Surviving the Economic Storm

     It is not much fun living a frugal life. We tend to associate it with faded black-and-white photos of long-forgotten relatives who dressed shabbily with little evidence of consuming high-calorie meals. As the ultimate credit culture, plastic is the foundation for our consumer lifestyle, but as with all foundations built on shaky ground, we are now losing our footing.

     While many Americans face their own personal financial challenges, which include pay cuts, reduced work hours, layoffs, foreclosures and bankruptcy, EMS agencies must also address the financial crisis as proactively as possible in order to emerge relatively unscathed.

     Public safety budget cuts are the black cloud currently overshadowing our profession. According to a survey conducted by the National EMS Management Association and Best Practices in Emergency Services, 66% of EMS and fire department managers said that the public will notice a decrease in non-essential emergency response services as a result of budget cuts, with 30% reporting they will have fewer resources on the road during peak hours and 23% saying that 9-1-1 callers should anticipate longer response times.

     As author Michael Abrams outlined in his article Recession-Proof Your System in the October 2008 issue of EMS, agencies need to plan now in order to survive. Such plans include creating a financial task force, reviewing staffing requirements, participating in buying cooperatives and applying for grant dollars. Last December, the International Association of Fire Chiefs Economic Task Force released Weathering the Storm: Fiscal Challenges in Fire and EMS, a toolkit that offers practical measures and assistance that EMS and fire leaders can implement to address fiscal challenges.

     Just as when managing your personal finances, being proactive is the key to agencies surviving the economic storm. And getting personal for a minute, don't forget to check in with your staff and colleagues to make sure they are not facing their own personal financial crises. We could all do with a helping hand right now.

     For more: www.NEMSMA.org; www.iafc.org/economy.