Steve Farina's commitment to firefighter mental health and wellbeing has seen him play a key role in establishing the British Columbia Firefighter Resiliency Program - an innovative partnership with Blueprint that’s been independently assessed as having statistically significant positive outcomes on the mental health of first responders.
Steve has been in Fire and Rescue in British Columbia, Canada since he was a teenager. He’s Executive Vice President of the British Columbia Professional Firefighters Association and vice-chair of its Mental Health Task force and Occupational Health and Safety committee.
Steve’s also a Captain on Engine 1 in the Fire Suppression Division of Coquitlam Fire & Rescue.
As someone who’s spent his whole career in Fire and Rescue, he has a wealth of experience and opinions on the state of Fire and Rescue service culture, and the role of leaders, unions and individuals in creating a respectful and supportive emergency service culture.
In this episode, you'll hear from Steve about his experiences of Life at the Sharp End of leadership challenges in Fire and Rescue, and how he’s supporting firefighter mental health through the British Columbia Firefighter Resiliency Program.
This episode does mention incidents of suicide, so please make use of these links to support organisations that can provide help if you're affected by any of the topics discussed.
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Fitting in to the Fire and Rescue family
Over his career, Steve's had time to observe Fire and Rescue culture and he reflects on this at the start of the episode when he offers this summary of firefighter culture:
We don't like things changing, but we hate things staying the same
Traditions are an important part of the "fire service family" but he also notes that things need to change. In the conversation, you'll hear his reflections on the dangers of creating an "inner circle", and the risks of ostracisation if people aren't seen to fit the mould.
He talks about the probationary period – a topic discussed in episode 9 with Assistant Fire Chief Chad Costa – and the responsibilities that new recruits have to fit in, but also the benefits of leaders having a "player-coach" mentality to mentoring their crews.
Advice to leaders on creating psychological safety
Steve shares his tips, as an operational Captain, on the techniques he uses to ensure the people he's responsible for have clear expectations; how they set their expectations of him; and how he 'shows up for them' and looks after their wellbeing.
He gives his advice on the benefits of having a 'servant leader' mentality, and how this translates to showing up as a more cohesive unit when it counts.
Leadership skills are not 'soft' skills
Fire and Rescue is a very technical job, an "all-hazards" job, Steve tells us. But good leadership requires training in leadership skills, and some people don't naturally transition to a leadership position.
He discusses the generational change in Fire and Rescue culture, and reflects on the important differences when people choose to lead from positional authority, as opposed to respectful authority.
How leaders show up for others matters.
"I can respect the position, but I don't have to respect the person. If you're an egomaniac or a sociopath, you're not going to have my respect"
Bullying and the role of unions
As a union Executive Vice-President, Steve comments on the roles that Fire and Rescue unions need to play in looking after their members, whilst providing constructive engagement.
He talks about the challenges facing unions in dealing with incidents of bullying and harassment in Fire and Rescue, discussing how restorative, non-disciplinary processes can play an important role in resolving problems.
"We can either be part of the solution, or we can impede and cause more harm."
The need to tackle issues promptly and not leave them for too long echoes points made by "Jane", who discussed her experiences of workplace bullying in episodes two and three.
The BC Firefighter Resiliency Program
Steve's played an instrumental role in this innovative program that's producing (based on independent academic evaluation by the University of Canberra) statistically significant results in improved mental health outcomes amongst participants.
You'll hear about how the program began, and how it's an example of a positive collaboration between the union and other partners.
Steve discusses the future directions for the program and what he's learnt about the benefits of supporting the mental health of first responders from being involved.
The role of leaders in tackling psychological harm
The psychological harm caused by workplace bullying and harassment in the Fire and Rescue service doesn't just happen - it's a result of unsupportive actions (or inactions) by leaders, and the people who choose to act in harmful ways towards others.
Steve also reflects on this, from a position of having seen the successful results of a program that shows what can be achieved when people are provided with a safe environment, where the organisation can be trusted. The lesson from Jane's episodes of "fixing the toxic pond" ring true once again.
The stigma behind dealing with psychological injuries, as compared to people's reactions when someone suffers a physical injury, provides a useful analogy for looking at our attitudes differently.
Steve talks candidly about how leaders need to take a hard look at themselves, and whether their behaviour is making them a good mentor and model for others.
"it's not about looking at the organisation first, it's about looking at yourself first"
The lessons from the US Navy Seals of "extreme accountability" are put in the context of how a Fire and Rescue leader can reflect on their own behaviour (and you can find a link to the book he cites at the end of the show notes).
Lessons to learn from Steve Farina
Steve’s observation at the start that firefighters “don’t like things changing, but we hate things staying the same” is an interesting reflection on the challenge facing Fire and Rescue services with cultural change the world over.
Change is needed, but it’s often uncomfortable. No one raindrop ever feels that it’s responsible for the flood, so it’s easier to say that it’s someone else’s responsibility. But without the individual raindrops, there would be no flood so everyone has a part to play.
Steve’s reflections on the importance of mental health support, on the stresses that first responders have to deal with, and how this can affect them remind us of the importance of leaders getting to know 'the whole person' when interacting with their teams.
We’ve heard about the difference between positional authority and genuine leadership in this episode. Steve uses a phrase throughout the episode that's a good, common-sense mantra to follow:
Just be a good human
The results of the British Columbia Firefighter Resiliency Program are impressive, as is the feedback that Steve’s received about the difference it’s made to people’s lives. It has, literally, saved lives.
When we see participation and co-operation between unions and fire service management achieving so much; when we see what can be done when people focus on the wellbeing of those next standing alongside them; why would we not lead with humanity and respect for others?
Nobody in any workplace should be facing hostility, exclusion and the kind of negative behaviour we see with workplace incivility, bullying and harassment - let alone emergency services, where people’s lives depend on the person next to them.
So let’s follow Steve’s advice and “be a good human.” Show a genuine interest in the people you’re leading, and be there for them if they need to ‘take a knee’ and ask for support.
But don’t be the person who’s making them ask for help.
Chapter markers
| Time code | Content |
|---|---|
| 00:00 | Introduction |
| 02:15 | Steve's career journey |
| 03:33 | Steve’s view of Fire and Rescue culture |
| 07:54 | New recruits - learning, mentoring and fitting in |
| 12:38 | Tips for Fire Service leaders to create respectful cultures |
| 18:08 | Training for leadership skills |
| 22:37 | A union rep’s approach to bullying cases |
| 27:15 | Restorative and trauma-informed practices |
| 32:12 | The impact of ACEs - Adverse Childhood Experiences |
| 34:13 | The British Columbia Firefighter Resiliency Program |
| 42:33 | Reducing the stigma around mental health support |
| 47:45 | Leadership is being accountable for your decisions |
| 50:42 | The future for the First Responder Resiliency Program |
| 55:05 | Steve's contact information |
| 56:10 | Lessons for leaders to learn |
References and links
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Contact Steve Farina by e-mail at mainlandnorth@bcpffa.org
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Visit the British Columbia Professional Firefighters Association website
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Find out more about the BC Firefighter Resiliency Program.
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Blueprint are BCPFFA’s partner in the Resiliency Program
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Buy a copy of Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink, referenced by Steve (affiliate link)
In the next episode
In the next episode of the Life at the Sharp End podcast, we'll continue to look at the topic of psychological support and mental health in a conversation with Mark Bouchard.
Mark's the author of Setting my Sights on Stigma and talks openly about his experiences of PTSD and his recovery, in his role as an Emergency Response Team / SWAT officer in the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
The next episode was published on Wednesday 11th December 2024.