The Lexington Fire Department has received Accredited Agency status with the Commission on Fire Accreditation International (CFAI) for meeting the criteria established through the CFAI's voluntary self-assessment and accreditation program. The Lexington Fire Department is now one of more than 300 agencies to achieve Internationally Accredited agency status with the CFAI and the Center for Public Safety Excellence, Inc. (CPSE).
The Lexington Fire Department is also now one of only seven fire departments in the United States to earn both Internationally Accredited Agency Status from the Commission on Fire Accreditation International and the Center for Public Safety Excellence, Inc., a Class I ranking from the Insurance Services Organization, which measures the effectiveness of fire protection services in cities nationwide, and is Accredited in EMS Education through the Commission of Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs. These three rankings places the department among the top .01% of fire departments.
"I couldn't be more proud of the professionalism and expertise exhibited by our Fire Department," said Mayor Linda Gorton, who traveled to Florida last week for the accreditation ceremony. "This ranking tells Lexington residents that they have the best of the best fire and emergency services. Congratulations to Fire Chief Jason Wells and his entire team."
Chief Jason Wells said, "This international accreditation represents the immense quality and hard work of our members. Although this process seeks opportunities to improve, it is important to highlight that during their site visit, our peer assessment team also identified three ‘best practices,’ or processes they believe should be emulated in other organizations. These best practices include innovative partnerships with Bluegrass Community and Technical College and the University of Kentucky, as well as our highly respected Community Paramedicine program. It is an honor to represent the men and women of an organization dedicated to serving our community and leading the way in fire and emergency services."
The CFAI process provides an agency with an improvement model to assess its service delivery and performance internally. The department then works with a team of peers from other agencies to verify and validate their completed self-assessment.
District Chief Jeremy Cooper, the Accreditation Manager, said, "Receiving Accredited Status demonstrates the Lexington Fire Department's continuous commitment to quality improvement through self-assessment, community analysis, and strategic planning." District Chief Cooper went on to say that the agency's Accredited Agency status "demonstrates the commitment of the agency to provide the highest quality of service to our community."
Local 526 President Kevin Pletzke also said, "We have also been able to use the Commission on Fire Accreditation International's process as a proactive mechanism to plan for the future of this agency and locate areas where we can improve on the quality of the services we provide."
