Six Ways Fire & EMS Can Build Strong Community Partnerships
Communicate your worth to the community
Introduction
Fire departments and EMS agencies looking to increase funding from tax dollars have plenty of ways to show their value while building strong bonds with key players in the community. The six recommendations below offer a menu of options for making the case for additional funding, so you can serve your community better.
The people you serve may only have a vague idea of everything you do. Data can help them understand the full range of your activities: call volumes, call types, outreach work, and anything else that sheds light on the job.
The picture lands better when you use data and terminology your audience understands, and explain why it matters. Show how the activities you report on have helped people like them, their family members, and their friends. Personal relevance makes a bigger impact than raw numbers.
When you are ready to share, use the channels that already exist: social media, your website, and neighborhood task force meetings. Draw people in with high-level information on a social post or flyer, then point them to your website for the detail.
Your department can serve as the local data resource for healthcare and safety messaging. Use a calendar to build a cadence of seasonal messages, and localize each one with your own data.
During the summer, for example, you might share tips for avoiding heat exhaustion alongside the number of suspected heat exhaustion calls you responded to the previous year. Almost every month has a healthcare or safety theme worth speaking to, which creates openings to connect with civic leaders and the wider community on timely topics.
Positive relationships with local officials are essential to visibility in the community. Cultivate them with elected officials and with the community leaders who play a vital role in your city or town.
Reach out to civic organizations such as your chamber of commerce, nonprofits, and local committees, where you can share insight into what your department does. When speaking to a group, think about which messages and programs will resonate. Talking to a local parent-teacher organization, for instance, you might focus on EMS coverage at youth sports and preventing common head injuries.
A monthly briefing on your overall activities keeps the conversation going. Consider including:
- Call volumes
- Trends across certain protocols or morbidities
- Insights on local concerns or hot topics such as stroke or cardiac arrest
- Media coverage
Sharing information that demonstrates your value goes a long way with the people who can approve additional funding. Start by attending city council meetings regularly and getting involved with the chamber of commerce. Data are not the only route, though. Be present at local events and engage with all members of your community. Consistency is what matters, so leaders always know who you are and which agency you represent.
Your annual report is more than a place for the budget and operational efficiency figures. It is a good place to tell your agency story and thank your community for its support. Use it to share:
- Your accomplishments
- Grants awarded to your agency
- Positive media coverage
- Staffing updates and changes
Consider making the annual report digital. You can point people to it by email, social media, or postcards carrying a link, so long as the link is simple to type. Share it with community leaders at the same time as the broader community.
Other organizations doing good in your community make the best partners. Working with an area food bank or a leadership initiative lets you extend more services to residents. Those partnerships build strong community bonds and pass on knowledge that saves lives.
Education and outreach programs are an invaluable contribution, and a chance to share your expertise. Before launching something new, understand who you serve and what they need, so you can localize the approach. If you have a large population of senior citizens, for example, monthly welfare check-ins might help people while raising recognition for your agency.
It is also fine to stop or adjust programs that are not working. Times change and so do community needs. Pivot when results are not there, so you reach the people who need help most.
How to launch a new outreach program
Keep communication channels active
With data on how you support your community and a plan for education and outreach, the next step is letting people know what you are up to. Promotion ties all your initiatives together.
Use the channels your audience actually uses, and match the content to the medium. You might announce upcoming events by email or social media and link to a form for RSVPs. Other approaches worth trying:
- Post statistics, videos, and public service announcements to social media, including quick updates via Facebook or Instagram live
- Send a monthly email newsletter
- Build relationships with local media for more coverage
- Promote public outreach events online to increase attendance
Update your channels regularly to keep engagement strong, and consider assigning social media to one person so ownership is clear. If you need more followers, promoting posts to people in your area can help.
Review the performance of your channels and coverage to see what works with your audience. Social media is a long game. Fifteen posts a week or a dozen competing messages will not help. Find the messages that resonate and keep a consistent pace.
Conclusion
Building a strong community partnership takes time and energy, and the reward is a firm foundation of support where you live and work. Consider putting these strategies to work as you cultivate relationships in your own community.
