all to achieve healthier and longer careers for firefighters and other first responders. Kepra Jack holds a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) and worked for 15 years as an Emergency Room Nurse and Paramedic Coordinator before specializing in occupational and public safety medicine. Her hands-on clinical experience, combined with her roles as an occupational health clinician, researcher, and educator, informs her work on health solutions tailored to the realities of firefighters. Kepra serves as a voting member on two National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) Technical Committees, as well as the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (ACOEM) Public Safety Medical Guidance Committee. In these roles, she contributes to the content of standards and recommendations that shape medical surveillance, fitness-for-duty expectations, and wellness guidelines. She is a frequent presenter and educator at national, state, and local conferences and seminars where she often speaks about changing existing habits that tend to contribute to injuries and long-term diseases. One venue is the highly popular “Science to the Station NERDSTOCK ’26” Conference being held this year on November 3-5 in Kansas City, Missouri. Kepra will be among the many highly qualified presenters who will be speaking about most (if not all) of the issues mentioned within this review. Kepra Jack is a dedicated advocate for firefighter health and wellness. Even though this has been a critical fire service issue for many years, a lot of us remain on a steep learning curve about important health and wellness issues that fall within the expertise of Kepra, her team, and the vast group of partners and collaborators she works with throughout the country. If you’ve spent time with her at all, you have witnessed the brilliance, compassion, dedication, and passion that she brings to her work every day.
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