Firefighter- and Fire Department-Level Barriers and Promoters of Physical Activity and Fitness Among Volunteer Firefighters: A Qualitative Study Using Semi-Structured Interviews

Details

• Personal Author:
  Austin E ; Awadalla J ; Black TM ; Caban-Martinez, Alberto J. ; Calkins MM ; Edwards DL ; Graber JM ; Grant CC ; Hollerbach BS ; Jahnke SA ; Kubiel BS ; Roy J ; Shah NN ; Wackowski OA
• Description:
  Objective: To describe volunteer firefighters' perspectives on how firefighter- and fire department-level factors influence their physical activity and fitness. Methods: Firefighters (n = 28) were interviewed, stratified by their years of firefighting, using an interview guide. Thematic analysis and systematic coding were used to analyze the interview transcripts. Results: Five themes were identified: (1) health and firefighting performance, (2) firefighter time and availability, (3) responsibility of the fire department to support volunteer members' physical fitness, (4) fire training drills as a form of functional physical activity, and (5) fitness initiatives at the department. Interviewing by years of experience showed varied perspectives that converged toward similar conclusions. Conclusions: Incorporating fitness discussions into department meetings and trainings and identifying fitness advocates within the department may contribute to overcoming barriers to physical fitness among volunteer firefighters. [Description provided by NIOSH]
• Subjects:
  Firefighters Health Promotion Occupational Health Safety Staff Development
• Keywords:
  Activity Levels Author Keywords: Physical Activity Barriers Employee Health Fire Fighters Health Promotion Physical Fitness Promoters Qualitative Analysis Training Volunteer Fire Departments Volunteer Firefighters

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• ISSN:
  1076-2752
• Document Type:
  Text
• Funding:
  Grant
• Genre:
  Journal Article
• Place as Subject:
  Atlanta Region [OSHA] ; Birmingham Region [OSHA] ; Boston Region [OSHA] ; Chicago Region [OSHA] ; Florida ; Kansas ; Kansas City Region [OSHA] ; Massachusetts ; New Jersey ; New York City Region [OSHA] ; Ohio ; San Francisco Region [OSHA] ; Tennessee ; Washington
• CIO:
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH)
• Division:
  DFSE - Division of Field Studies and Engineering
• Topic:
  Workplace Safety & Health
• Location:
  North America
• Volume:
  66
• Issue:
  12
• NIOSHTIC Number:
  nn:20070120
• Citation:
  J Occup Environ Med 2024 Dec; 66(12):e653-e660
• Contact Point Address:
  Nimit N. Shah, PhD, MPH, Department of Biostatistics and Epidemiology, Rutgers School of Public Health, 683 Hoes Lane West, Piscataway, NJ 08854
• Email:
  nns52@sph.rutgers.edu
• Federal Fiscal Year:
  2025
• Performing Organization:
  Mount Sinai School of Medicine
• Peer Reviewed:
  True
• Start Date:
  20050701
• Source Full Name:
  Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine
• End Date:
  20270630
• Collection(s):
  National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health
• Main Document Checksum:
  urn:sha-512:a85fd5e6ee90386f9c942c35d8b7629a4aa80c89946dd2cfd87355a8b5c0d135d1139c710929a6abf168cfde660ae4be5d7ee02f6109c4f5b20440d94a0d2054
• Download URL:
  https://stacks.cdc.gov/view/cdc/208405/cdc_208405_DS1.pdf
• File Type:
  [PDF - 187.04 KB ]