There are a few schools of thought on how the sleeping quarters of a fire station should be designed.
Some think that the “dorm” should be entirely open. Some think it should be open but with four- to six-foot partitions between the beds. Others think each firefighter should have their own individual dorm room.
The “open-dormers” stress this is the best way, as it helps build camaraderie. I always found this approach to be a little weird. I could never figure out how camaraderie could be built while sleeping. The open dorm with the partitions seems to have taken off when women started becoming firefighters. Certainly, a little bit of privacy seemed like a logical approach with the opposite sexes in the sleeping area. With both the open dorm and the open dorm with partitions, the problem of the loud snoring firefighter remains. I am familiar with one retired firefighter who never slept in the sleeping quarters because of his excessively loud snoring. He always slept on a sofa in the day room. I’m sure there are other firefighters who do the same today. However, within the past 20 years, there has been a slow switch to single “dorm” rooms. This solves the privacy issue and the noise issue.
Another spin on the single dorm room is now being introduced. This is the mini-hotel room approach where firefighters have their own dorm, their own toilet, their own sink, and their own shower. This definitely adds to the cost of building a station and is basically 180 degrees opposite of the open-dorm design. Why the mini-hotel room approach? There are a couple of key reasons. One is to minimize sleep deprivation and the other is contamination control.
We are learning more and more about sleep deprivation and what we are learning is not good for the overall health of firefighters. The Harvard Medical School conducted research on sleep deprivation among firefighters. It studied almost 7,000 firefighters from 66 fire departments in the United States. It found that a whopping 40% of the firefighters had sleep apnea, insomnia, and work shift disorder. More amazing was that 80% of those firefighters were unaware of their disorder.
A personal note: My primary care physician suggested I get a sleep study about 10 years ago. When I entered the sleep medicine facility, I was put in a room by myself and had various types of monitors attached to me. I had very little problem going to sleep, but I was awakened by one of the physicians a little over an hour into my sleep. I remember saying, “I must have sleep apnea or you would not have awakened me.” The response was, “Oh yes, you stopped breathing 45 times in the past 60 minutes.” I had no idea I had sleep apnea. I have been sleeping with a CPAP machine since then. Prior to using the CPAP, I was getting up at least three times a night to use the bathroom. Immediately on using the CPAP, I average getting up to use the bathroom about once a month and I stop breathing no more than two to three times per hour.
Sleep deprivation contributes to many health issues, including a higher risk of cardiac arrest, cancer, suicidal thoughts, memory loss, type 2 diabetes, obesity, lower immune system, and injury. The mini-hotel room design gives each firefighter control over lighting, room temperature, and ability to go to the restroom without disturbing others. The station alerting system can be programmed for each mini-hotel room so that an alarm does not awaken a firefighter if another company in the station is dispatched. All of these factors provide for more optimal sleep conditions.
Contamination control is not just about carcinogens from the fire scene or diesel exhaust. It also involves virus control. Consider what restrictions might come with the next virus. A mini-hotel room design provides for the isolation needed to minimize “shared air” and gives the firefighter much more control over the surface contamination of the bathroom fixtures and other surfaces.
I do not believe there will be a rapid transition to this design in the immediate future. I do think it will occur gradually. Of course, this is very difficult design to apply to existing stations. But I don’t think that saying it cannot be done with existing stations should be an excuse to not consider it for new stations or major renovations—the old “If everyone cannot have it, then no one should have it” adage. Regardless of your sleeping environment, please learn more about sleep deprivation and improve where you can. Pleasant dreams.
Author’s note: The origination of this column came from a presentation given by architect Paul Erickson, of LeMay Erickson Willcox Architects, at the September 2021 F.I.E.R.O. Fire Station Design Symposium.
ROBERT TUTTEROW retired as safety coordinator for the Charlotte (NC) Fire Department and is a member of the Fire Apparatus & Emergency Equipment Editorial Advisory Board. His 40-year career includes 10 as a volunteer. He has been very active in the National Fire Protection Association through service on the Fire Service Section Executive Board and technical committees involved with safety, apparatus, and personal protective equipment. He is a founding member and president of the Fire Industry Education Resource Organization (F.I.E.R.O.).
