Release Notes November 2023

Release Notes November 2023


Video




App
  1. Current Version:
    1. iOS: 5.5.0
      1. Enhanced unit list visualization.
      2. NFIRS id information added to dispatch details view.
      3. Enhanced the "last position known" unit tracking timestamp to be more easily identified. 
    2. Android: 6.5.8
      1. Optimized incident list loading times 

Assets Module

  1. Enhancements:
    1. Filters added to Bulk Checks
 
    1. New Setting - Vendor Not Required
      1. New toggle in Assets -> Setup -> Settings allows enabling/disabling of vendor requirement when receiving inventory. 
      2. Only visible in association with "Assets - Receive Inventory" Permission (Assets Bucket).
 

    1. On Demand Checks
      1. Unscheduled checklists have been renamed to "On Demand" throughout the platform.


    1. Swap Button Added to Fleet Overview
      1. Users can now start an apparatus swap from the Fleet Overview instead of from a specific apparatus.
      2. Select both the swap "from" and swap "to" fields. After this step, the same behavior as the current swap function continues.


  1. Manufacture Year
    1. The "Manufacture Year" field will now accept a value of up to the current year plus one.


Activities/Events

  1. Enhancements:
    1. Attachment Interface Update
      1. Event attachments are now visible as download hyperlinks when viewing an event's details. Click the link to download the attachment.



Fire Prevention Module

  1. New Features:
    1. Occupancy Details - New Data Fields to assist with OVAP Score / Risk Assessment
      1. Several new fields were added to a new "Risk Assessment" section within the Occupancy Record. The new fields are:
  • Building Items
    • Average Exposure Separation
    • Exposure A Separation
    • Exposure B Separation
    • Exposure C Separation
    • Exposure D Separation
    • Fire Department Access
  • Life Safety
    • Occupant Mobility
    • Warning Alarm
    • Exiting System
  • Risk – Frequency / Likelihood
    • Regulatory Oversight
    • Human Activity
    • Experience
  • Risk – Consequence
    • Capacity to Control
    • Hazard Index
    • Fire Load
  • Water Demand 
    • Fire Flow Required – Fire Flow in GPM
    • Fire Flow Available
    • Fire Sprinkler
    • Standpipe Systems 
    • NFPA Five Year Inspection
  • Impact to Community – Value
    • Value to the Community
  • Risk Score
    • Risk Score*
    • Risk Classification*
    1. Important* Only the Risk Score and Risk Classification fields are shown in the occupancy record by default. The rest of these new fields are set up as "hide" within Admin -> Field Management. If an agency wants to use any of these fields, navigate to Admin -> Field Management to manage the view/edit permissions per field.
  1. Enhancements:
    1. Inspection Report - Checklist Items Section
      1. Improved visualization of checklist items with the report. Changes include:
        1. Result, item, remarks, and codes each have their own line. This allows for longer text strings without negatively affecting report formatting.
        2. Colors and icon indications for standard responses.
        3. Sections and Groups have been added to the printed report.
        4. ***All changes are only applied to new or in-progress inspections***
 
    1. Scheduling Preferences
      1. Inspections -> Inspection Setup -> System Options
      2. Use this new section to exclude days of the week and specific holidays regarding auto-scheduling of reinspections, inspection cycles, etc.
      3. When a recurring inspection is scheduled, if the new date falls on an excluded day, the system will select the next available day.
 
    1. Inspection List - New Filters
      1. Two new filters added to aid with inspection reminder emails:
        1. Contact has Email
        2. Contact has Phone
    1. Field Management - New Fields for "edit by role"
      1. Business Name, Notes, Property Class, and Billing Address occupancy fields are now available in field management for "edit, read, hide" permissions by role.
    2. Occupancy - Disable Auto Calculate Total Area
      1. Agencies with Enhanced Pre-Plans can now decide if they want the Occupancy Field "Total Area" to be auto calculated based on entered width & height or if the number should be manually entered or use a value from another system.
      2. To enable/disable, navigate to Field Management, search for the "Total Area" field, and uncheck the "Auto Calculate" option. This option is ON by default.
    3. Fee Schedule - Increased General Ledger Code Character Limit
      1. New Limit is 40 alphanumeric characters.
    4. Inspection Organizer - Secondary Places
      1. Secondary Places are now shown by default in the Inspection Organizer.

