ARMC Holds Safety Seminars for Probation Officers

Arrowhead Regional Medical Center (ARMC) and the County of San Bernardino Probation Department have developed a joint venture to provide Tactical Trauma Care seminars to more than 450 probation officers to assist them in obtaining the tools and information they need to be safe in the field. Such training can save lives in the event of critical injuries sustained by either probation officers or the public. Dr. Michael Neeki, an ARMC emergency room physician and a volunteer with the Inland Valley Special Weapons and Tactics (SWAT), volunteers his time to lead these tactical medicine seminars, which provide strategies to deal with the injuries caused by weapons. The seminars include a combination of didactic training (lecture and PowerPoint) and hands-on training, such as learning how to control bleeding with a tourniquet (a band that stops blood flow) and wound management. Four seminars were held during the month of August in ARMC’s Oak Room and more are planned for the coming months, said Dr. Neeki. “As a public hospital and a teaching facility, ARMC has a duty to lead when it comes to education and training,” said Dr. Neeki. “We also benefit from providing seminars like this at ARMC because our resident physicians, nurses, and other staff members can get involved to help serve the community.” The idea for the probation officer training originated from County of San Bernardino Probation Department, Health Services Manager, Sharon Jaques, who said she first learned of Dr. Neeki through news reports about his SWAT involvement. The Probation Department provides community supervision for 22,000 adult offenders, 3,000 juvenile offenders, and 2,500 offenders on supervised release through Assembly Bill (AB) 109, in addition to court-related investigative services and a wide range of intervention programs for criminal and delinquent offenders. The department has more than 1,200 employees, including the more than 450 probation officers who are taking the tactical trauma care training because of active field assignments. The department provides specialized supervision for gang members, sex offenders, and domestic violence offenders. “Dr. Neeki has the ideal mix of law enforcement training and medical expertise to teach the probation officers,” said Jaques. “The Probation Department is extremely appreciative of the fact that we can depend on ARMC to provide the training needed by our officers and we are grateful for the support that we received from ARMC Director, Patrick Petre. “This is a cost effective and efficient way to provide training for our probation officers, as it can be provided through the expertise of other county agencies rather than hiring outside vendors,” said Jaques. Each seminar has performance objectives so that by the end of the session officers will be able to explain the location of vital organs and blood vessels, understand ballistics (the study of the dynamics of projectiles such as bullets), and demonstrate an appropriate response to trauma in the field. The training topics include: a review of basic anatomy, steps to treating a bullet wound in the field, and a review of medical terminology. According to Jaques, the Probation Department recognized a need to provide tactical trauma care training for its officers. This training is not directly related to AB 109, the Public Safety Realignment Act, which has been in effect since October 2011 and tasks probation departments with the supervision of offenders who previously were overseen by state parole agents. However, Chief Probation Officer Michelle Scray Brown commented, “We have seen a 45 percent reduction in the annual arrest rate of AB 109 offenders since supervision moved from parole to county probation. Despite this, some offenders are not amendable to supervision and can act out violently. This training furthers our commitment to provide the most comprehensive training available for our officers and the protection of the community.”