Areas where improvements have occurred in my department due to problems found during critiques, are many. After calls when we discuss where things went well, things went ok, and where things went wrong. We have found many safety concerns, apparatus deficiencies, gear and equipment failures and deficiencies, tactical deficiencies, changes in areas of our zone that need new pre fire plans and so on. It is a great concern and our obligation to constantly improve our safety, response, tactics, equipment and our skills. After many calls we have found different ways to accomplish becoming faster and also safer at the same time. Nothing trains you better than real world experience, but you have to take the time to reflect and discuss what you have learned. When you can learn from other firefighters real world experience the problems only needs to happen once and we can all learn from that one problem, instead of everyone making the same mistakes and learning from them individually.

I agree. Oddly enough, our department has also seen valuable improvements through post-incident critiques. Reviewing what went well, what didn’t, and identifying safety or equipment issues has led to better tactics, updated pre-plans, and enhanced training. Real-world experience is the best teacher, but taking time to reflect as a team makes that experience more effective. Learning from each other’s successes and mistakes helps prevent repeated errors and strengthens overall performance, safety, and preparedness across the entire department.