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PREVENTION

The National Prevention Strategy and you

By Jacqui Bannach, NSS

In 2008, the National Search and Rescue Prevention Working Group recommended immediate and concrete steps to reduce or lessen the need for search and rescue (SAR) response. As a result, the respective SAR committees of federal and provincial/ territorial governments agreed to a National SAR Prevention Strategy. Based on the hypothesis that 80% of SAR incidents are caused by the top 20% of subjects, activities and/or locations that generate a need for a SAR response, the strategy aims to provide broad public awareness and targeted outreach to reduce the frequency and severity of SAR incidents.

This prevention strategy is based on the 2003 National SAR Program’s Prevention vision and objective:

Vision

A Canada where people engaging in activities that might require a SAR response, assess the degree of risk involved in their actions and choose a behaviour that avoids or minimizes potential injury or loss of life.

Objective

Prevention aims to motivate people to acquire and use the knowledge, skills, and devices, necessary for them to avoid or reduce the severity of incidents associated with their activities, which might require a SAR response.

In order to reach this goal, the four following strategies were developed in 2004:

• Motivating people to acquire and use the knowledge, skills and equipment necessary to save lives and avoid injury;
• Strengthening the capacity of the prevention community throughout Canada;
• Designing effective SAR prevention programs, activities and measures that reflect prevention community best practices and incorporate lessons learned; and
• Committing to the achievement of measurable results.

While a lot of consultation and effort went into developing a SAR prevention strategy, previous prevention initiatives did not measure baseline activities. It was therefore difficult to attribute any progress to education initiatives, as well as implement and follow through in an intensive manner. Since that time, SAR stakeholders have undertaken various activities, but only a few achieved measurable results. One of these activities is the AdventureSmart program.

Developed by the British Columbia Provincial Emergency Program, with the assistance of the National Search and Rescue Secretariat, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) and the British Columbia SAR Association, this program combined online and on-site awareness with targeted outreach. The program provides specific information and education messages to high risk groups, such as snowmobilers, hikers, etc. The outreach component utilized existing programs, such as the RCMP’s Hug a Tree and Survive (for children age 5-11) and the Snow Safety Education Program, and developed other programs like Survive Outside to meet audience needs (older teens and adults).

An AdventureSmart whistle, used in the Hug-a-Tree and Survive program. Photo Credit: AdventureSmart

The key to the success of the AdventureSmart program is:

• the dynamic interaction of credible spokespersons with the general public,
• a commitment to sustained investment,
• the delivery of consistent messaging throughout the program, and
• quality assurance and evaluation.

The AdventureSmart program is kept up to date and relevant to its audiences because it assesses SAR incidents and targets areas with the greatest need, integrating feedback and lessons learned into the delivery of the program.

The National Prevention Strategy will build on the success of AdventureSmart by rolling out this program nationally as a core element of the National Prevention Strategy. Maximizing the skills and experience of SAR volunteers will make AdventureSmart programs accessible in communities across Canada and reduce the severity and frequency of SAR incidents.

Jacqueline Bannach (Jacqui) is a Senior Analyst with the National Search and Rescue Secretariat. Her first exposure to SAR over 20 years ago was as a young lieutenant in the Cadet Instructors Cadre, teaching aircrew survival to cadets at summer camp in Whitehorse, Yukon. Initially a military police officer, she joined the RCMP as a policy analyst for search and rescue and general duty policing. In November 2007, Jacqui joined the National Search and Rescue Secretariat on secondment, and later as a permanent employee, with a focus on revitalizing SAR prevention.

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