People who work in the rescue service as task-leading personnel/fire commanders participate in rescue operations that in one or more ways can be perceived as traumatic. Firefighters who service as task-leading personnel have an overall responsibility regarding their own personnel, the people who are affected and in need of rescue efforts as well as any media coverage and the like, all this combined with the time pressure that often exists in connection with a rescue operation are factors that contribute to increased levels of stress for people who work in the rescue service as task-leading personnel Of the 89 participants in this survey, 71% have experienced some form of stress-related symptoms in connection with a rescue operation, the most common symptoms discovered in this study are sleep problems, depression and flashbacks in various forms which are typical reactions that can occur in connection with a traumatic rescue operation. These symptoms, if not treated in the near future to the current rescue effort, lead to further deterioration of mental well-being and in the worst case scenario lead to a post-traumatic stress disorder, which often requires specialist treatment. The support offered by the respective organizations is considered by the respondents in nine cases out of ten to be wholly or partly enough. At the same time, there are clear signs that personnel in the rescue service both reflect and work actively with issues concerning mental illness, where a large number of ideas regarding possible areas for improvement were registered. This is positive and it´s extremely important for task-leading personnel to have good conditions to have the best presumptions to continue to contribute to increased security in our society. Possible areas for improvement that the participants suggest includes more extensive training on peer support activities, clearer routines on when and how these relieving conversations should be conducted and more time for rest and recovery. In order for the rescue service to have the opportunity to continue to contribute to increased security in society, it is of great importance that discussions and development work on the subject of mental illness and the management of this progress to give the people who work with operational management the right conditions to lead and coordinate efforts in an effective and successful manner.

Title: Description of Fire Brigade of Prague Airport and analysis of its firefighting intervention in the period of 2015-2019. Objectives: The aim of the thesis is to give a description of Fire Brigade of Prague Airport. An analysis and evaluation of firefighting interventions at the airport is also provided by means of graphs and tables from 1.1.2015 to 31.1.2019 period. Methods: The data were obtained from an employee of Fire Brigade of Prague Airport. Available literature was studied and a research was carried out. The data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and statistical data comparison between each year. The data analysis was split according to type and number of interventions for individual years in the period of 2015-2019. Finally, the analysis was evaluated and the data were compared by means of graphs and tables. Results: The output of the diploma thesis is a description and intervention analysis of Fire Brigade of Prague Airport in the years 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019. Keywords: analysis, intervation, firefighters, fire brigade

The aim of this qualitative study was to explore firefighters' perceptions of how their working experiences and personal lives positively and negatively influence each other. The purpose of this study was also to understand firefighters' perceptions of the support that is currently available to them and what further support they require, in order to cope with the demands of work and personal relationships. The research was conducted in two research settings and permission was gained to conduct the research from the City of Cape Town's Research Department and the Fire Chief of the Fire and Rescue Department. A qualitative research design was used to conduct this study, and purposive sampling was used to select the sample. A total of twenty, male firefighters were interviewed using a semi-structured interview schedule. A digital recorder was used to ensure that the interviews could be recorded accurately. The interviews were transcribed and analysed following Tesch's (1990) method of data analysis. The findings from this study reflect that the participants' work experiences and personal lives do influence each other. The participants reported that the training and education they received to become a firefighter, their relationship with their colleagues, and shift work had a positive influence on their personal lives. At the same time a number of workplace stressors such as shift work, repeated exposure to trauma, challenging aspects of career advancement and the negative consequences of the rank structure, were identified as negatively influencing their personal lives. Positive factors such as social support including support from family and work as well as religious support help buffer the negative effects of stress experienced by firefighters in their work. Personal and family challenges were seen to have a negative influence on firefighters working experience. Lastly, recommendations were made to various stakeholders including the Fire and Rescue Department as well as the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) and Wellness branch. These included the need for online surveys, sports days and informal meetings between management and firefighters. Recommendations to EAP and Wellness branch included 2 continuous marketing of EAP services, pro-active interventions such as stress management and building resilience for firefighters, management training as well as wellness events.

