Validating ‘fit for duty’ tests for Australian volunteer fire fighters suppressing bushfires

Lord, Cara; Netto, Kevin; Petersen, Aaron C.; Nichols, David S.; Drain, Jace R.; Phillips, Matthew; Aisbett, Brad

doi:10.1016/j.apergo.2011.05.003

Cited by 13 publications

(13 citation statements)

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“…The lack of participating females resulted in unknown performance variables for female firefighters and prevented accurate comparison to males. Most studies investigating correlations between results on physical performance tests and firefighting work tasks include male subjects only [18], [21], [23], [36], [42], [45], [46] or merge results from men and women [20], [22], [38]. Harvey et al [39] and Williams-Bell et al [24] found different correlations between simulated work tasks and field tests for men and for women, but they merged the groups in the multivariate analyses.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field Tests for Evaluating the Aerobic Work Capacity of Firefighters

et al. 2013

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Working as a firefighter is physically strenuous, and a high level of physical fitness increases a firefighter’s ability to cope with the physical stress of their profession. Direct measurements of aerobic capacity, however, are often complicated, time consuming, and expensive. The first aim of the present study was to evaluate the correlations between direct (laboratory) and indirect (field) aerobic capacity tests with common and physically demanding firefighting tasks. The second aim was to give recommendations as to which field tests may be the most useful for evaluating firefighters’ aerobic work capacity. A total of 38 subjects (26 men and 12 women) were included. Two aerobic capacity tests, six field tests, and seven firefighting tasks were performed. Lactate threshold and onset of blood lactate accumulation were found to be correlated to the performance of one work task (rs = −0.65 and −0.63, p<0.01, respectively). Absolute (mL·min−1) and relative (mL·kg−1·min−1) maximal aerobic capacity was correlated to all but one of the work tasks (rs = −0.79 to 0.55 and −0.74 to 0.47, p<0.01, respectively). Aerobic capacity is important for firefighters’ work performance, and we have concluded that the time to row 500 m, the time to run 3000 m relative to body weight (s·kg−1), and the percent of maximal heart rate achieved during treadmill walking are the most valid field tests for evaluating a firefighter’s aerobic work capacity.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Field Tests for Evaluating the Aerobic Work Capacity of Firefighters

et al. 2013

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“…The trade-off may be the formulation of standards that have limited field relevance. For example, Lord et al (2012) validated the Pack Hike Test and Field Walk Test -physical fitness tests for firefightersand found that performance on both tests did not accurately predict performance on bushfire suppression tasks. That said, there are a limited number of physical tests in heat-related occupations that specifically assess applicants' capacity to undertake physical work in hot environments.…”

Section: Physical Employment Standards In Heat-related Occupationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Thermal stress, human performance, and physical employment standards

Cheung

Lee

Oksa

2016

Appl. Physiol. Nutr. Metab.

109

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Many physically demanding occupations in both developed and developing economies involve exposure to extreme thermal environments that can affect work capacity and ultimately health. Thermal extremes may be present in either an outdoor or an indoor work environment, and can be due to a combination of the natural or artificial ambient environment, the rate of metabolic heat generation from physical work, processes specific to the workplace (e.g., steel manufacturing), or through the requirement for protective clothing impairing heat dissipation. Together, thermal exposure can elicit acute impairment of work capacity and also chronic effects on health, greatly contributing to worker health risk and reduced productivity. Surprisingly, in most occupations even in developed economies, there are rarely any standards regarding enforced heat or cold safety for workers. Furthermore, specific physical employment standards or accommodations for thermal stressors are rare, with workers commonly tested under near-perfect conditions. This review surveys the major occupational impact of thermal extremes and existing employment standards, proposing guidelines for improvement and areas for future research.Key words: Heat stress, cold stress, occupational physiology, testing, work.Résumé : Plusieurs emplois physiquement exigeants dans les économies développées et en émergence s'exercent dans des milieux thermiques extrêmes qui peuvent affecter la capacité de travail et, en fin de compte, la santé. Ces milieux de condition thermique extrême se retrouvent dans des environnements de travail intérieur ou extérieur et peuvent découler d'une combinaison d'un milieu ambiant naturel ou artificiel, de la production de chaleur métabolique due au travail physique, des procédés spécifiques au milieu de travail (p. ex. fabrication de l'acier) ou du port obligatoire d'un équipement de protection s'opposant à la dissipation de la chaleur. Globalement, l'exposition à la chaleur peut diminuer ponctuellement la capacité de travail et générer des effets chroniques sur la santé, augmentant ainsi le risque de maladie chez le travailleur et la diminution de la productivité. Étonnamment, dans la plupart des emplois même dans les économies développées, il y a rarement, à propos du froid et de la chaleur, des normes de sécurité ou des règlements en vigueur à l'intention des travailleurs. De plus, rares sont les normes spécifiques aux tâches physiques ou les accommodations aux agents de stress thermique et les travailleurs sont généralement évalués dans des conditions presque parfaites. Cette analyse documentaire sonde les effets principaux des agents thermiques extrêmes sur les tâches physiques, fait le bilan des normes en vigueur en matière d'emploi, suggère des lignes directrices et des pistes pour des études ultérieures. [Traduit par la Rédaction] Mots-clés : stress thermique, stress dû au froid, physiologie du travail, évaluation, travail.

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“…Very often firefighters work at high temperatures, which increase physiologic demands. Fire fighting, smoke diving and rescuing are presumably physically demanding, as reflected in high oxygen uptake (V O2 ) [1,2,3,4,5,6,7] and nearmaximum heart rate (HR) [8,9,10] during common fire fighting tasks. Firefighters' maximal oxygen uptake (V O2 max ) should be ~40 ml/min/kg or more [1,2,3,5,7,11,12,13,14,15,16,17].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%