Definition:
“Modified Health and Wellness” (MHW) is defined as anything
less than full participation by a Student Officer during health and
wellness training on an academy day. A Student Officer will be considered
on MHW for each day that s/he cannot fully perform the health and
wellness training and/or assessments required under the current Municipal
Police Training Committee’s (MPTC) Health and Wellness Guidelines.
This simple philosophy will govern the determination of whether or
not a Student Officer is on MHW for the day, no exceptions. A Student
Officer must fully participate in health and wellness 70% of the time
and can only be placed on MHW for up to 30% of the time before being
dismissed, without prejudice, from the academy. Each MPTC academy
shall determine the amount of days that constitutes 30% of their health
and wellness academy block and notify the Statewide Health and Wellness
Coordinator of this fact. Full disclosure to all student officers
will also be made at the time of orientation for the upcoming police
academy.
Rationale:
It is the strong belief of the Municipal Police Training Committee
that in order to obtain the optimum training and proper preparation
to become a police officer, a Student Officer must fully participate
in all subject areas of the academy a reasonable amount of time, including
health and wellness training. The health and wellness academy block
is carefully designed to prepare the Student Officer for both the
physical and mental aspects of a police officer’s job.
It is the belief of the MPTC that participation in a Health and Wellness
program will provide the Student Officers with a basic level of strength,
cardiovascular endurance and flexibility that is not only required
to perform the essential duties of a police officer but is also needed
to safely participate in other training areas of the academy such
as Defensive Tactics and Applied Patrol Procedure. Furthermore, it
is the belief of the MPTC that participation in the Health and Wellness
program will also result in a positive effect for the Student Officer
both psychologically, (lowered anxiety, increased self-esteem, tools
for stress and illness reduction, and career longevity); and physically,
(improved tolerance to fatigue, reduced risk during physical tasks,
and improved ability to mobilize the body efficiently). This training
will in turn benefit the residents of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
by reducing health costs associated with injured or ill police officers
and provide them with a better prepared, more efficient and effective
police officer.
Application:
This assignment of MHW to a Student Officer will be a requirement
whether the injury/illness occurred within or outside of the academy
setting. The only exceptions to this requirement will be if the
Student Officer is physically absent from the academy or if s/he
is in attendance but is unable to participate in Health and Wellness
training at all. If either of these two scenarios exists, then s/he
will not be considered on MHW but instead will be considered absent
per the current rules of the academy and charged with missed academy
hours.
Whenever a Student Officer cannot fully participate in the daily
Health and Wellness training or assessments, this fact will be recorded
on the proper Municipal Police Training Committee (MPTC) form for
that Student Officer. This form will include the date and reason
for the Student Officer being considered on MHW, and will be initialed
by both the Student Officer and the Lead Health and Wellness Instructor
of the day. The Lead Health and Wellness Instructor of the day will
be determined at the sole discretion of the Academy Director. The
form will be immediately forwarded to the Academy Director for review
and signature. On every ninth day of being assigned to MHW, the
Student Officer will be required to bring this form back to their
police department and have the Chief or his/her designee sign it.
This signature will serve as official notice that that the department
has been made aware of the issue. If a Student Officer fails to
have this form properly completed within the time limits set by
the Academy Director, s/he will be subject to disciplinary action
up to and including dismissal from the academy.
If a Student Officer disagrees with the Lead Health and Wellness
Instructor’s determination that s/he should be considered
on MHW for a certain day, s/he must appeal to the Academy Director
in writing within twenty-four (24) hours of the determination. After
looking at all of the facts surrounding the determination, the Academy
Director will then assess the situation. The Academy Director’s
determination will be final.
Examples:
• If Student Officer Jones is unable to fully participate
in a 20-minute cardiovascular activity at the end of week 3 per
MPTC Health and Wellness Guidelines (and needs to walk at any point
during the training or assessment), s/he will be considered on MHW
for the day.
• If Student Officer Jones suffers a hamstring injury at week
4 and can only participate in upper body training for the next 2
weeks, s/he will be considered on MHW for each day that s/he is
not fully participating in lower body training.
• If Student Officer Jones has a cold and comes to the academy
but does not perform all of the physical requirements of the day,
s/he will be considered on MHW for the day.
• If during a Health and Wellness Assessment Officer Jones
cannot perform any of the individual exercises such as push ups,
sit ups or running for required time or distance, s/he will be considered
on MHW for the day. |
