Pompano Beach Fire Rescue earns Florida PEDReady Gold Tier recognition for pediatric emergency readiness

Pompano Beach, Florida – Pompano Beach Fire Rescue has reached a new milestone in its emergency medical services, earning Gold Tier recognition through Florida’s Prehospital Pediatric Readiness Recognition Program.

The recognition highlights the department’s preparation to care for children during medical emergencies and comes from the Florida Emergency Medical Services for Children State Partnership Program. To receive the designation, Pompano Beach Fire Rescue had to meet standards covering pediatric training, equipment, emergency protocols, preparedness and patient care.

The program focuses on fire-rescue and emergency medical agencies that have demonstrated a strong commitment to being ready when children need emergency treatment. That preparation is particularly important because pediatric emergencies generally happen less often than emergencies involving adults. As a result, maintaining specialized skills and making sure equipment and procedures remain ready for children can require continued training and planning.

With the new designation, Pompano Beach Fire Rescue becomes the 16th Fire-Rescue or EMS agency in Florida to achieve the Gold Tier recognition. It is also only the second agency in Broward County to reach that level.

Fire Chief Pete McGinnis said the recognition reflects the department’s efforts to maintain a high standard of emergency care for people of all ages.

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“This recognition is a significant achievement for Pompano Beach Fire Rescue and reflects our unwavering commitment to delivering the highest level of emergency medical care to every member of our community, particularly our youngest and most vulnerable patients,” said Fire Chief Pete McGinnis. “While pediatric emergencies may not occur every day, our responsibility is to ensure our personnel are trained, equipped, and prepared to respond with exceptional care whenever that call comes.”

The Gold Tier process required work across the department, including attention to clinical readiness, personnel training and pediatric emergency procedures. McGinnis singled out EMS Chief Aldrich for his role in helping guide the department through the requirements.

“EMS Chief Aldrich worked tirelessly to ensure our fire department met the rigorous requirements necessary to achieve Gold Tier recognition,” McGinnis said. “His commitment to pediatric readiness, training, and clinical excellence helped guide our department through this process and played a significant role in this accomplishment.”

McGinnis also emphasized that the recognition was not the result of one person’s work. Fire Rescue personnel throughout the department contributed to the preparation needed to demonstrate that the agency was ready to provide pediatric emergency care.

“This was truly a team effort,” McGinnis added. “The leadership of Chief Aldrich, combined with the technical expertise, training, and preparation of our Fire Rescue personnel, helped ensure we were ready to demonstrate the exceptional standard of pediatric care our team provides every day.”

For the department, the recognition represents more than a formal designation. It reflects an ongoing effort to make sure firefighters and emergency medical personnel can respond appropriately when a child is seriously injured or becomes ill.

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Pediatric emergencies can present different challenges from those involving adults. Children can have different medical needs, and emergency personnel must be prepared to use the appropriate equipment, procedures and clinical approaches. The Florida recognition program is intended to encourage agencies to maintain that level of readiness even when pediatric calls are less frequent.

Pompano Beach Fire Rescue’s latest achievement also adds to a broader record of fire protection and emergency service accomplishments.

The department has earned an Insurance Service Organization, or ISO, rating of 1, the highest classification for the effectiveness of fire protection in a community. ISO evaluates fire departments across the country, and according to the department, it rates 44,670 fire departments nationwide. Only 242, or about 0.5%, have received a Class 1 rating.

The Gold Tier pediatric recognition arrives during a particularly significant year for Pompano Beach Fire Rescue. The department is celebrating 100 years of service in 2026.

A century of service has included changes in technology, emergency medicine, equipment and the types of calls handled by fire-rescue personnel. The latest recognition adds pediatric preparedness to the department’s list of accomplishments as it marks that anniversary.

The department said the Gold Tier designation reinforces its commitment to preparedness and high-quality service throughout the community. It also places Pompano Beach Fire Rescue among a relatively small group of Florida agencies that have completed the requirements for the state’s highest level of pediatric readiness recognition.

As the department enters its second century of service, the designation provides another example of how its emergency response operations continue to place emphasis on training and preparation. For families in Pompano Beach, that preparation is especially important when an emergency involves a child and immediate medical attention is needed.

The recognition therefore marks both a current achievement and another step in the department’s long history of serving the community.