A project underway in Huron County seeks to better understand the unique situation rural volunteer firefighters experience on a daily basis and how it affects their health, with hopes that data gathered can be used to better support their physical and mental health.
The Benefiting Rural Area Volunteer Emergency Firefighters (BRAVE-F) project led by the Gateway Centre for Excellence in Rural Health (CERH) began in 2023. It was motivated by the death of a volunteer firefighter in Huron County, whose death was associated with cardiovascular health.
"One of the risks you'll think of right away is the danger associated with fighting a fire," said Mike Beazely, the chair of rural substance use at Gateway CERH and a University of Waterloo associate professor. "Those risks are there, but if you look at the causes of mortality in firefighters, 60 per cent or more is cardiovascular related."
According to Beazely, the research project is also centred in Huron County because the share of volunteers that makes up the firefighting force in the county is above the national average.
Since beginning, the BRAVE-F project has been visiting fire halls in Brussels, Bayfield, Seaforth and Ethel to screen volunteer firefighters and gain medical insights into their health status.
Two researchers from Goderich visit the halls and gather information on factors like blood pressure, glucose, height, weight, whether volunteers have family doctors, how much alcohol and tobacco they consume and more.
Beazely said although the general populace generally lags behind where they should ideally be in cardiovascular health, the ramifications can be even more dire for firefighters.
These concerns, along with others are what inspired Steve Boyer, the deputy fire chief for the Huron East Fire Department, to welcome the project with open arms.
"There were a few [volunteer firefighters] surprised with their results. Blood pressure was a big one," he said. "Believe it or not, a lot of people have higher blood pressure than they actually realize. Certain people are a little more out of shape than they actually realize. When you get called upon for those big calls like a structure fire, that's when it could come into play."
Mental health a key focus
The screening also has a focus on understanding the mental health of the volunteers, something Boyer said has been significant, especially since volunteer firefighters in rural areas often know the people they're acting to save.
"PTSD is a huge one. A lot of people don't think it's necessarily going to happen to them but it's something that eventually catches up to you, especially with people you know," he said.
Neeliah Lewis, one of the research assistants in Goderich said on top of lifestyle factors like weight and substance use, stress can have a big impact on cardiovascular health.
One of the top concerns she identifies is a lack of resources to support the mental health of volunteer firefighters, especially since they're first responders who also work full-time jobs when they're not responding to emergencies.
These concerns aren't limited to Huron County. In Oxford County, volunteer firefighters in and around the Township of Norwich face similar mental health challenges.
Norwich Fire Chief Derek Van Pagee said 72 volunteer firefighters work across 4 stations in his jurisdiction.
"[Volunteers] could be, at their full-time job, and 20 minutes later you've just seen something very traumatic, and then you're expected to go back to your full-time job again. That can be a really big challenge," Van Pagee said.
That's why his fire department is launching a peer support app where firefighters can seek help when they're struggling with mental health challenges.
Van Pagee said he's happy to hear of the work being done in Huron County with the BRAVE-F project. He said the level of support firefighters are seeing, both from research initiatives and government spending, to shore up supports for physical and mental health is unprecedented.
The people behind the project, including Beazely, hope raising awareness with the data they collect will lead to more positive outcomes for rural firefighters. They also hope to offer the data up to other researchers who might use it in their work.
"We've learned a lot about what's worked and what hasn't in 2024. We're looking to roll out and expand the project to hopefully all, of the volunteer fire halls in Huron County, and we're talking to groups in other southwestern Ontario counties to expand the program even further," he said.