About Us
Who we are
Civic Shield Inc. is a Canadian emergency management consulting company led by Ivana Irwin, senior leader with over 25 years of experience in fire service operations, incident management, municipal emergency governance, and healthcare system leadership.
Ivana’s career has seen her progress into senior fire service roles and operate within complex, multi-agency response environments. She has spearheaded municipal emergency management initiatives, played a vital role in the COVID-19 response at both municipal and health system levels, and developed operational plans, including pandemic and evacuation frameworks, enhancing community preparedness.
Her contributions extend to national firefighter health initiatives, engaging with Canada’s national framework on cancers linked to firefighting (Bill C-224), and participating in stakeholder discussions focused on occupational cancer data and prevention. Additionally, her work includes peer-reviewed publications in transplant medicine and active involvement in responder health programming.
Civic Shield Inc. is founded on operational credibility, governance fluency, and structured program development, ensuring high-quality ICS training and preparedness strategies.
What we do
Leadership & Executive Engagement
We work directly with Fire Chiefs, senior officers, and municipal leadership to:
- Understand current risks and liabilities
- Align leadership expectations and accountability
- Identify cultural and operational barriers to change
- Establish a clear direction for prevention efforts
Turning ICS Training into Real Operational Performance
Many organizations invest in Incident Command System (ICS) training—but still struggle to apply it effectively during real incidents.
Civic Shield Inc. specializes in translating ICS theory into operational practice, ensuring that training is not only understood, but consistently applied under pressure.
We work directly with your team to operationalize ICS roles:
- Incident Commander decision-making and structure
- Section Chief responsibilities and coordination
- Task-level execution for frontline personnel
- Integration across agencies and disciplines
Cancer Risk Assessment & Gap Analysis
A comprehensive review of your current practices, including:
- Policies, SOPs, guidelines and practices
- Organizational culture and compliance challenges
- Customized training sessions tailored to your department’s needs, grounded in Canadian research and national initiatives.
- provide a structured plan to support implementation