# 01 Program Profile Worksheet

> Fire Service Safety Management System, version 0.3.3 (2026-10-25). The Human Factor. Document FSSMS-ASM-01.
>
> Canonical: https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/program-profile-worksheet
>
> Licence: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 with the Adopting Agency Grant (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0/)
>
> General information only, not legal, medical or other professional advice. Verify every requirement against the current official text of the law, standards and manufacturer instructions that apply to you. Obtain your own legal review and consult your joint health and safety committee before adopting anything. You adopt, adapt, implement and rely on this material entirely at your own risk and on your own responsibility. Full terms: Terms of Use, thehumanfactor.ca.

## Purpose

Everything else in the package keys off this worksheet. It records the shape of the department, switches each specialty module on or off with a stated reason, sets the jurisdiction, and fixes the baseline against which the Gap Assessment and the audit are scored. Complete it first, review it annually in the management review, and re-run it whenever the department adds or drops a service.

The worksheet is the department’s answer to the “context of the organization” requirement of an OHS management system: understanding the organization, the needs of workers and other interested parties, the legal requirements that apply, and the scope of the system (ISO 45001:2018, cl. 4; CSA Z45001:19). It also supplies the inputs that NFPA 1550 expects for the department’s risk management plan [(NFPA 1550, 2024)](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/program-profile-worksheet#ref-nfpa-1550) and that the accreditation model expects in its assessment and planning category [(CPSE, 2019, Category 2)](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/program-profile-worksheet#ref-cpse-2019).

> **Information: Delivery note**
>
> Complete this with the fire chief, the senior officer responsible for health and safety, and both JOHSC co-chairs in the room. Two hours. Do not accept “we don’t do that” for a module without checking the dispatch data: departments respond to hazards they have not formally adopted, and those are the ones with no program.

## Part A: Department identity

| Field | Entry |
|:---|:---|
| Department | {{Department}} |
| Municipality or authority | {{Municipality}} |
| Province or territory | {{Province}} (your jurisdiction’s section on each topic page: [00 Jurisdiction Index](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/jurisdiction-index)) |
| Governing statute for the department (fire services provisions) |  |
| Fire chief (role, not name) and reporting line to council or board |  |
| Staffing model | Career / Volunteer / Composite (career core with volunteer stations) / Paid-on-call |
| Career members (uniformed) |  |
| Volunteer or paid-on-call members |  |
| Civilian staff |  |
| Bargaining units and associations | {{Union}}; {{Volunteer Association}} |
| Stations (career / volunteer / mixed) |  |
| Population and area protected |  |
| Annual call volume by type (fire, medical, MVC, hazmat, rescue, alarms, other) |  |
| Dispatch and communications provider |  |
| Mutual and automatic aid agreements |  |
| Accreditation status (CFAI or other) and date |  |
| Existing OHS program documents (list, with dates) |  |
| Existing JOHSC (yes/no; number of committees; last meeting; minutes posted?) |  |
| Workers’ compensation coverage for volunteers (yes/no; basis) |  |

## Part B: Jurisdiction switches

| Question | Answer | Consequence |
|:---|:---|:---|
| Is the department a provincially regulated workplace under the provincial OHS statute? | Yes for every municipal department; federal only for airport, DND and federal site brigades | Sets which jurisdiction’s section applies on every topic page ([J01 OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j01-ohs-legislation-regulator-and-enforcement)) |
| Number of employees at the largest workplace and across the department (count volunteers as the statute does in your province) |  | Determines whether an OHS program, JOHSC, safety representative, or policy only is required (thresholds on [J03 OHS Policy and Program](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j03-ohs-policy-and-program) and [J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j05-joint-committee-and-health-and-safety-representative); how volunteers count on [J11 Volunteer Firefighters](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j11-volunteer-firefighters)) |
| Does the department serve a certified aerodrome? |  | ARFF module on, Transport Canada CARs apply |
| Does the department operate vessels for firefighting or rescue? |  | Marine module on, Transport Canada vessel rules apply |
| Does the department operate RPAS (drones)? |  | RPAS module on |
| Does the department provide medical first response (and at what level)? |  | Infection control module scope; provincial EHS medical oversight |
| Does the department provide occupational diving or public safety diving? |  | Diving regulation applies; otherwise surface water and ice only |

## Part C: Module applicability test

For each module: **Required** (the department performs or trains for this), **Conditional** (the department may be called to it under mutual aid or has not formally adopted it but has responded in the last three years), or **Not applicable** (with the reason and the date reviewed). A Conditional module needs at minimum the awareness-level controls and a written stand-off procedure.

