By Jim Walkowski
The past year we have been very busy making sure the WFC meets your needs and addresses current issues. Our goal is to position the WFC so it can seize future opportunities. Executive Director Senter and the Board of Directors have tackled many issues, some of these issues have been manifesting over the past couple of years and the timing was right to tackle them.
The WFC remains engaged in the area of Fire-Based EMS and Community Paramedicine. In November, 2014, the WFC and the WSCFF hosted the first Community Paramedicine conference with hundreds of participants in attendance.
This conference will provide a proactive means to address critical issues for Washington State regarding the integration of EMS into community healthcare programs. This includes conducting community health needs assessments, developing healthcare partnerships, promoting collaboration, understanding regulatory, legal and financial challenges in implementing community paramedic programs, and developing financial sustainability for community paramedic and mobile integrated health care delivery programs.
Speakers from around the U.S. shared their experience in the deployment of community paramedic and mobile integrated healthcare programs in rural, suburban and urban areas. Information on pilot programs which have been deployed successfully in Washington provides unique insight for the potential of healthcare integration opportunities.
Last December, the WFC conducted a 2015-2020 Strategic Planning initiative. The initiative focused on efforts to ensure that the membership’s needs were incorporated. Ultimately, a stakeholder–driven strategic planning process was used to develop our updated strategic plan. Businesses often employ this type of process to identify market trends, allowing the service provider to focus resources while reducing risk and wasted effort. Numerous breakout sessions served to facilitate discussion on the association’s approach to a strategic direction, with focus on the WFC mission and values, as well as, the association’s perceived strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The Washington Fire Chiefs expresses a special ‘thank you’ to stakeholders who contributed to the creation of this strategic plan, as it was truly a team effort.
Recently, the long 2015 legislative session came and went with a special session now in progress to accomplish the State’s legislative business. The WFC legislative team worked collaboratively with our elected leadership and other fire service partners on what we believe was a successful legislative session as it relates to fire service issues.
The legislative team and our talented team of lobbyists successfully navigated the political landscape and many of our fire service focused legislation made it or will make it to the Governor’s desk for his signature. Successful legislation included; SHB 1389 (All Risk Mobilization), SHB 1382 (Delivery of Basic Firefighter Training and Testing), SSB 5591 (Allowing Emergency Medical Services to Develop Community Assistance Referral and Education Services Programs), ESHB 2093 (Wildland Fire Suppression), HB 1222 (Modifying Certain Firefighting Apparatus Length and Weight Limits), SHB 1313 (Granting Fire Districts and RFAs Biennial Budget Authority), HB 2007 (Concerning Reimbursement to Eligible Providers for Medicaid Ground Emergency Medical Transportation Services), ESB 5346 (Providing First Responders with Contact Information for Subscribers of Life Alert Services During an Emergency), and an initial oil-train safety legislative effort was successful. Our effort to fund the Fire Training Academy capital improvements continues to be a challenge.
The WFC, Washington State Patrol and Washington Fire Commissioners Association are actively engaged in advocating for additional state appropriated capital funds above the approximate $5 million currently in the House budget. We will work diligently to properly fund these capital improvements of the Fire Training Academy at North Bend.
Thank you to everyone who sent letters and emails or telephoned your legislators as well as assist us in providing testimony at the hearings. This was a team effort with the Washington Fire Chiefs and other fire service partners.
In closing, the Board is confident that our members (and prospective members) appreciate the dedicated and focused efforts that continue to make the WFC successful. I strongly believe that without our relationships and engagement of fire service leaders from across the state that we would not have accomplished the volume and quality of work product that you have come to expect from the WFC. Please do not hesitate to contact your WFC Regional Representatives or the WFC office if we can be of assistance.
Thank you!