    1. Inspection List - Read Only
      1. Workflow for allowing a user to access inspection reports in pdf read only view:
        1. 1) Grant the user role Fire Inspections - Read permission.
        1. 2) Do not grant the user role Fire Inspections - Edit.
    2. Violations Table - Associated Codes Update
      1. The Violations table will now only display codes associated to the selected inspection type.
    3. Add an occupancy contact after the inspection has been completed
      1. Users can retroactively add occupancy contacts to a completed inspection
      2. Permission associated: Contacts - Add Contact After Complete Inspection (Fire Prevention Bucket)
      3. Contacts added retroactively can be marked to receive the inspection report and marked as an occupancy contact. They cannot be marked as the inspection contact.
    4. Inspection checklist item description character limit increased to 2,500
    5. Permits - Autofill Signature for the Inspector
      1. Sign or fill option is now available when editing a Permit Type. When enabled, this will allow the option of using the "fill" saved signature button when signing a permit.
    6. Permits - Change Issue and Expiration Dates
      1. Users can change a permit's issue or expiration date of an automatic permit.
        1. Date can be backdated or in the future.
        2. After modifying the dates, the status of the permit will change if applicable.
        3. New Associated Permission: FD Permits - Update Dates (Fire Prevention Bucket)
 
    1. Permits - Address Shortcut
      1. When editing a permit, a user can now quickly create a new permit for the same address without returning to the permit list. The new permit will default to the address within the permit currently being edited.


    1. Community Connect - Send Bulk Emails
      1. Agencies can now send bulk emails to their Community Connect / High Hazard users from the CC users page.
      2. New associated permission: "Community Connect Users - Send Notification" (Community Connect Bucket).
      3. By default, all users Opt-in to receive email notifications. However, upon email receipt, a user can unsubscribe from the list.
      4. In the users list, a new column labeled "Notification Opt In" shows which users are subscribed to notifications. There is also a new filter to display only opted in users.
      5. When the user clicks the bulk action "send notification", a modal opens where a message subject, body, and attachments can be constructed.
        1. This message can be saved as a template for later use. The system will support up to 25 templates.
 
    1. Community Connect Permits - Notify Resident of Permit Status Change
      1. For each permit a CC user submits, the resident/business owner will now receive an email when there is a change in permit status.
        1. If an agency has automatic permits, the agency will receive a copy of the permit report when the permit is automatically approved.
    1. Invoicing Page - New Interface 
      1. The Invoice List has been updated to make it more intuitive and feel similar to Inspections:
        1. Action buttons have been moved from the bottom of the page to after invoice information.
        2. Each section (line items, payments, discounts) can now be expanded/collapsed 
        3. Invoice information header can be expanded/collapsed

    1. Invoicing - New "Money Status"
      1. New status, "No Fee" was created for invoices with nothing to pay. This separates invoices which never incurred a fee from other unpaid invoices with a fee.
      2. The No Fee status will be shown when the [Invoice total = 0] or [Invoice total = Discounts] 


    1. Required Payments for Community Connect Permit Requests
      1. Agencies can now require upfront payments for any Permit submitted through the Community Connect Portal. 
        1. This can only be done by agencies with online payments enabled. (If interested in online payments, contact your Client Success Manager).
      2. To configure:
        1. 1) Within the Permit Type, enable "Payment Required at time of Application"
        2. 2) Associate all line items the CC user needs to pay.
 
      1. 3) When a CC user submits a permit request, a record will be created within the Invoice tab of the Permit.
        1. When the CC user applies for the permit via the portal, the invoice total is displayed with an option to "Pay and Submit"
 
      1. 4) Inside the portal, CC users can access the public facing invoice
 

    1. Community Connect - Burn Permit Expiration Fixed Date
      1. Agencies can now create Burn Permits set to expire on a Fixed Date.
      2. Once the Permit Type is configured, all permits with an issue date before or equal to the fixed date will expire on that date in the current year.
      3. All Permits with an issue date after the fixed expiration date will expire on the same fixed date in the next year.
 

