Summit Fire & EMS is awarded international accreditation renewal

Summit Fire & EMS on Tuesday was awarded re-accreditation with the Commission on Fire Accreditation International based on the department’s efforts at constant evaluation, assessment and commitment to continuing improvement in every aspect of its work. 

SFE is one of more than 300 agencies to achieve internationally accredited agency status with the CFAI and the Center for Public Safety Excellence, which also has honored neighboring Red, White & Blue Fire, based in Breckenridge.

CFAI is dedicated to assisting the fire and emergency-service agencies throughout the world in achieving excellence through self-assessment and accreditation, to provide continuous quality improvement and the enhancement of service delivery to their communities. The CFAI process provides an agency with an improvement model to assess their service delivery and performance internally and then works with a team of peers from other agencies to verify and validate their completed self-assessment.

Summit Fire & EMS Chief Travis Davis stated that the agency’s achievement of accredited agency status “demonstrates the commitment of the agency to provide the highest quality of service to our community.” 

“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 provided,” Davis added. 

Among the positive notes that commissioners sounded before voting unanimously in favor of reaccrediting SFE for another five years were that the department listens to community input – highlighted by its accelerated work on building a new fire station in Silverthorne – and its forward-looking steps toward addressing the threat of wildfire through its recent establishment of a dedicated Wildland Division. 

“This recognition is the result of every person in the department committing to the process of constant evaluation of our work and improvement throughout the organization,” said Deputy Chief Brian Schenking, who served as accreditation manager. “For the public, our accreditation is not just a sticker on our fire engines and ambulances. It is an assurance that Summit Fire & EMS is performing at a high level in everything from emergency prevention and response to administrative tasks such as budgeting the use of taxpayer money carefully.” 

Joe Ben Slivka, representing the SFE Board of Directors at the hearing, commended the department staff for remaining dedicated to the process required by accreditation. 

“By taking this step, Summit Fire & EMS demonstrates a commitment to our community by constantly and consistently measuring our work against well-tested standards to ensure that we are delivering the best service possible,” Slivka said. 

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