Occupational health surveys reported that first responders such as firefighters (FF) have some of the highest levels of cardiovascular disease in the nation from poor eating habits and lack of exercise. Three studies were established with goals to identify oxidative stress (OS) biomarkers and improve cardiovascular health for FF including: 1) a 28-day-carbohydrate restricted diet (CRD), 2) a heat-house search and clear protocol in personal protection equipment (PPE) plus curcumin supplementation, and 3) a treadmill exercise protocol in PPE with ketone salt supplementation. During those studies, stored blood plasma subsamples were evaluated for targeted antioxidants or untargeted metabolite concentration fluctuations using 1H NMR. Results from the 28-day-CRD tracked 40 metabolites consistently pre- and post-diet using 1H NMR platform. Of these metabolites’ acetone, β-hydroxybutyrate, leucine, and valine significantly upregulated while isoleucine downregulated. The plasma from the curcumin supplementation study contained 34 metabolites that were consistently identified. Lactate significantly upregulated immediate after exercise but returned to pre-exercise levels at 30 min post exercise while all the other metabolites were similar. From the ketone salt study 38 metabolites that were consistently identified from the pre- and post-exercise samples. Mean concentrations of acetone and β-hydroxybutyrate were significantly upregulated as were leucine and valine pre- and post-exercise while isoleucine downregulated. Lactate increased with ketone salt ingestion post-exercise and up to 30 min post-exercise but returned to normal at 24 h post-exercise compared to pre-exercise levels. Six other metabolites significantly differed in concentrations when compared across sampling times with no discernable impacts to OS or other notable trends. Multivariate analyses using principal components analysis (PCA), partial least squares-discriminant analysis (PLS-DA) and orthogonal partial least squares-discriminant analysis (OPLS-DA) models were not supported using cross-validation for Q2 coefficients and permutations values at p ≤ 0.05. From these results no metabolites were shown to support transient OS suppression.

Individfokuserad forskning tyder på att Leader member exchange (LMX) är en prediktor för ökad self-efficacy medan gruppfokuserad forskning visar ett positivt samband mellan LMX och virtuell collective efficacy. Räddningstjänstpersonals unika arbetsform och relation mynnade ut i intresse att undersöka hur mycket av den totala variationen i  Collective efficacy (CE) som kan förklaras av LMX respektive sju bakgrundsvariabler. En enkät bestående av två skalor, LMX-7 och Collective Efficacy Belief Scale samt sju bakgrundsvariabler besvarades av 135 räddningstjänstpersonal. 129 svar analyserades. Urvalet bestod av 115 män och 14 kvinnor från 13 olika räddningstjänstregioner. Medelvärdet för ålder var 38.98 år (SD=9.62). En hierarkisk multipel regressionsanalys visade att 15,1 % av variationen i CE förklarades av LMX tillsammans med bakgrundsvariablerna. Män tenderar att ha högre CE än kvinnor. Resultatet kan inspirera chefer att arbeta med ledarskap för att stärka arbetsgruppers tro på sin förmåga samt vara en grund för vidare forskning om andra yrkesgrupper.

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Background: Firefighters (FFs) are exposed to life-threatening conditions while carrying out their tasks. These strenuous conditions predispose them to a high rate of disability, morbidity and mortality. These hazardous conditions put them at risk for work limitations, but the literature is scarce in this matter. Objective: The overarching objective of this thesis is to determine the role of FFs health as predictors of work limitations in fire service. Specifically, the first objective is to determine whether work limitations differ among FFs based on the location or number of painful sites. The secondary objective is to determine whether non-musculoskeletal comorbid health condition predict work limitations among FFs. Participants: A convenience sample of FFs between the age of 18-60 years working in the province of Ontario, Canada. Methods: Participants completed either an online or paper-based survey including a work limitation questionnaire(WLQ-26) and a self-reported comorbidity questionnaire. For the first objective, a one-way ANOVA and post hoc test was used to determine the differences in work limitations among FFs based on the number or location of painful sites. For the secondary objective, a univariate linear regression was used to evaluate whether non-MSK comorbid health condition predict work limitations among FFs. Results: FFs with three or more painful sites had more physical limitations than FFs without pain, (Mean difference=1.03/10; 95% CI: 0.16-1.62; p=0.02). FFs with pain at the region of the spine experienced more physical limitations compared to FFs with no pain (Mean difference=0.89/10; 95% CI: 0.17-1.62; p=0.007). For the secondary objective, univariate analysis showed that having at least one comorbidity(p=0.04) had a small, but significant association with greater mental work limitations (F2,316=2.94; p=0.05; R2=0.02). Separate univariate analysis showed that women FFs having one comorbidity had a small but significant association with physical (R2=0.07; F2,97=3.92, p=0.02) and mental work limitations (R2=0.04; F2,101=1.89, p=0.15) than women without non-MSK comorbidity. Conclusion: Having multiple painful sites or pain at the spinal region influenced work limitations among FFs. Also, non-MSK comorbidity impacted mental limitations among FFs; especially among women FFs. Therefore, managing MSK and on-MSK comorbidities is a necessary health care goal to prevent work limitations. / Thesis / Master of Science (MSc)

Volunteer firefighters are the only traditional interest organization in the Czech Republic with higher proportion of children and youth between the volunteers (members). The aim of the thesis is to clarify the reasons for the strong position of children and youth between volunteer firefighters. There has been a qualitative research conducted within this thesis. The method of embedded case study was use for it. It's a single-case study design that involves more than one unit of analysis. The main unit was the Firefighters Association of Bohemia, Moravia and Silesia, the embedded units were three specific voluntary fire brigades. The thesis also describes historical development of voluntary fire protection in the Czech Republic including the history of the organization of young firefighters.