The Key Quality Assurance Systems Used by the Fire and Rescue Service Pre Government Change - Case Study Example

Quality Assurance 1. Critically assess the validity and benefits of the key quality assurance (QA) systems used by the Fire & Rescue Service (FRS) pre government change July 2010 (QA background history). There are many profits or benefits that a specified quality assurance system can have and in this case the main focus is on the benefits that the fire and rescue services has gained and the history behind it before the government changes that took place in the year 2010. Fire services operate under split arrangements of administration in the United Kingdom in England, Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales. The operations of fire and rescue services have gone through very many changes that are significant in the 21st century and this has been made possible by different governments from different parts of the world due to the fact that the level of terrorism and other attacks associated with it are increasing on a daily basis (Caldeira, 2001p. 37). Most of the changes that have taken place in fire and rescue services were put forward by a professor by the name George Bain. He came up with a report that was associated with services that are provided by firefighters all over the world. He gave a report that deeply talked about how fire and rescue services can be reviewed and improved because he had taken an analysis of the previous services that was being offered by it. Much sense was seen in George Bain’s report by the government of England thus they decided to make some changes in the fire and rescue services, organizations that applied these services and more other fire authorities of Wales, Scotland and England (Funk, 2007 p.57). History The legislation of fire and rescue services and far as firefighting is concerned dates back in the year 1865 at the time when the act by Metropolitan fire brigade was put across and this is how the responsibilities of firefighting was taken away from companies of insurance. Another fire brigade act that was passed in earlier years was the fire brigades act of 1938 and at that time there were very many fire brigades in the United Kingdom since they were about 1600 all over United Kingdom. During the Second World War there were many fire brigades from the local authority and they were emerged in order to form one national fire Service that was being used during and after the war (Arthur, 2003p. 111). Another Fire services act was put across in the year 1947 which restored the previous local authorities. Between the years 1974-1975 the number of fire brigades reduced subsequently in the United Kingdom. The fire brigade started its operations very many years ago and it has maintained it very well and made it very effective. The legislative framework The United Kingdom has been changing the legislation that controls the fire and rescue services and it has been doing this through implementing the latest fire and safety legislation. The local authorities have adhered to new legislations and worked under their powers even though it has been changing for over 6o years down the line under different acts of parliament but the changes are still taking place. The Fire Brigades Act of 1938 which has seized to exist made it mandatory for local authorities to come up with fire services that are effective in and these brigades were centrally coordinated (papers, 2006 p.51). In the year 1959 the 1947 Fire services act was being amended but it was replaced by the 2004 legislation in Wales and England respectively. There was another act that was put forward in London in the year 1999 and it was known as the greater London Authority Act 1999 and this was responsible for the formation of the London Fire and emergency planning Authority. In the year 2002 there were several fire strikes nationally and much of this was through the implementation of the reports on fire service that was given by Sir George Bain. Another review on how the fire services should be managed and organized in the year 2002 and this was in the month of December and this was done when the industrial action was still going on and this contributed a lot to the changes that have been made in firefighting laws. In the year 2002 an independent review was of fire service was published and the Act of 2004 was being applied to Wales and England alone. The fire and rescue services legislative has undergone massive changes since it started more than 60 years ago and this is because issues associated with firefighting are very important to deal with. In the 21st century the fire and rescue service has really improved with the improved level of technology and that is why new legislations are being passed on time after another (Arthur, 2003p. 117). Quality Assurance Background History Observation on atmospheric constituents was made by curiosity of scientists after they had discovered many things in the world. Even though scientific discoveries contributed a lot to development in modernized countries, questions were still being raised by the same scientists as to what would happen to human beings and their surroundings if more chemicals would still be produced. The main aim of different discoveries by the scientists was to ensure that there is development in different parts of the world and after thinking of the consequences that would befall mankind is when the international communities decided to come up with programs that would be concerned with atmospheric conditions (Caldeira, 2001p. 37). Many scientists had already come up with numerous discoveries which had already been worked on but they had to be careful on