System Stress Indicators

System Stress Indicators: Metrics that provide an indication that the system is stress beyond normal variations in demand. 

Efficiency. The degree to which the department is able to maximize the productivity of existing resources. This definition stems from the following fundamental question:  Are we doing the best that we can with the resources we have?  

Effectiveness. The degree to which the department is able to reliably execute its administrative and operational processes. Note: This is not a promise of a positive outcome.  

Equity. GARE defines racial equity to mean that “we eliminate racial disproportionalities so that race can no longer be used to predict success, and we increase the success of all communities.” 1 

First Engine Arrival (FEA). The arrival time of the first engine. This is a marker of the delivery of value in the context of being able to apply water to burning surfaces.   

Hazard. An object or occurrence with the potential to cause harm.  

Modified Unit Hour Utilization (mUHU): A measure of the fractional number of minutes a resource spends committed to incidents compared to total in service minutes.   

Over-consumption: Over-consumption occurs when we send use more system capacity that necessary. This is primarily an efficiency issue of how units are staffed and dispatched.  An example of over consumption is when we send a paramedic engine and an ALS transport unit to a lower acuity ALS1 incident. Only one paramedic is needed; however, two are sent because each engine comes with a paramedic. 

Over-production: Over-production is when we have more of a given type of resource than necessary to meet demand. 

Response Shape: A colloquial expression for the spatially defined areas of the county where calls for service are concentrated.  

Safety. The presence of hazard controls and system capacity. MCFRS expresses hazard controls as public education and preparation, and system capacity as the potential to take positive action.   

Serious Fires. A serious fire is any structure fire that meets at least one of the following conditions:  

• A fire fatality occurred  

• An injury requiring hospital admission occurred   

• The assignment went beyond a rapid intervention dispatch 
   

This term does not diminish the value of fire suppression services in the form of structure fire responses that don’t meet this threshold. The sole purpose is to set a common baseline of fire magnitude.  

Social Vulnerability. The idea that certain socio-demographic factors either predispose persons to harm or reduce their resilience.  

Time Critical Intervention (TCI). An action where it is true that, but for that action occurring, a life would be lost, or an incident would produce more harm than it would without the intervention.  Approximately 50% of the emergency medical TCIs can be delivered by basic life support clinicians. A TUD can only be satisfied with the arrival of an emergency medical services (EMS) transport unit. The other 50% require an advanced life support clinician. There is only one TCI for fire suppression and that is the rapid application of water to burning surfaces. That TCI can only be accomplished by engine crews. 

Transport Urgent Dispatch (TUD). A situation for which rapid transport to an emergency department is indicated.  

*NOTES:

5/2/2025 Updated the definition of over-production. Where initially over-production and over-consumption were treated as two sides of the same coin, the definitions are now split and treated as individual terms.