211215 1127 OCFA Response to Chair Shawver's RequestFrom:Huizar, Maria
Cc:Black, Randy
Subject:OCFA Response to Chair Shawver"s Request
Date:Wednesday, December 15, 2021 11:26:38 AM
Attachments:Vaccination Status of our Firefighting Workforce.docx
Good morning, Members of the Board,
During the last BoD’s meeting, Chair Shawver asked Assistant Chief of EMS, Randy Black,
to provide information regarding our response to medical aids and our policies for protecting
the public on such responses. Chief Black has provided the attached memo and asked that it
be sent to the entire Board.
If you have any questions, please contact him directly at 714.573.6008 (Office) or
714.292.8476 (Mobile).
Thank you.
Maria D. HuizarClerk of the AuthorityOrange County Fire AuthorityOffice: 714-573-6041 | Mobile: 949-473-1437
In service of others!
Serving the Cities of: Aliso Viejo • Buena Park • Cypress • Dana Point • Garden Grove • Irvine • Laguna Hills • Laguna Niguel • Laguna Woods
Lake Forest • La Palma • Los Alamitos • Mission Viejo • Rancho Santa Margarita •San Clemente • San Juan Capistrano • Santa Ana
Seal Beach • Stanton • Tustin • Villa Park • Westminster • Yorba Linda • and Unincorporated Areas of Orange County
RESIDENTIAL SPRINKLERS AND SMOKE ALARMS SAVE LIVES
O R A N G E C O U N T Y F I R E A U T H O R I T Y
P.O. Box 57115, Irvine, CA 92619-7115 • 1 Fire Authority Road, Irvine, CA 92602
Brian Fennessy, Fire Chief (714) 573-6000 www.ocfa.org
DATE: December 14, 2021
TO: Board of Directors, Orange County Fire Authority
FROM: Randy Black, Assistant Chief Emergency Medical Services
SUBJECT: Vaccination Status of our Firefighting Workforce
At the last Board of Director meetings, there were several comments by the public regarding the
vaccination status of our firefighting workforce. Some of the comments included their concerns
for the potential risk unvaccinated firefighters might pose to the public when on medical aid calls.
During our fire department vaccination clinics in December 2020 and January 2021, approximately
53% of our operations personnel were vaccinated. It is reasonable to assume more have been
vaccinated since then, but we do not have verification of exactly how many.
For your awareness, OCFA has policies to protect the public from exposure to any OCFA member
on a medical aid. We employ a full range of personal protective equipment to protect OCFA
personnel from the public and protect the public from any unknowingly contagious OCFA
employee rendering aid. This includes N-95 masks, gloves, goggles, and gowns when necessary.
We continue to have ample PPE supplies, so our personnel have no hesitations using it when
necessary.
Additionally, we continue to encourage our operations personnel and their supervisors to monitor
their wellness. If they feel ill, they are asked to remain at home until their symptoms resolve.
Should they be experiencing any COVID like symptoms, they are immediately put into a testing
protocol that includes a rapid COVID test, and a follow-up with the more accurate PCR test. These
individuals remain off duty pending the test results.
If you have any further questions, feel free to contact me.