VSU students partner with VFD to study physical demands of Firefighters
This summer, several Valdosta State University students and their professor are learning the daily tasks of firefighters and the physical demands of their job.
The Valdosta Fire Department and Lowndes County Fire and Rescue are partnering with the VSU Exercise Physiology program for several training sessions. Dr. Serina McEntire is teaching a course on Environmental and Occupational Physiology this summer. Her class will be covering heat stress and the physical demands of firefighting in the course. This partnership will afford the VSU students an opportunity to earn a real understanding of the physical demands of the profession.
"Its tough work because they have 60 or 70 pounds of gear on. Crawling through a building with that much gear on is pretty tough," said VSU student, Kaleb Noviello. "We're learning how their body responds to heart rate, core temperature, and things like that. We are learning how to keep track of it and help a firefighter recover once they come out of a building."
Dr. McEntire did her doctoral fellowship in Emergency Medicine & Emergency Responder Health & Safety at the University of Pittsburgh prior to coming to VSU. In addition, she attended the Allegheny Co (PA) fire academy and was a member of the Guyasuta Volunteer Fire Dept. for several years. Her primary research interest is uncompensable heat stress and CVD in firefighters.
In May, the Students heard from Fire Chief Freddie Broome as he visited the class to present information about the Valdosta Fire Department and what they do. Students also participated in an Occupational Physical Ability Test, otherwise known as OPAT. The students participated in different exercises such as moving large tires to test strength and pulling a large fire hose across the training facility.
This week, students conducted firefighter search and rescue drills at the VFD Fire Training Facility. During the drills, they dressed from head to toe in VFD fire gear and went inside a training trailer to learn how firefighters search for and locate victims trapped inside buildings.
The next and last exercise for these students will be a live fire training at the Lowndes County Fire Department Training Facility. The students' role will be to work in the rehab section to monitor and evaluate the impact of heat stress, rapid cooling, and baseline vitals during that training.
"This is a great opportunity to partner with VSU and let these students get hands-on experience in the field with fire crews. We are happy to have these opportunities to partner with different organizations within the City of Valdosta. The work they are doing is important to us," said Fire Chief Freddie Broome.