  1. Permit & Inspection Form Builder
    1. When creating or editing a form, in the tags list, the user will see the configured labels from field management instead of the legacy field name.
  2. Permit Form Builder - New Default Header
    1. Updated form header now includes the permit type.
  3. Permit & Inspection Form Builder - New Data Fields

      Inspections Form Builder:

  • Inspection Related
    • Inspection Type
    • Scheduled Type
    • Scheduled at (date time)
    • Scheduled Time
    • Shift
    • Assigned to (User or Team)
    • Completed Time
    • Rename "Contact Name" to "Inspection Contact Name"
  • Demographic:
    • Property Description
  • Access Section Items:
    • Property Access Code
    • Property Access Notes
    • Fence
    • Number of Entry/Exit Access Points
    • Entry/Exit Access Points Fortified (checkbox)
    • Number of Entry Only Access Points
    • Entry Access Points Fortified (checkbox)
    • Number of Exit Only Access Points
    • Exit Access Points Fortified (checkbox)
    • Access Problems
  • Demographics:
    • Inspection District
    • Inspection Zone
    • Business Phone - preplan.business_phone as an available field under Demographics
    • Rename "Business Address" to "Address"

 

      Permits Form Builder:

  • Permit Notes
    • Permit Notes - Current
  • Demographic:
    • Property Description
  • Access Section Items:
    • Property Access Code
    • Property Access Notes
    • Fence
    • Number of Entry/Exit Access Points
    • Entry/Exit Access Points Fortified 
    • Number of Entry Only Access Points
    • Entry Access Points Fortified 
    • Number of Exit Only Access Points
    • Exit Access Points Fortified 
    • Access Problems
  • Demographics:
    • Inspection District
    • Inspection Zone
    • Business Phone

Hydrants

  1. New Features:
    1. Email Notification for Hydrant Status
      1. Hydrant Setup -> Notify Service Changes
      2. Choose users to receive automatic email notifications when a hydrant changes status (In Service to Out of Service or vice versa).
      3. This email will Include:
        1. Hydrant Information
        2. Location Details (if available)
        3. Action Details
      4. Note: Email  notifications will be triggered when the hydrant undergoes a status change via a service check or direct editing. Status changes initiated through any import method (FDM, Import Wizard, ArcGIS Sync, Import CSV) will not trigger email notifications. 
    1. Second Delete Confirmation
      1. In response to user feedback and focus on safety, a second delete confirmation modal has been added in order to delete a hydrant.

Incident Documentation

  1. New Features:
    1. Audit History of Records
      1. New list item, found in the Actions column of the Fire Incident List
      2. Items being tracked in the Audit:
        1. User who Creates the record. (Note, if "created" automatically from CAD/Dispatch, then the "user" would be "Auto Created", Type of Action = Created, Description = Auto Created from Dispatch/CAD)
        2. User who Starts the record.
        3. User who opens the record to view it.
        4. User who printed/generated print report of the record.
        5. User who Completes the Report
        6. User who Marked Record Incomplete
        7. Any Time CAD data is refreshed/re-downloaded.
        8. Any time the record is exported - Manually or Automated. 
 

  1. Enhancements:
    1. Permission to Override Narrative
      1. A new permission was added in the Incident Reporting bucket "Incident Report - Override Narrative". This will allow the user holding this permission to edit any narrative.
    2. Field customization - Control Dropdown Values
      1. NFIRS field customization now includes the ability to control which drop down values are active and the sort order for those values.
       
      1. Alberta Form - Timestamps
        1. Timestamp buttons were added for several fields on the Alberta form. The fields included are:
          1. Date/Time of Incident (One timestamp button can fill in all three (Date, Day of week and Time) of incident
          2. Time of Alarm (Time component only as this field the "date" is assumed as the same date)
          3. Date/Time Arrived at Fire
          4. Apparatus Times (All apparatus times, including Canceled
          5. Station Response (All Station Response Times)

    1. Other Enhancements:
      1. [NFIRS] - Allow partial save (apparatus/People involved, CC, EMS, FF).
      2. [OFM] - Move Initial Detection from one section to another.
      3. [OFM] - Remove "Decision to Defer" from OFM form as it's the same field as Application of Agent.
      4. [OFM] - Corrected Fire Department Codes for a couple agencies.
      5. [OFM] - Added Response Types missing.
      6. [NFIRS] - Optimizations to avoid slow load times on NFIRS reports.
      7. [NFIRS] - Include previous 24-hours to Crewsense integration.
      8. Command to generate the Canadian setup configuration when deploying a new customer.
      9. [NFIRS] -Preserve the apparatus name in authorized reports.
      10. [OFM] [Incident List] - pull Incident Location from Incident Address fields.

ePCR

  1. New Features:
    1. NFIRS Short Form for EMS incidents
      1. To activate the NFIRS Short form for ePCRs, a new setting is available within EMS Setup -> General
      2. See related article: Documenting the NFIRS Report within an ePCR
 
      1. Within an ePCR, the NFIRS short form will appear in a new tab, which will be activated by downloading a CAD record. In this new section, it is possible to complete and save the associated NFIRS report.
 