what they were discovering or being careful on how they apply them especially chemicals that could be poisonous to human beings. This idea was put across after there had been discoveries such as car engines that spread smoke all over in the atmosphere, after ships that spread smoke in the air and other forms of pollution took place. There was development in almost all major international activities and this is when the protection of the environment was being thought about by the United Nations and it was supposed to organize an international conference (papers, 2006 p.63). The human environment had already undergone serious problems especially in the industrialization sector since it had contributed a lot to the problems. The international community decided that there should be a conference that would address all these problems and provide solutions to them and this was done by the United Nations in the year 1968. After being told to organize a conference in the year 1968, the United Nations organized it 1972 in Stockholm and it was able to successfully draw the attention of the world towards solving environmental problems affecting different parts of the world and this also included the changes that takes place in the atmosphere through the rapid changes in industrialization. In 70’s there were three atmospheric issues that were being addressed since they the human environment was highly affected by them (Collins, 2004p. 87). These three issues are the acidification of lakes, issues associated with global warming and chlorofluorocarbons issues. The threats of CFC’s was one of the main issues affecting the ozone layer and if something was not done towards this, then human beings would be in great trouble since their lives would be highly affected in many ways. Acidification of forests and lakes was also another issue that was being addressed upon since it mainly affected most parts of Europe and northern America and it was mainly caused by sulphuric acid after the precipitation process affecting the atmosphere. Thirdly global warming was also another issue that had to be focused on because it also affected the atmosphere in many ways and it was being caused by gases in the atmosphere from the greenhouse. These are the main issues being discussed upon by international conventions and treaties ever since it was being put across and more actions are being taken solving these issues since they are still part of problems affecting the atmosphere in the modern world. Most of these development agreements were being derived from the assessments by measures being taken after more information has been gotten from World meteorological organization programme for monitoring atmospheric composition. The WMO programme was mainly focused on decreasing the level of pollution in the 1950’s. Pollution has been one of the greatest issues that the human atmosphere faces and this because there are different forms of pollution in the surroundings of human beings. There are three main forms of pollution and these are air pollution, water pollution and land pollution (Funk, 2007 p.57). All these forms of pollution are caused in different ways such as air pollution is caused by smokes by airplanes and vehicles into the air which affects the oxygen that human beings inhale. Water pollution is caused by unwanted substances being dropped into water surfaces like seas and rivers hence affecting the water that beings drink and also killing animals that are found in water and are water by human beings and these animals are such as fish among others. The third form of pollution is land pollution that is mainly affected by waste products that pollute land and hence affecting crops that are being planted and then consumed by both animals and human beings. The plan of 1950 towards solving issues associated to pollution also contributed a lot in the 1957 International geophysical year that was mainly concerned with establishing a system of observing global ozone and reduce issues related to global warming. In the 90’s many steps were being taken towards improving the human environment and solve most of the issues affecting them thus they also came up with a network that was concerned with solving air pollution issues in the 60’s and these ideas were being incorporated by the global atmosphere watch of 1989. Actions were being taken towards reducing the rate of pollution in the environment and this was done in all possible ways thus curbing most of the characteristics of adverse effects on the environment. Greenhouse gases have been given more attention since they were believed to be more effective than other forms of pollution for possible climatic changes. These concerns were also associated with biological factors and other reactive gases that could highly contribute to increased level of pollution. Most programs that are associated with solving environmental issues such as the GAW and others have improved greatly in the past few years through the high quality of data of atmosphere that is given in the scientific community. Quality assurance of fire and rescue services has been very beneficial to people from different parts of world because it has ensured that through the data that are received, solutions are found and more efforts are being put towards reducing it. Quality assurance of these services has also ensured that there is international funding that will help to make the procedures possible. Quality Assurance benefits and Validity Quality assurance has made a great impact in the modern world and this has been through the strategic goals that it has had towards improving environmental issues. It has ensured that different programs on