Focus on Health: Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program
June 18, 2014
Heart attack is the cause of dozens of line-of-duty fatalities each year. First responders have a personal responsibility to themselves, their department, their families, and their communities to be physically prepared for the job. Eating right, exercising, and taking steps to reduce heart disease risk factors are critical components of making sure you are ready for the next call. The NVFC’s Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program provides tools and resources to help you stay heart strong.
Components of the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program include the following:
- Resources for starting and implementing a health and wellness program in your fire/EMS department
- Trade show booth with free health and wellness guides and information
- Health and Wellness Advocate Workshop to train department personnel on how to implement a successful department health program and motivate their fellow responders to focus on health and fitness
- Fired Up for Fitness Challenge, an interactive tool to motivate first responders to get active
- Information on heart health, fitness, nutrition, and lifestyle choices
- Health and wellness challenge ideas to help motivate your department members
- Fitness demonstration videos of simple exercises you can do at the station
- Webinars to educate first responders about important health and wellness topics
- Securing Sponsors for Department Health and Wellness Programs, a toolkit for finding funding to support a wellness program in your department
- Heart-Healthy Firefighter Resource Guide
- Heart Healthy Firefighter Cookbook
- Smoking cessation resources
- Success stories from first responders from across the country who have succeeded in getting heart healthy
Learn more and access resources on the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program web site at www.healthy-firefighter.org.
