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Officer Safety And Wellness
The occupational fatality rate for law enforcement is three to five times greater than the national average for the working population. The officers who protect us must also be protected against incapacitating physical, mental, and emotional health problems, as well as against the hazards of their job. We have built a library of our resources below to help agencies better look after the physical safety and mental wellness of their officers. We also support LEO Near Miss: a national, voluntary, non-disciplinary reporting system that allows law enforcement personnel to read about and anonymously share “close calls” or “near misses,” which provide lessons learned that can save the lives of other law enforcement officers.
Additionally, the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) and the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) formed the National Officer Safety and Wellness Group (OSWG) in 2011 to bring attention to the safety and wellness needs of law enforcement officers following a number of high-profile ambushes on police. Since then, the OSWG has raised awareness, increased knowledge, and encouraged law enforcement agencies to adopt practices that recognize that the most valuable resource a law enforcement agency has is the men and women who put their lives on the line each and every day in the name of protecting and serving their communities. To view further information on the OSWG, along with the resources that they have developed, please visit the National Officer Safety and Wellness Group page.
| Officer Safety and Wellness Resources This collection of resources assembles several dozen articles, podcasts, infographics, trainings, webinars, and other publications produced (mainly by the COPS Office and Bureau of Justice Assistance) in recent years dealing with all aspects of law enforcement officer and family wellness. |
Rank and File: Reflections on Emerging Issues in Law Enforcement In August 2017, 40 rank-and-file officers met for a roundtable to discuss their roles in implementing their agencies' community policing policies and operations. |
| Officers' Physical and Mental Health and Safety: Emerging Issues and Recommendations The OSW Group's April 2018 meeting expanded on previous discussions of ways to support officers' emotional health and organizational wellness. |
Building and Sustaining an Officer Wellness Program: Lessons from the San Diego Police Department Law enforcement agencies around the country are recognizing the importance of monitoring and tending to employees' physical and mental health and wellness. |
| Building and Sustaining an Officer Wellness Program: Lessons from the San Diego Police Department. Essentials for Leaders In 2016, the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) entered into a cooperative agreement with the Department of Justice's Office of Community Oriented Policing Services to conduct a case study of the San Diego (California) Police Department's wellness program. |
Officer Health and Organizational Wellness: Emerging Issues and Recommendations Law enforcement officers face many hazards in the line of duty. Though injuries from assaults and vehicular accidents are the most obvious, stress, cardiovascular disease, depression, and suicide are also serious job-related risks. |
| Making It Safer: A Study of Law Enforcement Fatalities Between 2010-2016 This report developed by the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial Fund Advisory Panel encompasses a seven-year study conducted from 2010-2016 to analyze 1,016 line-of-duty deaths. |
The Signs Within: Suicide Prevention Education and Awareness Law enforcement officers respond to danger and witness tragedy on a routine basis, which can make them vulnerable to a high level of emotional distress, even suicide. |
| Rescue, Response, and Resilience: A Critical Incident Review of the Orlando Public Safety Response to the Attack on the Pulse Nightclub This Police Foundation report on the Pulse nightclub shooting attack in June 2016 details multiple aspects of the attack and response, including leadership, collaboration, tactics, equipment, training, emergency medical care, officer safety, public information, and community relationships. |
Improving Law Enforcement Resilience: Lessons and Recommendations This report provides recommendations for preparing officers for traumatic events and strategies for supporting overall resilience through physical and emotional health. |
| Las Vegas After Action Assessment: Lessons Learned from the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's Ambush Incident Analyzes the Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department's tragic loss on June 8, 2014, when two officers were ambushed and killed by two assailants |
Deadly Calls and Fatal Encounters Identifies situations that place officers at higher levels of risk and offers multiple recommendations to enhance officer safety |
| Understanding Firearms Assaults against Law Enforcement Officers in the United States Attempts to answer important questions regarding firearm assaults against law enforcement officers |
OSW Group Meeting Summary: Officer Safety and Wellness Forum Summarizes the March 14, 2016 Officer Safety and Wellness (OSW) Group meeting |
| Health, Safety, and Wellness Program Case Studies in Law Enforcement Presents four recent case studies that serve as models for safety, health, and wellness programs focused on the physical and psychological health of officers |
Ambushes of Police: Environment, Incident Dynamics, and the Aftermath of Surprise Attacks Against Law Enforcement Focuses on civilian ambush attacks on police and presents recommendations for next steps and additional research |
| Making Officer Safety and Wellness Priority One: A Guide to Educational Campaigns Provides law enforcement agencies with an approach to creating a culture of officer safety and wellness |
IACP National Symposium on Law Enforcement Officer Suicide and Mental Health: Breaking the Silence on Law Enforcement Suicides Outlines the results and recommendations from the National Symposium on Law Enforcement Officer Suicide and Mental Health |
| OSW Group Annual Summary: Issues and Recommendations for Improving the Well being of Police Officers Brings together highlights from the U.S. Department of Justice Officer Safety and Wellness Group's first year of work |
Emerging Use of Force Issues: Balancing Public and Officer Safety Summarizes the discussions from the IACP/COPS Office Use of Force Symposium and provides suggestions |
| Tampa Bay Manhunt After-Action Report: Lessons Learned in Community Police Partnerships and Use of the Incident Command System Offers lessons learned during the Tampa Police Department's multi-agency unified command response to the murder of two officers on June 29, 2010 |
Safety and Health Information and Education for Law Enforcement Departments: An Annotated Bibliography Offers resources on occupational health and safety resources for law enforcement in one convenient location |
Hemorrhage Control Overview
Law enforcement officers are often the first to respond to a scene involving persons with critical injuries and have an opportunity to save lives threatened by uncontrolled bleeding.
In this slideshow, Lieutenant and Deputy Medical Director Alex Eastman of Dallas (Texas) Police Department provides an overview of the Dallas Police Hemorrhage Control Program.
Hemorrhage Control Overview for Law Enforcement (transcript)
