Design Your Spring Training Schedule in 4 Steps

Being responsible for training your fellow responders is an honorable—and hefty—duty. But it’s our hope that we can help take some of the weight off your shoulders by equipping you with the right tools to help you get started.

Spring is a great opportunity to set your crew up for success by assessing your education and training needs, as well as developing a training events calendar. And we’re here to help!

As a VFIS client, you get more than just an insurance policy. You also have access to a variety of skill and knowledge enhancement programs and risk management resources that are based on national standards to help you educate, train, and retain personnel, develop comprehensive risk management programs and, ultimately, stay better protected while you serve and protect others.

Here’s an overview of our online and in-person learning opportunities, the majority of which are completely free for VFIS clients, that you can utilize to create a training calendar that helps your team address everyday risks, overcome unique challenges, and expand their skillsets. Plus, here are a few tips to help you get your calendar started.

1. Start by scheduling annual training and refresher needs. 

VFIS University is our distance learning platform that gives you 24/7, 365 access to quality online training courses, many of which are recognized as meeting industry standards.

You can assign your members annual refresher training through the platform, including HIPAA Compliance Awareness, Sexual Abuse and Misconduct Prevention, and Sexual Harassment Prevention, to help raise awareness about these important topics and reduce your risks. Plus, members will receive a certificate upon completion for their records and yours to help make record-keeping a breeze.

Check out vfisu.com to learn more about these refresher courses, plus 60+ more classes specifically designed for first responders, all available at your fingertips.

2. Next, consider what's driving your risks. 

For example, given that vehicle-related incidents are a leading cause of loss in emergency services—and all that rides in your drivers’ hands—addressing auto risks should always be a priority.

We conduct a variety of in-person training classes on a regional basis throughout the year, many of which are offered at instructor (“train the trainer”) and participant (“student”) levels, including our gold-standard Emergency Vehicle Driver Training (EVDT) and other auto-related programs.

Plus, both our specialized in-person Trailer Operations and Safety Program and UTV/ATV Safety Program will have updates rolling out this year to help your crew address modern risks in these operations.

Visit vfis.com to check out a live calendar of upcoming training opportunities and see if we’re coming to an area near you. And, if not, we also have an “Emergency Vehicle Operations” video collection available to help you host trainings at your own station.

3. Assess your EMS training needs. 

Patient care and handling are at the center of EMS operations—but they’re also increasingly at the center of many insurance claims, making them as important as ever to continue to train upon.

We have several training programs devoted to this risk, including Patient Handling: Preventing Patient Drops and Patient Care Documentation, both of which you can see on our online training calendar.

We also have an “Emergency Medical Services” video collection that you can play from a computer, smart TV, or other digital presentation system at your agency. These videos cover important patient handling topics, wheelchair transportation, and paratransit vehicle driving.

4. Look for your unique risks and fill in any gaps. 

You can start by asking your team if there are additional knowledge or skills-based operations that they believe would be beneficial to have specific training sessions on.

If so, try to find quality, expert resources to utilize for those topics. For example, beyond our field training courses, online university, and plug-and-play education programs, we also offer a variety of libraries with training tips and resources, including our:

• VFIS’ Training + Resources Portal, available at vfis.com, has 300+ online tools, self-assessments, and shareable resources.

• Don’t Risk It! Podcast series, available on all major podcast platforms and at vfis.com/podcast, shares 100+ critical conversations.

• ResponderHelp.com, developed and administered by VFIS, houses 5,000+ resources (including free SOGs) that have been developed by a variety of industry specialists.

Training saves lives—and making a comprehensive training schedule can help ensure you’re covering the topics that matter most to your operations. We thank you for focusing on safety and please know that our VFIS Risk Control & Education Team is always here to help!