Adopt the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program

Departments and individuals can now adopt the National Volunteer Fire Council’s (NVFC) Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program. With heart attack being the leading cause of firefighter line-of-duty deaths each year, now is the time to take the necessary steps to ensure you do not become a statistic. Adopt the program to access the information, resources, and tools that will help you and your department get and stay healthy, including a fitness challenge, toolkit for securing health and wellness program sponsors, interactive message board, and much more.

To adopt the program, departments simply set up a designated page at www.healthy-firefighter.org/atp, and then department members take an online pledge to focus on making healthy lifestyle choices. Department members can then participate in the Fired Up for Fitness Challenge, post success stories and photos, find tools to make healthy living even easier, and utilize many other resources in the areas of nutrition, fitness, and overall health.

Components of the program include:

Fired Up For Fitness Challenge: This tool allows you to track your hours of fitness and challenges you to meet certain goals over the course of a year. As each benchmark is reached, you will receive a reward to keep you motivated and recognize your hard work.

Securing Sponsors for Department Health and Wellness Programs: This toolkit takes you through the steps needed to identify, reach out to, and follow up with potential sponsors and donors of a department health and wellness program.

Department Pledge: Encourage your entire department to adopt the program by signing the Department Pledge to get and stay healthy. Submit the Pledge to the Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program with 100 percent department compliance and each member of your department will receive a special pin to recognize their commitment to heart-health.

Tools and Resources: The NVFC has compiled all of the tools and resources you need to help you and your department succeed in maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Categories of resources include nutrition, fitness, and general health. Whether you are looking for meal planning assistance, exercise examples, risk assessment tools, or more, you will find it here.

Department Page: Each registered department has its own page that allows personnel to post success stories and photos to keep their department personnel motivated.

Message Board: Connect to a network of first responders from across the country who have also made the commitment to become heart-healthy. Utilize the message board feature to ask questions and share best practices and tips.

By adopting the program, you and your department members are making a commitment to embark on a healthy lifestyle and keep your hearts and bodies strong. Challenge yourselves to meet your health goals and support each other as a team to keep strong in this resolve. The Heart-Healthy Firefighter Program has provided all of the tools you need to succeed, but it is up to you to take that next step. Adopt the program today at www.healthy-firefighter.org/atp.

About the National Volunteer Fire Council
The National Volunteer Fire Council (NVFC) is the leading nonprofit membership association representing the interests of the volunteer fire, emergency medical, and rescue services. The NVFC serves as the voice of the volunteer in the national arena and provides invaluable tools, resources, programs, and advocacy for first responders across the nation. The NVFC National Junior Firefighter Program provides departments and youth with the resources, tools, and information they need to help develop, grow, enhance, promote, and participate in a local junior firefighter program. The program addresses retention and recruitment challenges by getting youth involved in the fire and emergency services, thus fostering a lifelong connection with the emergency services that will continue throughout their adulthood. Learn more at www.nvfc.org.