Hasselt fire department

In their line of work, firefighters regularly deal with life-or-death situations. Their demanding job also comes with several health risks. The municipality of Hasselt has been relying on the services of Mensura for over thirty years to ensure that all crew members of the Hasselt fire department are in optimal health at all times.

What does the Hasselt fire department do? We are responsible for fire prevention and fire rescue, emergency assistance in the event of accidents, public safety education, monitoring prevention measures, and disaster response management. From our headquarters in Hasselt and the fire station in Herk-de-Stad, our crew operates across seven municipalities: Hasselt, Herk-de-Stad, Diepenbeek, Zonhoven, Kortessem, Wellen and Alken. Half of the 184 crew members work as volunteers.

No medical criteria are laid down in Belgian legislation for professional firefighters. However, occupational health physicians agree that the profession comes with a specific range of health hazards. Co-Prev, the Association of External Departments for Prevention and Protection in the Workplace, therefore developed a number of guidelines for thorough medical scans.

These guidelines focus on the three tasks that put the biggest burden on the cardiorespiratory system, and on tasks that involve specific health hazards, such as the use of compressed air equipment, chemical protection suits, and diving equipment. The age of the firefighters is also taken into account.
 

Putting all the guidelines into practice brings a number of challenges as several different types of medical exams are required, including in specialist fields such as cardiology and ophthalmology. However, volunteer firefighters are usually not available for these tests during standard business hours. And, from an administrative point of view, only the occupational health physician is authorised to handle each individual case. It is easy to see how ensuring compliance with all these regulations and guidelines can become quite costly. 

The city of Hasselt has been relying on Mensura for quality solutions at a competitive price for more than three decades. Dr. Vanoeteren, Health Surveillance Regional Manager Flanders at Mensura: “We offer both basic and in-depth medical exams, as well as any other specific health checks that may be required. Overviews of other health parameters that have been recorded can also be provided upon request, such as body weight, length, BMI, blood pressure or smoking habits.”

Thanks to Mensura, the Hasselt fire department meets all Co-Prev guidelines. “Mensura focuses heavily on continuous improvement, which means our crew is in top shape”, says Bert Swijsen, Chief of the Hasselt Fire Department. All medical exams, including exercise testing and physical fitness testing, are conducted by one and the same occupational health physician. This has resulted in much greater efficiency and time savings. The occupational health physician and our firefighters also formed a close bond throughout the years. They appreciate the personal approach and the relationship of trust, which means our crew members happily participate in all the health checks required. We look at the occupational health physician as our own general practitioner.”
 

Medical exams and health checks after hours and on Saturdays have been common practice for years. Bert Swijsen: “The efficiency with which these health checks are run – such as the fact that the occupational health physician completes all the paperwork on the spot – has resulted in major cost savings.”

The ongoing focus on improvement definitely pays off. “Our firefighters’ individual test results have sparked some healthy competition among the team, which further improves their overall fitness levels. For instance, the average VO2 Max level of the entire firefighter crew has increased from 41.38 ml/kg/min in 2000 to 48.00 ml/kg/min in 2013.”