29 March 2007 Meeting Minutes

ONTARIO POLICE HEALTH AND SAFETY ASSOCIATION “Protecting Those Who Protect Us”

Ontario Police Health and Safety Association Meeting March 29th 2007 Stratford Ontario 9:30 – Deb Bentley from Stratford Police Service welcomed the membership and introduced Deputy Chief John Bates. Deputy Chief Bates welcomed the membership to Stratford and wished continued success in Health and Safety matters for the Association and Police Services in Ontario. Guest Speakers – Oxford County Critical Stress Management Team Carol Beecraft – [email protected] Deb McKay Kelly Farrow Their Mission – “to promote understanding of Critical Incident Stress (CIS), by providing to emergency service personnel and members of the community, educational workshops, diffusing and debriefings under the guidelines of the International Critical Incident Stress Foundation (ICISF)” Discussion – identifiers/need required for mandatory ‘debriefing’ after CIS – these incidents need to be identified – Toronto Police Service see Cumulative CIS – start with WSIB forms (not seeking medical attention) but process Post Traumatic Stress Disorder claim by the member r member’s supervisor. It was agreed there is a need to identify a debriefing requirement – Niagara Regional Police Service advised ‘anyone’ can initiate a debriefing rather than resting solely with a supervisor – communications and data entry included. Waterloo Regional Police Service advised a Doctor Rees (Retired Behavioral Science FBI) made an excellent presentation to their membership regarding Critical Incident Stress and highly recommends the presentation. A discussion was held regarding background checks of Officers prior to internal placements into units such as Sex crimes, Identification and Traffic.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bonnie McKenzie, Chair C/O Halton Regional Police Service 1151 Bronte Road, P.O. Box 2700, Oakville, Ontario, Canada L6J 5C7 PHONE : (905) 825-4859 FAX : (905) 825-3732

Executive Reports Mark Ballantine (Secretary OPHSA) presented the current OPHSA Constitution and Bylaws and proposed changes as a result of recommendations by the current OPHSA Executive. The Executive met on the 24th of January 2007 and discussed changes to the Constitution that would benefit the Association and Ontario Police Health and Safety matters. Fran Garvey (Vice Chair OPHSA) discussed the anticipated membership drive for the OPHSA and need for promoting our Association to other Police Services. Treasurer’s Report Lori Taylor presented the 2006 Treasurer’s report. Balances 31 January 2006 - $ 4060.84 31 January 2007 - $ 4209.43 Updates 1.

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MHSA ‘In the Spirit of Prevention’ 2007 October 1/2/3 2007 Toronto Congress Center http://www.mhsao.com/Conference/SplashAd.html 5th Annual National Forum for Law Enforcement in Occupational Safety and Health June 11-13th 2007 Vancouver http://vancouver.ca/police/2007NationalOSHForum/index.htm All Chiefs Memorandum September 22nd 2006 Ontario Police Health and Safety Committee, Section 21 of the Occupational Health and Safety Act’s Guidance Note #7 (Searching Hazardous Environments) for Police All Chiefs Memorandum March 13th 2007 Communicable Diseases Review

ROUND TABLE Stratford Police Service Communications – one communicator at times – Ministry of Labour advised the matter was a ‘staffing issue’ – use Patrol Officers as relief – wishes direction from other services - [email protected] Service is using ½ cages to assist with leg room for Officers – enquiring on trunk organizers – suggestion was to see compartments as recommended by Section 21 Committee - www.fleet.ford.com - check for details on Trunk Packs ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bonnie McKenzie, Chair C/O Halton Regional Police Service 1151 Bronte Road, P.O. Box 2700, Oakville, Ontario, Canada L6J 5C7 PHONE : (905) 825-4859 FAX : (905) 825-3732

