Adopted at the 120^th Annual Conference

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania

October 23, 2013

Tactical Emergency Medical Training for Law Enforcement Personnel

Submitted by: Police Physicians Section

Co-Sponsors: Patrol and Tactical Operations Committee and SACOP SafeShield Committee

PPS.001.t13

WHEREAS, law enforcement is typically the initial first responder to emergency medical situations, whether accidental or criminal in nature; and

WHEREAS, tactical, high risk police situations introduce unique challenges to law enforcement to provide emergency medical care, as EMS personnel will frequently not be on scene for prolonged periods of time while threat assessment/mitigation takes place (e.g. active shooter, bombing, terrorist events); and

WHEREAS, in such situations the law enforcement officer may be the only resource for emergency medical care for injured law enforcement personnel, or for the victims of a mass casualty incident, until the injured can be safely transferred to EMS; and

WHEREAS, annual statistics of line-of-duty felonious life threatening injuries and deaths demonstrate the necessity for the law enforcement officer to be capable to provide self-aid or buddy-aid for colleagues; and

WHEREAS, based on clinical experience from the military in tactical combat casualty care, with consensus of medical and surgical experts in tactical medicine, that early and rapid intervention including hemorrhage control at the point of wounding is lifesaving and improves the chance for survival; and

WHEREAS, IACP recently published three Training Keys on emergency trauma care; and

WHEREAS, the IACP Center for Officer Safety and Wellness' mission is to instill a culture of safety and wellness in international policing and first responder training for law enforcement personnel is a preventative measure in concert with this mission, now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED, that the International Association of Chiefs of Police duly assembled at its 120th Annual Conference in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania recommends that every law enforcement officer should receive tactical emergency medical training including critical core skills of early, life-threatening hemorrhage control and rapid evacuation of mass casualty victims to a casualty collection point. Tactical emergency medical skills are critical life-saving interventions in the officer-down situation, whether as officer applied self-aid or aid given to a fellow officer, or to victims of a mass casualty situation such as an active shooter or bombing event. Specific elements of training are the purview of each agency depending on availability of resources and training programs.