| \# | Module | Trigger question | Status | Reason and evidence (dispatch data, training records) | Reviewed |
|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|:---|
| 1 | Respiratory Protection | Members wear SCBA, APR or filtering facepieces for any task | Required for every department |  |  |
| 2 | Protective Clothing and Equipment (bunker gear care) | Members are issued structural or proximity PPE | Required for every department |  |  |
| 3 | Decontamination and Contamination Control | Members attend fires or hazmat | Required for every department |  |  |
| 4 | Occupational Cancer Prevention, Exposure Tracking and Screening | Any fire exposure | Required for every department |  |  |
| 5 | Medical, Fitness and Wellness | Any operational members | Required |  |  |
| 6 | Firefighter Rehabilitation | Any incident or training long or hard enough to reach the rehabilitation program’s triggers (cylinder count, work time, heat or cold) | Required |  |  |
| 7 | Psychological Health and Safety and Peer Support | Any operational members | Required |  |  |
| 8 | Infection Control and Medical Response Safety | Members have patient contact | Required if medical first response, else Conditional |  |  |
| 9 | Emergency Operations Safety (IMS, accountability, RIT, mayday, air management) | Structural firefighting | Required |  |  |
| 10 | Training Safety and Live Fire | Any practical training; live fire evolutions | Required; live fire sub-module if conducted |  |  |
| 11 | Apparatus, Driving and Roadway Operations | Members drive apparatus or respond on roadways | Required |  |  |
| 12 | Facilities and Station Safety | Any station or shop | Required |  |  |
| 13 | Hazardous Materials, CBRN and Energy Hazards | Any hazmat response level; EV, lithium, ESS, solar incidents | Required at awareness/operations for every department; technician sub-module if provided |  |  |
| 14 | Working at Heights and Fall Protection | Ladders, aerials, roofs, towers, apparatus tops | Required |  |  |
| 15 | Confined Space | Entry or rescue in confined spaces | Required if a designated rescue service or members enter spaces in stations; else Conditional |  |  |
| 16 | Trench and Structural Collapse | Trench or collapse rescue | Conditional unless provided |  |  |
| 17 | Rope Rescue | High-angle or low-angle rope systems | Conditional unless provided |  |  |
| 18 | Water, Ice and Swiftwater Rescue | Any water or ice response, boats | Required at the level responded to |  |  |
| 19 | Wildland and Interface | Grass, brush, forest, interface fires | Required for most departments outside dense urban cores |  |  |
| 20 | RPAS | Drones operated | Conditional unless provided |  |  |
| 21 | Workplace Violence and Harassment | Any member | Required (statutory in most provinces) |  |  |
| 22 | Heat, Cold and Weather | Any outdoor work | Required |  |  |
| 23 | Hearing Conservation | Sirens, pumps, saws, aircraft | Required |  |  |
| 24 | WHMIS and Hazard Communication | Hazardous products in stations and shops | Required (statutory) |  |  |
| 25 | Incident Investigation and Learning | Any member | Required (statutory elements) |  |  |
| 26 | Workplace Inspections | Any workplace | Required (statutory JOHSC duty) |  |  |
| 27 | Contractor and Mutual Aid Safety | Contractors in stations; aid given or received | Required |  |  |
| 28 | Marine Firefighting | Vessels operated for firefighting | Conditional |  |  |
| 29 | Airport Rescue and Firefighting | Certified aerodrome served | Conditional |  |  |

## Part D: Baseline facts for scoring

Collect these before the Gap Assessment so scores rest on data, not recollection.

| Item | Last 3 years (by year) | Source |
|:---|:---|:---|
| Lost-time injuries and days lost |  | WCB claims, HR |
| Medical-aid injuries |  |  |
| Near misses reported |  |  |
| Exposure reports filed (fire, hazmat, infectious) |  |  |
| Vehicle collisions (responding, on scene, returning, non-emergency) |  |  |
| Training injuries |  |  |
| Mayday events and RIT deployments |  |  |
| Right-to-refuse events and outcomes |  |  |
| JOHSC recommendations issued and response times |  |  |
| Regulator orders, inspections and compliance notices |  |  |
| Annual medical completion rate (career / volunteer) |  |  |
| Fit-test currency rate |  |  |
| SCBA annual flow-test completion rate |  |  |
| Bunker gear advanced inspection completion rate |  |  |
| Apparatus annual pump, aerial and ladder test completion |  |  |
| Members current in mandatory training by module |  |  |
| Psychological injury claims and EFAP utilisation (aggregate only) |  |  |
| Members who have left on medical grounds |  |  |
| Volunteer participation records sufficient to support presumptive compensation claims (where the province sets a participation threshold) |  | Attendance and training logs |

## Part D2: Psychological safety and learning baseline

The hazards a department can see are only as good as what its members feel safe to report ([Edmondson, 1999](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/program-profile-worksheet#ref-edmondson-1999); [Westrum, 2004](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/program-profile-worksheet#ref-westrum-2004)). Collect these alongside Part D so the baseline shows the reporting climate as well as the outcomes.

| Item | Last 3 years (by year) | Source |
|:---|:---|:---|
| Near-miss and good-catch reports per 100 working fires |  | Reporting system |
| Share of reports made anonymously (a high share can signal low trust) |  | Reporting system |
| Stop-work calls recorded, and how many were reviewed for learning without discipline |  | Officer reports, HSO |
| Concerns raised to officers or the JOHSC, and median days to an answer |  | Corrective Action Register, JOHSC minutes |
| Learning reviews held (Tier 1, 2, 3) and recommendations closed |  | Learning program records |
| Culture survey: share agreeing “I can raise a safety concern without it costing me” |  | [05 Safety Culture Baseline](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/safety-culture-baseline) (run at baseline if never done) |

## Part E: Output

The completed worksheet produces: the module list for the Gap Assessment ([02 Gap Assessment Tool](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/gap-assessment-tool)), the seed hazard inventory for the risk register ([03 Hazard Profile and Risk Register Method](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/hazard-profile-and-risk-register-method)), the indicator baseline ([04 Baseline Metrics and Indicator Set](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/baseline-metrics-and-indicator-set)), and the record that justifies every “not applicable” when an auditor or regulator asks.

