OLCD-FIRE0014 - Fire Prevention Management

Course Description

Building and managing a comprehensive fire prevention program within the fire service is a key aspect of community resiliency. While we have focused on the 3 E’s (Engineering, Enforcement, and Education) historically, the roles and responsibilities within this discipline continue to evolve. Using a risk-based approach means that some jurisdictions focus on aspects of fire and life safety that others do not. Pool safety in in Arizona, or ice safety in other jurisdictions are based on local hazards that occur within or adjacent to our built environment. We will look at how we plan, manage, and maintain these types of community safety programs within the Fire Prevention Management course.

Course Outline

Unit 1: Managing the Fire Prevention Functions (Week 1)

This unit provides an overview of management functions in fire prevention. These functions are no different than any other management activity: planning, organizing, directing, controlling, and evaluating.

Unit 2: Overview of Fire Prevention (Weeks 2 - 5)

This unit provides an overview of the environment of the fire service department’s fire prevention division. That environment includes: the insurance industry, the federal and provincial governments, local government, building representatives, and the fire service department excluding the prevention division.

Unit 3: You as a Fire Prevention Manager (Week 6)

This unit concerns itself with the day-to-day issues confronting a fire prevention manager. Most of the attention is on maintaining effective programs rather than developing or adapting new ones. Nevertheless, much of this “maintenance” also requires thinking about the future by addressing the training of staff and adhering to the budget cycle.

Unit 4: Current Considerations in Fire Prevention (Weeks 7 - 9)

This unit introduces several recent trends of the last decade, ranging from expanded fire safety public education, to new ways of dealing with building representatives. It also includes other means to conduct inspections, such as in service inspections under the responsibility of the building owner.

Unit 5: Future Trends in Fire Prevention (Weeks 10 - 12)

The future of fire prevention is already evident in the advent of performance-based fire codes. The general societal trend towards deregulation has reduced the volume of rules and regulations, but in its stead is the professional judgment of the fire prevention officer. Moreover, community-based fire prevention may well change fire prevention officers into the facilitators of citizen involvement from being fire police.

What You Will Learn

• To lead the functions of a comprehensive fire prevention program within today’s fire service.
• To link community risk assessment to community risk reduction.
• To assess and implement innovative approaches to enhanced community resiliency.

Notes

Fire Officer Certification: Is one of ten required courses for Fire Officer III. Must complete this course OR Theoretical Foundations of Incident Command: Thinking. All grades must be 70% or higher. Prerequisite to applying for Fire Officer III is the completion of Fire Officer II from elsewhere. Self-serve tracking of progress towards Fire Officer III Accreditation is available. To request enrolment in CE0099 Fire Officer III Accreditation Track, email openlearning@dal.ca .

For more Fire Service Management courses click here.

The Faculty of OLCD recommends an intermediate level of English language proficiency for the most effective learning and participation in our online and face-to-face courses. A list of minimum recommended scores on some common English tests can be found on our website. If you have questions about your English language proficiency and ability to succeed in this course, please contact openlearning@dal.ca.

Recommended For

• Fire service personnel or members of the fire protection industry.
• Personnel looking to expand their understanding of fire prevention as a critical discipline within the fire service.
• Those fire service or industry professionals who may aspire to leadership roles at varying levels.
• Personnel interested in understanding this unique facet of a holistic approach to building and enhancing community resiliency to the many hazards faced in our built environment.

Applies Towards the Following Certificates

• Advanced Certificate in Fire Service Administration : Elective
• Fire Officer III Accreditation Track : Required
• Certificate in Fire Service Administration : Required (6)
• Certificate in Fire Service Administration: Advanced Leadership : Required (6)
• Certificate in Fire Service Administration: Emergency Management : Required (6)
• Certificate in Fire Service Administration: Human Resource Management : Required (6)
• Certificate in Fire Service Administration: Operational Planning : Required (7)
• Certificate in Fire Service Administration: Strategic Planning : Required (9 courses)