UCLA Fielding School of Public Health research finds wildland firefighters open to use of respirators
Researchers, led by UCLA Fielding's Dr. Rachael Jones, found that firefighters recognize long-term health risks of smoke exposure.
A study led by UCLA Fielding School of Public Health researchers has found that wildland firefighters are open to use of respirators and similar protective equipment if their operational concerns about the equipment can be met.
The research - Attitudes of fire service personnel toward respiratory protection in wildland firefighting – is especially significant given the increasing number of blazes, including the 2025 Los Angeles County wildfires, that began in open space and crossed into urban areas, across the ‘wildland–urban interface’ to become what are called “W/WUI” fires.
“One of the key things that we found in our study is that firefighters were not fundamentally opposed to the idea of respiratory protection in wildland settings,” said study co-author Dr. Rachael Jones, professor and chair in UCLA Fielding’s Department of Environmental Health Sciences and a toxicology and workplace safety expert. “They are all very well aware of the health hazards and want protection but have reasonable concerns about how respirators might impact the ability to perform their jobs safely.”
The peer-reviewed study is now available in the journal Annals of Work Exposures and Health, the journal of the British Occupational Hygiene Society, published by Oxford University Press.
In their research, Jones and her co-authors from UCLA and the Oakland (Calif.)-based Public Health Institute interviewed firefighters from departments across California that respond to wildland and WUI fires. Participants ranged from individuals relatively early in the careers to senior leaders, including fire chiefs.
The researchers conclude that based on the interviews, personal protective equipment – either air-purifying respirators or powered air-purifying respirators - can become part of the standard equipment of W/WUI fire fighters, and that state-level regulation would support such a transition for the fire service.
“The most important message is that firefighters want to be engaged in the development of improved respirators, and policies about how they will be used, so that they can be confident the devices will prevent exposure inhalation hazards - without increasing other risks on the job,“ Jones said. “Their questions are ‘when to use it,’ ‘how can you use it, without decreasing the ability to perceive safety risks,’ and ‘how can you use it without significantly increasing fatigue?’ ”
Funding
This study was supported by the University of California, Office of the President Climate Action SEED Award R02CP733. Individually, researcher Eden Dawit received additional support from the Southern California Education and Research Center, award CDC/NIOSH T42 OH008412.