> **Note: Customize**
>
> Add rows for services unique to the department (industrial brigade support, port, rail, tunnels, high-rise, wildland crews deployed out of province). Delete nothing; mark it Not applicable with a reason. Keep the completed worksheet with the management review records.

> **Tip: Volunteer and composite departments**
>
> Count volunteers as workers for the purpose of this worksheet whatever the statute says; the hazards do not know the difference. Where the applicable statute treats volunteers differently (coverage, JOHSC membership, hours), [J11 Volunteer Firefighters](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j11-volunteer-firefighters) sets out each jurisdiction’s rule and the Volunteer Members policy carries the department’s position.

## Definitions

- **Composite department.** A department with a career core and volunteer or paid-on-call members, often in different stations.
- **Conditional module.** A specialty the department has not formally adopted but has responded to, or may be called to under mutual aid; it needs at least awareness-level controls and a written stand-off procedure.
- **Context of the organization.** The management-system requirement to understand the organization, its workers’ needs, its legal obligations and the scope of its OHS system.
- **Module.** A switchable program in this package covering one hazard family or function.
- **Paid-on-call member.** A member paid for calls and training attended rather than salaried.
- **Workplace (for threshold counting).** The unit the provincial statute uses to count employees for policy, program and committee thresholds; some statutes count by workplace, others by employer.

## Jurisdiction requirements

This chapter relies on the following legal requirements, which differ by province and territory. Check your jurisdiction’s section on each topic page before adopting it.

| Topic | What to check in your jurisdiction | Page |
|:---|:---|:---|
| OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement | Which OHS statute and regulations govern the department, who enforces them, and when federal law applies instead (airport, defence or other federal fire services) | [J01 OHS Legislation, Regulator and Enforcement](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j01-ohs-legislation-regulator-and-enforcement) |
| OHS Policy and Program | The employee count at which a written OHS policy and a written OHS program are required, whether the count is per workplace or per employer, and the elements the program must contain | [J03 OHS Policy and Program](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j03-ohs-policy-and-program) |
| Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative | The employee count at which a joint committee is required, and a representative below it, and how the committee must be composed | [J05 Joint Committee and Health and Safety Representative](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j05-joint-committee-and-health-and-safety-representative) |
| Volunteer Firefighters | Whether volunteers count as workers toward the policy, program and committee thresholds, how they are covered for compensation, and any participation condition a volunteer must meet to benefit from the presumptions | [J11 Volunteer Firefighters](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j11-volunteer-firefighters) |
| Infection Control and Medical First Response | The framework that governs fire department medical first response, including medical oversight and clinical scope | [J25 Infection Control and Medical First Response](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j25-infection-control-and-medical-first-response) |
| Occupational Diving | Whether the occupational diving rules apply to public safety diving and what they require of a dive team | [J29 Occupational Diving](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j29-occupational-diving) |
| Fire Services Legislation and Firefighter Certification | The fire services statute under which the department is established or registered, and the fire chief’s authority under it | [J34 Fire Services Legislation and Firefighter Certification](https://thehumanfactor.ca/library/fire-service-safety/j34-fire-services-legislation-and-firefighter-certification) |

## References

Center for Public Safety Excellence \[CPSE\]. (2019). *Fire and emergency service self-assessment manual* (10th ed.). Commission on Fire Accreditation International. <https://cpse.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/10th-Edition-FESSAM-Strikethrough-Underline-v.4.pdf>

CSA Group. (2019). *CSA Z45001:19 (R2023), Occupational health and safety management systems: Requirements with guidance for use* (adopts ISO 45001:2018 with Canadian deviations). <https://www.csagroup.org/store/product/CSA%20Z45001:19/>

Edmondson, A. C. (1999). Psychological safety and learning behavior in work teams. *Administrative Science Quarterly, 44*(2), 350–383. https://doi.org/10.2307/2666999

International Organization for Standardization. (2018). *ISO 45001:2018, Occupational health and safety management systems: Requirements with guidance for use*. <https://www.iso.org/standard/63787.html>

National Fire Protection Association. (2024). *NFPA 1550, Standard for emergency responder health and safety* (consolidates NFPA 1500, 1521 and 1561). <https://www.nfpa.org/codes-and-standards/nfpa-1550-standard-development/1550>

Westrum, R. (2004). A typology of organisational cultures. *Quality and Safety in Health Care, 13*(Suppl. 2), ii22–ii27. https://doi.org/10.1136/qshc.2003.009522