      1. To avoid concurrency problems, when a provider is working in the NFIRS short form within the ePCR tab, the record will be locked in the Fire Incident List and will be unlocked when the EMS provider leaves the tab. Likewise, the NFIRS short form tab will be unavailable if the record is currently open elsewhere in the Fire Incident List.
    1. Populate Crew Members into ePCR from Scheduler
      1. New setting will automatically pull personnel from the assigned unit into the "crew" area within an ePCR.
        1. This can be done automatically via importing CAD information or manually by selecting an apparatus and adding a value into "Unit notified by dispatch date/time".
        2. Contact your Client Success Manager for more details.
 
    1. Scan Driver's License
      1. New feature within the Patient Information section allows for scanning and auto-input of identification card information using your device's camera. Scan the bar code on the back of the Driver's License to import values.
      2. Values pulled into the ePCR:
        1. First Name
        2. Last Name
        3. Middle Initial/Name
        4. Date of Birth
        5. Address
        6. City
        7. State
        8. Zip
        9. Weight
        10. Gender
        11. Driver License Number
 
    1. Incident Status as Export Criteria
      1. Records will only send to the endpoint when the incident status is in the defined status for each endpoint.
      2. Operates as an "AND" criteria in conjunction with Incident Patient Disposition.
  1. Enhancements:
    1. Custom Questions added to Workflows
      1. Custom questions are now available to be targeted by workflows, both to create rules or use as a condition.
    2. Section Validation Design Update
      1. When a user selects "complete", the number of pending validations is displayed in each section.
 
    1. Other Enhancements:
      1. [Workflows] - Include eOther.05 - Suspected EMS Work Related Exposure, Injury, or Death field in Workflows
      2. [Workflows] - Flag red Individual Fields with workflows
      3. [EMS] - Add field for all accounts for Apartment number
      4. [UX/UI] Small changes in color and button size for assessment and list
      5. [Export] - Remove invalid characters when generating XML
      6. [Export] - Fix resend generation for 3.5.0
      7. [Procedure] - Fix minor spelling errors in procedures

Medications

  1. New Features:
    1. Occurrence Report for Missing Controlled Substance
      1. An report is sent automatically when any medication labeled "CS" is missing during a count.
      2. If a user marks a controlled substance as missing while performing a medication count, the notification is automatically sent to the module's "default recipients" (user/team).

  1. Enhancements:
    1. Updated Signature Modal
      1. It is now possible to use up to three signatures, within three separate tabs:

-First Tab:

  • Will belong to the current logged in user. 
  • The logged in user will simply have an option to sign “Click to add signature”

 

 

 

- Second Tab:  (INTERNAL USER Selected)

  • Will initially be labeled “User 2”
  • Must be an internal user. 
  • The “Select User” drop-down will be available
  • REQUIRED
  • The Signature section is available when you select the user, this opens a separate modal to capture the signature, with Save & Cancel buttons

 

- Third Tab: (INTERNAL USER or OUTSIDE AGENCY USER Selected) ***Optional***

  • Will initially be labeled “User 3”
  • NOT REQUIRED but if you select a user, you MUST sign 
  • The Signature section is available when you select the user, this opens a separate modal to capture the signature, with Save & Cancel buttons

 

 

    1. Update to allowed values within Add Medications -> Dose
      1. The allowable values in this field are now 6 characters: 4 integers and 2 decimals.
    2. Added "Unit" to Dose Unit field within Medication Forms
 


Personnel Module

  1. Enhancements:
    1. Charge/uncharge Personnel in a Call Shift
      1. A scheduler can now charge or uncharge someone for a call shift, based off the new setting found within Setup-> Call Shift Rules -> Settings -> Allow manual charging.
        1. This allows for situations in which an individual picks up overtime but will not move down the ranking list.
      2. If this setting is enabled, a new action will appear when accessing the call shift history tab, in the actions column.
        1. Set to charged (plus icon) or Set to uncharged (minus icon)
      3. New "Charge" column will reflect whether the user has been charged or not for this particular call shift.

