Learn from a veteran trauma surgeon about the importance of police officers always carrying a card containing personal medical information.
Sydney Vail, M.D., is a veteran trauma surgeon, former SWAT surgeon, and a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve serving with the 628th Forward Resuscitative Surgical Detachment. He is also the former director and a deploying member of SWAT Tactical Medicine Program for the Arizona Department of Public Safety State SWAT Team.
He suggests that officers always carry, on their person, a card containing medical information that can be accessed quickly by doctors. Vail recommends at least two cards for every officer, one on the officer and another that can be accessible by a shift commander if the officer is wounded or injured.
Read More: 10 Tips for a Successful TacMed Program
Vail also explains how to ensure that personal medical information is kept confidential and HIPAA compliant.
In this video, he also covers:
How officers should carry a medical information card both in their wallet and in their vest.
Why departments should standardize the use of medical cards across the department
Why shift commanders should have access to a copy of an injured officer’s medical card.
How officers can create personal medical information cards cheaply, even if the department does not provide them.
How it might take an officer to champion the use of medical cards to his or her department.
Also Watch: What Officers Should Have in Their IFAK
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