, adrenaline is pumping, they’re potentially working overtime and they’re at risk for secondhand smoke. These environmental factors and more make the normal risk for heart disease we see in the general population even higher for firefighters.

Firefighters are far more likely to die on the job from a heart attack than an objective hazard of firefighting such as a building collapse. Firefighters can reduce these risks and improve their health on the job and at home by embracing the pillars of a healthy lifestyle:

• Healthy diet
• Exercise
• Sleep
• Stress management
• Healthy relationships
• Avoiding substance abuse

To learn more about firefighters’ higher risks for cardiovascular disease – and what can be done to help prevent it – consider enrolling in our cardiac deep-dive class. The two-hour class is free until June 2021 and educates firefighters on heightened risk factors, the types of cardiovascular diseases that most commonly impact firefighters and prevention strategies to help firefighters lessen their risk. Register here.

As Minnesota lawmakers meet to kick off the 2021 legislative session, we’re urging them to support the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program (HF0377) and prioritize funding to combat the life-threatening health issues facing Minnesota’s fire service.

Minnesota ranks 48^th in the nation in per-capita fire service spending. Critical funding shortages make it difficult for fire service leaders to prioritize firefighter health measures and equipment, such as department-wide health check-ups, gear-cleaning tools and mental health resources. That’s why MnFIRE is lobbying Minnesota legislators for $7.3 million to ensure all of our state’s 20,000 firefighters have access to the care needed to handle a cardiac, emotional trauma or cancer diagnosis through the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program.

If the Minnesota legislature appropriates funding, the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program will:

• Provide a statewide “Critical Care” policy for all Minnesota firefighters which covers diagnoses of cancer or cardiac issues. Coverage amount is $30,000 per diagnosis.
• Create a MnFIRE Assistance Program (MnAP) for all Minnesota firefighters targeting emotional trauma issues unique to the fire service.
• Ensure additional MnFIREAP support for firefighters who remain in need beyond initial treatment sessions.
• Support ongoing annual MnFIRE Awareness training for every Minnesota firefighter. Changing the current culture and practices in the Minnesota Fire Service is integral to long-term reduction of the incidences of cardiac, emotional trauma and cancer.
• Sustain annual MnFIRE Awareness Training for medical doctors and mental health professionals statewide so all firefighters in Minnesota have regional access to informed and trained medical professionals to help with prevention, mitigation, diagnosis and treatment of cardiac, emotional trauma and cancer.

Bottom line – the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program will ensure all Minnesota firefighters can access the care they need for occupational health issues. It is soon to be introduced by Rep. Cheryl Youakim in the House and by Sen. Jeff Howe in the Senate.

Another focus for MnFIRE this legislative session is the Cancer Line-of-Duty-Death Survivor Benefit.

According to the Minnesota State Fire Chiefs Association, one in five Minnesota fire departments have reported at least one firefighter diagnosed with cancer. Minnesota has considered cancer to be an occupational disease since 1988 but still does not recognize firefighters, who by statute would be eligible for presumptive workers compensation benefits, that pass away from cancer while still employed as Line-of-Duty Deaths (LODD). The end result is that families who have lost a loved one due to a duty related illness do not receive any compensation, even though their firefighter made the ultimate sacrifice for their community.

At least 20 other states recognize firefighter deaths from cancer to be an occupational illness by statute. Minnesota firefighters deserve to know that if they should die as a result of occupational cancer that their families will be compensated.

Contact your state legislators today to let them know you support the Hometown Heroes Assistance Program and the Cancer Line-of-Duty-Death Survivor Benefit.

Wayne Kewitsch brings 25 years of experience in Minnesota’s fire service — and harrowing, first-hand understanding of the dangers firefighters face — to his new role helping firefighters across the state as MnFIRE’s first executive director. On Sunday, KSTP’s Eric Chaloux spoke with Kewitsch about his 20 years with the Richfield Fire Department, including the past nine as chief, and his goals for MnFIRE moving forward.

Kewitsch brings a dramatically unique perspective to the organization, after three recent life-threatening cardiac episodes. Cardiovascular disease is the top killer of firefighters nationwide and is by far the leading cause of line-of-duty deaths in the fire service. Kewitsch is working to prevent health scares like his own from happening to any other firefighters.

Consequently, Kewitsch is leading MnFIRE’s efforts to provide all of Minnesota’s 20,000 firefighters with free health and wellness training to become “MnFIRE Aware” of their own occupational risks, thanks to a $400,000 grant from the Fire Service Advisory Committee. The training, taught by firefighters and other health experts, teaches firefighters how to protect themselves from the three most common problems experienced by firefighters: cardiac, emotional trauma and cancer, so they can continue to do their jobs and protect others.

“We want to make sure we take care of our firefighters while they take care of the community,” says Kewitsch.

Thanks to Eric Chaloux for highlighting this critical work. Watch the full interview here.

While civilians may experience traumatic events only a few times in their life, firefighters experience stressful events on a weekly, sometimes daily basis. As a result, research shows that those in the fire service experience much higher rates of mental health challenges than the general population – particularly in the areas of sleep disorders, depression, substance abuse, post-traumatic stress disorder and suicidal ideation/action.

There’s no magic vaccine for PTSD or the mental health challenges listed above, but building emotional resilience before responding to a stressful call can significantly diminish the potential damage.

The American Psychological Association defines resilience as “the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or significant sources of stress.” It is the ability to “bounce back” after a difficult or traumatic experience.

Actively trying to prevent, or at least mitigate, the negative reactions to traumatic stress before the exposure to events occurs is key to reducing the risks of firefighting both mentally and physically.

Developing this emotional and mental resilience in the fire service starts with:

• Learning self-awareness and understanding stress – identifying the stressors a firefighter faces every day is the first step to addressing and coping with them.
• Communicating emotions – learning how to communicate your feelings is essential in connecting with others and overcoming trauma. Failure to talk about a traumatic memory creates a dangerous feedback loop and sharing feelings with a supportive community can help a first responder feel like they are not alone.
• Identifying coping resources – from counseling services to peer support, MnFIRE’s equipping firefighters with healthy resources to address emotional trauma and build up that resilience. Teaching actionable tips to protect firefighters from emotional trauma is key to reducing the stigma around asking for mental health help.

A proactive mental health program is also key to helping firefighters develop this emotional resilience, saving the lives of brothers and sisters in the fire service while saving fire departments significant time and money in the long run. Some of the fundamental pieces of these behavioral health programs include:

• Regular mental health or behavioral health education
• Employee Assistance Program (EAP)
• Easy access to counseling services – paid for by the department, union or health plan
• Formal mental health “fitness for duty” examinations
• Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) debriefings
• Family Support Night
• Peer Support Team

Although the act of fighting fires is reactive, we must be proactive about taking care of our own. As valuable as running training drills, teaching emotional resilience is the first step to preventing emotional trauma and keeping our first responders safer and healthier from the start.

Become “MnFIRE Aware” of your occupational health risks, including emotional trauma, by signing up for a MnFire Awareness Training. This training is ideal for departments who have not had previous MnFIRE trainings and is taught by firefighters and other health experts. Thanks to a grant from the Fire Service Advisory Committee (FSAC), this training is being offered both online and in-person at no cost to MN fire departments through June 30, 2021.