Are there alternative approaches to delivering fire service? City officials in Delaware, OH, know there are and, as a result, have made their fire department among the most innovative in the nation.

Delaware is the county seat of Delaware County and its largest city. With 35,000 residents, Delaware has seen a population increase of 43 percent since 2000.

Nowhere is the impact of the city’s growth more evident than at the Fire Department, which dates to 1831.

Meeting increased needs for service

Since 2002, there has been a 40 percent increase in calls to 9-1-1 (nearly 5,000 annually), challenging the department’s ability to maintain service levels.

City Manager Tom Homan, his staff, and the fire chief, working with community stakeholders and fire personnel, developed a strategic approach to meet that challenge.

In recent months the department has replaced old equipment, hired new firefighters, upgraded its technology, and opened the city’s first new fire station in more than 15 years.

Staffing based on demand

The department is also exploring different service delivery methods that will increase efficiency while maintaining its standards of excellence.

Very few fire departments look at staffing for demand; rather they look at constant staffing 24/7/365, regardless of calls for service or historical performance.

In 2013, the department began a pilot program for a 12-hour shift structure for new hires. This shift, which is in addition to the standard 24-hour shift for existing firefighters, ensures adequate peak-demand staffing when the need is greatest.

The department is also staffing a dedicated medic unit with two paramedics, a common staffing arrangement throughout central Ohio and the nation. Previously, one three-person crew would cross-staff both the paramedic unit and ladder truck, sometimes leaving the department short-staffed.

Results

Delaware’s new approaches are already producing results. The new station alone has enabled the department to improve the likelihood of an on-scene response time within six minutes significantly, to 71 percent from 57 percent.