      1. Additionally, a new column was added to the user call shift modal to reflect charge status. (call shifts-> click on a qualifier-> click on a user)

      1. If a user is charged for the shift, the hours will be counted towards the ranking list. If the user is uncharged, the hours for that specific shift will NOT count towards ranking list regardless of call shift rules in effect or the work type for the user taking the shift.
      2. System log now reflects charged/uncharged


      1. Recurring Time Off - Kelly Days
        1. Users can create more complex Kelly day schedules using recurrence rules.
        2. When editing a user rotation, in the Kelly Day section, users now have the "Rule" option when setting recurring time off. Previously users could only define Kelly days every xx shifts.
        3. If "Rule" is selected, the dropdown will list all active recurrence rules. This option will put the user on time off (using the selected time off type) for any shifts that match with the rule set.


    1. Add Entire Groups/Qualifiers to Off Roster
      1. When adding personnel to the Off Roster section of the shift board, users can now add an entire group or qualifier.
      2. Users can also still be added one at a time.
      3. If multiple users are selected, separate entries are created for each user.
      4. Since a user can be associated with more than one qualifier or group, if a user is in more than one selected group/qualifier, only one instance of off-roster hours will be created per user.



  1. Assigned Personnel and Total User Roster Count
    1. The shift board now displayed the total number of assigned personnel for the day, broken down by qualifier.
    2.  Qualifier requirements are calculated based on a total of every assignment's required qualifiers that count towards a vacancy.
    3. The total user counter will display the total number of assigned personnel for the day compared to the total number of riding positions available.
    4. The vacancy counter remains unchanged, displaying the number of unstaffed assignments that are defined to "count as vacancy" in assignment -> setup.
 

    1. Validate Shift Board on Current Day
      1. Users can now validate the Shift Board on the day instead of waiting until the day has passed.
      2. New Setting: Personnel Setup -> Settings -> Shift Board Settings: "Allow validate day of and future dates".
        1. When enabled, the validate option will be visible to users with validate permissions on the shift board every day.

 

    1. Validation Action Added to System Log
      1. Admins can now track shift board assignment validation in the system log. 
      2. When an assignment is validated or the validation is removed, a system log entry is created.


    1. Keep "queued" users when a Call Shift ends
      1. Previously, with the Candidate method disabled, if a user was queued (not yet contacted) at the end of a call shift, the user status was changed to "no answer".
      2. This behavior has been changed to that the status remained queued after the call shift ends.
    2. New Rotations
      1. The following new rotations have been added to the system:
        1. 2 ON / 14 OFF / 2 ON / 17 OFF
        2. 1 ON / 7 OFF / 1 ON / 3 OFF / 1 ON / 3 OFF / 1 ON/ 3 OFF / 1 ON / 3 OFF / 1 ON / 3 OFF
        3. 1 ON / 1 OFF /1 ON / 15 OFF / 1 ON / 15 OFF / 1 ON / 15 OFF/ 1 ON / 15 OFF / 1 ON / 15 OFF / 1 ON / 15 OFF


Reports Module

  1. New Features:
    1. Payroll Summary Data Source - "Record"
      1. New column added to Payroll Summary Data Source: Record
      2. This column shows different data depending on the source module, helping to identify where the payroll summary event record originated:
        1. Incident Reporting -> Incident #
        2. Events -> Event Name
        3. Training -> Training Class Name
      3. Reminder that the "Payroll ID" column provides a hyperlink to the record and should generally always be included.

  1. Enhancements:
    1. Canned Reports - NFPA Annual Survey
      1. First Due has several existing canned reports that mirror the NFPA Annual Survey. They have been relabeled and grouped into a new category named "NFPA Annual Survey".
      2. Report name changes:
        1. Major Fires ---> Part II - Major Fires
        2. Breakdown of Structure Fires and Other Fires and Incidents ---> Part III - Breakdown of Structure Fires and Other Fires and Incidents
        3. Breakdown of False Alarm Responses ---> Part IV - Breakdown of False Alarm Responses
        4. Intentionally Set Fires in Structures and Vehicles ---> Part V - Intentionally Set Fires in Structures and Vehicles
        5. On-Duty Firefighter Injuries ---> Part VI - Fire Service Exposures and Injuries
 

    1. Payroll Report Update
      1. New Columns:
        1. Record (the Incident Number for NFIRS, Event Name for Event and Class Name for Training)
        2. Note: these are all hyperlinked to the original record -- so if they see a data entry issue they can just go fix it by clicking the link
        3. Time In
        4. Time Out
        5. Activity Type
        6. Pay Rate (from the payroll summary grids in each module)
        7. Hours
        8. Stipend
        9. Pay Rate x Hours (calculated)
        10. Description
      2. Subtotal Rows per module (Incidents, Training, Events) and a blue total bar.
      3. Several new filters, including the ability to filter by a custom date range.



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