2025 is shaping up to be the year of improvements for RF-DASH. One of those improvements is the addition of a full-time trainer to the RF-DASH team. The National Farm Medicine Center recently received funds to hire a full-time RF-DASH trainer based in the Grain Belt of the U.S. The goal will be for the RF-DASH trainer to conduct 20 trainings over 18 months. While trainings will take place across the U.S. and Canada, half of them will be in the Grain Belt.
Hiring a full-time trainer will enable RF-DASH to reach more fire departments and first responders than ever before. Over the last few years, the RF-DASH staff has only been able to provide 2-3 trainings a year. Unfortunately, that means we have had to decline some training requests. With a full-time trainer on board we will be able to significantly increase the footprint of the RF-DASH program. You will likely hear more about the full-time trainer in a future newsletter.
Lastly, in addition to a full-time trainer, we have secured some funds to provide “seed” training grants to select RF-DASH trainers. These “seed” grants will make it easier for our trainers to conduct trainings by limiting their out-of-pocket costs. We are still formalizing the process by which these grants would be disseminated, but once that is complete, we will notify our trainers.