Body Armor Policies & Procedures

An important consideration for fire and EMS is how to implement body armor policies and procedures. Body armor is becoming standard PPE for many fire and EMS agencies as the working environment becomes more dangerous. Acts of violence often occur at random and without any prior warning. Law enforcement began adopting body armor in the 1980s for routine wear and this has led to thousands of saves.

Department policies and procedures were key to this shift in police culture. Body armor is new ground for many fire and EMS agencies as they deal with this increased violence. Like all PPE, guidance is needed to ensure it's properly used. While there's no one answer for every agency, a starting point is to consider a policy to encourage wearing armor on any potentially dangerous call.

From a safety and liability perspective, the more often personnel wear PPE, the safer they are.