Lost Focus

These are the first responder situational awareness and decision making issues and opportunities related to lost focus.

Interview with Tablet Commander Co-Founder Andrew Bozzo – 394

In this episode, Dr. Gasaway talks with Andy Bozzo, co-founder of Tablet Command mobile incident management software. Tablet Command is a mobile incident command and response solution that increases situational awareness, speeds incident response, streamlines incident management and improves firefighter accountability. With Tablet Command, an incident commander can tap and drag responding apparatus onto an …

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EMDR Treatment for First Responders: Interview with Dr. Deborah Korn – 393

  This episode is provides first responders a look into a treatment option for Post Traumatic Event Brain Injuries called Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR).  Dr. Deborah Korn, PsyD, an internationally renowned pioneer and expert in EMDR Therapy and author of the book Every Memory Deserves Respect: EMDR the Proven Trauma Therapy with the …

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Sirencide: The Impact of Acute Stress in Emergency Vehicle Crashes – 388

This interview is with Dr. Dusty Lambert, a firefighter who completed his doctoral degree while researching the impact of acute stress in emergency vehicle crashes. Emergency services provide an invaluable service to communities and cities around the world. Research has shown these professionals encounter significant acute psychological stress throughout their work shifts. Acute stress has …

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Hit on the roadway. The Magnum Bower Story – SAM 386

This interview is with Magnum Bower, a heavy duty tow truck operator who survived being struck on a roadway incident, resulting in him becoming a quadriplegic. On May 9, 2019, heavy duty tow truck operator, Magnum Bower, was struck while working on a roadside assist.  The driver who struck Magnum was traveling approximately 25 miles …

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Hands-Free Driving Laws are a Bad Idea

Before you get too upset and refuse to read this article, I’ll ask you to give me just two minutes to explain the situational awareness lesson behind this statement. The first premise is: We must acknowledge (and accept) that it is easy for drivers to get distracted and have their situational awareness impacted while talking …

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When Training Goes Wrong: The Stan Mettinger Story – SAM 378

This episode shares the story of a firefighter who was burned during a vehicle fire training scenario.  Stan Mettinger was setting up a training scenario that involved setting vehicles on fire.  He was using diesel fuel to ignite hay inside the vehicle when the vapors flashed and set Stan on fire resulting in first, second …

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Distractions and Interruptions – SAM 368

In this episode, we preview the distractions and interruptions chapter from the book, How Smart Workers Use Situational Awareness to Improve Safety. Along a worker’s journey toward envisioning, developing, and implementing their plan to guide their (hopefully) successful outcome, they are likely to encounter two situational awareness barriers that can quickly derail their focus. Distractions …

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My life changed forever in a split second. The John Moore Story Part 2 – SAM 364

In this episode, Firefighter-Paramedic John Moore continues the story of how his life was changed forever after an off-duty accident resulted in a permanent paralyzing spinal cord injury.  John Moore lives in Southwest Ohio with his wife of nearly 15 years and their two children (ages 7 and 9). He attended Sinclair Community College directly …

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My life changed forever in a split second. The John Moore Story Part 1 – SAM 363

In this episode, Firefighter-Paramedic John Moore shares the story of how his life was changed forever after an off-duty accident resulted in a permanent paralyzing spinal cord injury. John Moore lives in Southwest Ohio with his wife of nearly 15 years and their two children (ages 7 and 9). He attended Sinclair Community College directly …

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Working Command – SAM 360

In this episode explores how situational awareness may be impacted when the first arriving officer establishes a “working command.” I get asked a lot of questions about what the first arriving company officer should do at a working structure fire. Specifically, the debate revolves around two basic premise. Should the first arriving company officer assume …

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