development and reduction of pollution have attained a wider geographical coverage and this is very important. It has also ensured that data collected on environmental issues affected different parts of the world has been reviewed by the whole world thus making the process bearable for everyone and also simplifying it (John, 1985 p. 71). Data that is available has also been collected and its use has been promoted through effective quality assurance. Communication in the scientific world has also been made very possible through quality assurance and this means that different sectors in the scientific community has been working with a lot of cooperation. Through effective quality assurance, controlling the human environment has been very possible and easy and knowing changes taking place in the factors affecting the human environment has been made possible. It has also contributed a lot to intensified building in developing countries since some of issues affecting their environment have also been looked upon (Collins, 2004p. 97). The health of people in different parts of the world has also been tackled through effective quality assurance and it has done this through ensuring that some of the issues associated to the health of human beings such as pollution have been reduced or more advanced methods of approaching them are being sought after. Much effort has been made towards controlling the changing atmospheric composition but since human activities will continue changing, then these efforts will continue being made in order to attain a bearable environment for human beings both in the modern world and in the future (John, 1985 p. 79). Critically appraise the appropriateness of any QA system use to the existing output measures of a FRS, which relate to the key strategic objectives of the organization. Quality assurance can be referred to as the process of checking whether a new product or service that is being developed has met the requirements that are specified for it. Most companies in the modern world have departments that specifically focus on quality assurance of products so that they do not produce products and services that do not meet requirements that are specified. The fire and rescue service requires any effective quality assurance system in order to ensure that there is credibility and confidence in the services that it provides to its customers. This is one of the only ways of winning the customer’s loyalty since they want to have products and services that are credible and through quality assurances then they are able to find this in fire and rescue services (Ratliff, 2003 p.69). It also helps in improving the services and products that are provided by fire and rescue thus making the working process more efficient helping it to become more competent in a competitive environment. If the fire and rescue services did not involve any quality assurance system, then the services it provides and products would be effective in the modern world. Quality assurance was introduced after the Second World War through the inspection of munitions when they were being tested to ensure that they are of good quality and good enough to be used in the war zones. In the modern world quality assurance ensures that products are detected and checked before they enter into the market as a final product and this means that products are already being sold in markets are not harmful. Quality assurance on output in measures of fire and rescue services has been very effective in all possible ways because it has ensured that the strategic objectives of the organization have been met. Critically review the application of the recommended QA systems you chose to ensure consistent proof of quality enhancement within the organization. The quality assurance systems that have been used by the fire and rescue services are very effective because over the past years it has ensured that the better services have been rendered by the organization. The customers have also enjoyed the benefits that come along with the services provided and this is a positive view of how the organization is performing. Quality assurance systems have ensured that the organization provides products and services that are of high quality (Bearnish, 2001 p.113). An organization is able to make more profits through having an effective quality assurance of the products and services that it produces and this also helps to market the brand of a given organization and in this case the main focus is on the fire and rescue services. Finally, after knowing the legislation behind fire and rescue services and the history behind quality assurance systems then one is able to know which system is suitable to use in an organization. Bibliography Arthur, C. (2003). Organizing for Fire And Rescue Services. New York: Jones & Barlett Learning. Bearnish, P. (2001). Cooperative Strategies: European perspectives. New York: Lexington Books. Caldeira, E. (2001). Implementing a quality assurance system: a trade contractor case study . New York: Diane . Collins, L. (2004). Technical Rescue Operations, Volume I: Planning, Training, and Command, Volume 1. New York: PennWell Books. Funk, W. (2007). Quality assurance in analytical chemistry: applications in environmental, food, and materials analysis, biotechnology, and medical engineering. New York: Wiley- VCH. John, K. (1985). Quality assurance for environmental measurements: a symposium. New York: ASTM International. Papers, H. o. (2006). The Fire and Rescue Service: Session 2005-06. New York: The Stationery Office. Ratliff, T. (2003). The laboratory quality assurance system: a manual of quality procedures and forms . New York: Wiley & Sons. Read More