Ottawa Police Service Brian Catlin is requesting information on masks – currently set to use N95 masks – wishing to know what other services are using. Brian Catlin is also requesting information on Critical Incident Stress Programs – email Brian at [email protected] Municipal Health and Safety Association A message from Dave Carter requesting to use the MHSA Forum for information gathering – see the forum at http://police.mhsao.com/ - you must get a password from Dave Carter at [email protected] - this is a valuable resource for all Police Services to share information and it is free. Niagara Regional Police Service - Looking at Perimeter security for the court house - Looking for a standardized ‘Death on Duty’ protocol/form that Supervisors would use and fillout. The suggestion was made to use Carswell’s Toolkit referring to Chapter H51 (1) A-G and H51 (5) for a list of what is required - Looking for Police Services where the OHS Committee attend the scene in traumatic events - Requesting Disaster Planning Policy - Waterloo advised they have a ‘safety officer’ not necessarily a Health and Safety Officer. St. Thomas Police Service - New building in the works – station/court combination - Toronto Police Service advised they have a template for new building construction - Requests Body Armour Standards – of the 12 Services represented • 7 services were optional in or outer vest • 3 services internal vest • 2 services external vest Waterloo Regional Police Service - Advised Oxford County Police Service has the word ‘Taser’ in fluorescent letters as an armband - possible health and safety issue as the officer wearing the armband could be a target – issue was discussed - Possible change in Armour weight due to long guns used against Police more frequently – in an initial study stage - A weight bearing vest to hold equipment is being studied - Waterloo has a standard form for monthly inspections - Issue with Radio feedback – budget item for communications speaker overhaul due to communicator toneitus - New detachment in progress for Waterloo North Bay Police Service - no current issues ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bonnie McKenzie, Chair C/O Halton Regional Police Service 1151 Bronte Road, P.O. Box 2700, Oakville, Ontario, Canada L6J 5C7 PHONE : (905) 825-4859 FAX : (905) 825-3732

Sudbury Regional Police Service - Cleaning of handcuffs a current issue - Sink used where others wash – question of cleanliness • Waterloo has annual gun/cuff cleaning and use isogell • Ottawa uses cavicide – kills germs etc. - External carrier and mic cord a safety risk due to length of cord or earpiece mic • Judges and jp’s in court wish no court room noise as per Niagara Regional – Niagara uses Otto Mic and Spectrum in London • St. Thomas advised $125 • Waterloo advised $62 and a two year replacement - $10 to replace air tube (UV destroys tube) – doesn’t block ambient noise and is great for bar checks Canadian Pacific Police Service - Three new magnums to replace crown victories • Waterloo canine units have 4 of them and have no issues • Stratford is replacing theirs and returning to their Crown Victoria Toronto Police Service - Name Tags – issued brass name tag with clasp and Canadian Flag – first name initial and last name – 14 injuries since December 31st and are minor scratches – a threatening matter due to clientele knowing name of Officer – now switching to Velcro badges but association continues to address issue of a continued threat - Address suppression program on mailing lists to prevent Officer names known to public - Indoor Range Air Quality issue – maintenance records are unavailable - Skin Cancer – issue of Tilley hats/sunglasses/sun block and long sleeve shirts • Crown Victoria’s have UV Protection on glass • Waterloo has Croc-bloc Sunscreen dispenser outside of change rooms • Toronto looking at new sun block Hamilton Police Service - Looking into defibrillation in station – lease the unit – first aid teaches ‘best practices’ and defibrillation units are ‘best’ but none are available for use in an emergency Peterborough Lakefield Community Police Service - Issue of Court inspections/Health and Safety Committee – it was suggested that equipment was responsibility of the Ministry of the Attorney General (MAG) and Security was Police Responsibility • Waterloo advised a Joint Health and Safety Committee is recommended other Police Services experienced the same issue – Dave Carter has said in the past, ‘your workplace - you inspect’ • Section 21 Committee Issue – 6 months ago discussed – unknown result at this time ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bonnie McKenzie, Chair C/O Halton Regional Police Service 1151 Bronte Road, P.O. Box 2700, Oakville, Ontario, Canada L6J 5C7 PHONE : (905) 825-4859 FAX : (905) 825-3732

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Toronto advised the MOL initiated a meeting of all stations in Toronto with the same issue Asbestos is within the Peterborough Station – issue is being monitored as preparations are made to renovate the building

Halton Regional Police Service - Looking into rubber gloves and mm thickness – please advise [email protected] with your Police Service glove brand name and mm of thickness - Enquiring about winter face covering – scarf and toques were suggested from other Police Services - Current issue with the Marine Unit – mould and asbestos in their building’s roof a new roof and drywall was recently installed with a 30 March 2007 final inspection - Current issue with Patrol Radio dead zone – Maycomm (designer) attended a meeting and will do a complete coverage study with the current system, new buildings and growth of the region – the system is 10 years old and as should have 95% coverage 95% of the time ‘outdoors’ - The Burlington Building is open – there are security issues with opening windows, window tinting and blinds - Promoting a Back Care Program – 1 hr evaluation given to all employees – a small presentation will be made at the next Ontario Police Health and Safety Association Meeting Niagara Regional Police Service will host the next meeting Thursday the 28th of June 2007

Minutes prepared by Mark Ballantine Secretary – Ontario Police Health and Safety Association ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Bonnie McKenzie, Chair C/O Halton Regional Police Service 1151 Bronte Road, P.O. Box 2700, Oakville, Ontario, Canada L6J 5C7 PHONE : (905) 825-4859 FAX : (905) 825-3732