INJURY PROFILES OF POLICE OFFICERS FROM A LOCAL LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY

Coleman Honea1, Cody A. Stahl1, Robin M. Orr2, Robert G. Lockie3, Roger Kollock4, Micheal D.Casteel5, J. Jay Dawes1 1Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA; 2Bond University-Tactical Research Unit, Robina, QLD, ASU; 3California State University Fullerton, CA, USA; 4University of Tulsa, Tulsa, OK, USA;5Stillwater Police Department, Stillwater, OK, USA Musculoskeletal injuries sustained by law enforcement officers (LEOs) can result from a variety of occupational situations and circumstances. Musculoskeletal injuries can result in decreased physical abilities, impact an officer’s ability to serve their communities, and may come with notable financial costs to the department. Profiling LEO musculoskeletal injuries is a necessary initial step for developing and implementing musculoskeletal injury mitigation strategies. PURPOSE: To profile musculoskeletal injuries sustained by LEOs from one agency and identify injury patterns to inform mitigation strategies. METHODS: Retrospective injury data from a local law enforcement agency spanning a period of four-years were examined. Reported injuries were grouped into musculoskeletal or non-musculoskeletal. The musculoskeletal injuries were further broken into anatomical sites. The data were examined based on common anatomical sites of musculoskeletal injuries. Descriptive statistics (i.e. frequency and percentage) were utilized to profile the data. RESULTS: Across the four-yeartime period, a total of 39 injuries were reported. Of these, 66%(n=26) were musculoskeletal. Three body areas accounted for approximately half of all reported injuries: shoulder (21%, n=8), knee (17%, n=6), and hand (17%, n=6). CONCLUSION: Injury prevention strategies should focus on mitigating injuries in the shoulder, knee, and hand. This injury profile is able to provide important information to aid in reducing the injury occurrence; thus, helping to maintain the operational ability of the individual officer and department as a whole. Injury prevention strategies should include integration of corrective activities and defensive tactics into occupation specific strength and conditioning programs. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS: Special thanks to the Stillwater Police Department for their involvement in this project