California Police Chief- Fall 2013 CPCA_2017_Winter Magazine Final | Page 30

daily basis, meeting with school kids, providing comfort to
people experiencing difficulties or recovering from illness,
and branding good-will in a completely different, but suc-
cessful way. https://hawthornepolice.com/facility-dog
SAVING MORE LIVES THROUGH THE TACTICAL
MEDICINE PROGRAM
Another inspiring effort of the Hawthorne Police De-
partment is the creation of their tactical medicine program,
but with a broader focus. All police officers in California
receive rudimentary medical training in the police acade-
my and are able to provide some basic medical care. This
training is limited and doesn’t lend itself to being em-
phasized in many departments as year’s progress. This
leads to officers often losing confidence in providing
life-saving care when most needed, surrendering that
skill to fire departments.
Command staff, understanding public safety expec-
tations and realizing the need to improve upon officer
capabilities, authorized the creation of the HPD TacMed
program that could help address such. Chief Fager relates:
“Our goal was to bring more medical specialties and em-
phasis, routinely reserved for tactical team elements, down
to the patrol officer in the field. Those officers are really the
ones with the greatest likelihood to intervene via CPR or
tourniquets, saving a partner or citizen’s life.”
To accomplish such, Dr. Joe Nakagawa, an Emergency
Medicine physician at an area hospital, was approached
and commissioned to develop this mission into reality.
After experiencing the positive difference he could make in
the lives of officers and those they protect, Dr. Joe decided
to deepen his involvement in law enforcement. He joined
the department, attending and graduating from a Level I
police academy. He is now a Police Reserve Officer and a
full-time member of the department’s SWAT team. Yes, in
addition to being a full-time doctor.
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California Police Chief | www.californiapolicechiefs.org
Partnered by Lieutenant Eric Lane, the department’s
Special Operations Bureau and SWAT Commander, they
have created a law enforcement curriculum modeled after
the military’s ‘Tactical Combat Causality Care (T-CCC)’
course in order to teach staff fast and easy lifesaving skills
that can be utilized immediately, with minimal skills
required. The Chief of Police additionally authorized ten
Hawthorne officers to be trained and serve as both E.M.T.’s
and as Pre-Hospital Trauma Life Support initiators, in
order to assist with the course instruction. In support, the
department’s patrol vehicles are equipped with essential
medical kits plus defibrillators that officers can deploy to
save lives. Through this program, officers gain confidence
in providing care. Agency “cultures” change. Officers no
longer need to wait for EMS to arrive. Officers now re-
spond to medical emergency service calls with the security
of proper training and equipment to make an immediate
difference in someone’s life.
Since the inception of the course, the Hawthorne Police
Department has trained over 1000 police officers statewide,
representing over 50 agencies. Numerous agencies have
then reported back, expounding the newfound confidence
and training put to use, saving real lives. The most recent
success stories arose in the aftermath of the “Harvest Music
Festival” tragedy in Las Vegas, many attendees made up
of a Los Angeles and California-based off-duty police staff.
Equal successes have been enjoyed within Hawthorne Po-
lice operations. Just over the last four years, 11 Hawthorne
officers have received the South Bay Medal of Valor ‘Life
Saving Award’ commendation, not counting the dozens
of internal recognition recipients, for their lifesaving field
interventions. https://www.tacmedhpd.org/