The realities of what it means to work as a firefighter have been illuminated by Ted Tenaglia, a firefighter/emergency medical technician (EMT) in Florida who has many years of experience as a frontline responder. Ted served the City of Gainesville for many years doing emergency response to many different incidents which required his ability and willingness to adapt as well as work effectively with others to complete a successful response to each incident. TED’s perspective is representative of the many challenges faced by firefighters. Increasingly, the responsibilities of the firefighter have evolved into emergency medical response and community safety, in addition to firefighting.
Ted’s professional background gives context to his thoughts and ideas about working as a firefighter/EMT. Ted completed his training at Florida State Fire College as a Firefighter I & II, then later as an EMT, then earned a Bachelor of Science Degree, Cum Laude, in Fire and Emergency Services from the University of Florida. During this time, Ted balanced his school with active duty working as a firefighter/EMT. From this, he was able to experience the normal day-to-day operational demands of a firefighter/EMT, such as long hours spent at the station, unpredictable call volumes, and the ability to perform at the highest level under stressful circumstances. Ted states, “My firsthand experiences have underscored the critical importance of ongoing training, communication, and mental preparation for success in frontline roles.”
Tenaglia shared his experience with the media as a firefighter and points out that there are many of the major challenges in firefighting that people do not see. Firefighters must move very quickly between dangerous incidents and then take care of the more routine duties associated with their jobs. To do this, firefighters must possess not only a high level of technical ability but also emotional resilience. Strong leadership and institutional support are essential to maintaining the well-being and effectiveness of firefighters; as such, by sharing his experiences with others, Tenaglia is helping to educate the broader public on how experiencing first-hand the challenges faced by the firefighting profession will help foster the professional development of these individuals and help to shape the future of public safety, emergency response, and workforce sustainability.
