ESCONDIDO: Police move to online training

Cities say they save on overtime and fees

By COLLEEN MENSCHING - Staff Writer | Friday, December 5, 2008 7:29 PM PST ∞

Some police departments are turning to computers for safety training mandated by state and federal law. It's a move officials say saves time and money.

In 2007, Escondido hired Tennessee-based PureSafety.com to provide web-based classes for a variety of city departments, said city risk and safety manager Jodi Vinson.

By doing so, Escondido has saved between $30,000 and $40,000 just on police training, Vinson estimated.

Traditional training on topics such as blood-borne pathogens and heat stress requires an in-person trainer ---- and often means officers who work evening and overnight shifts are paid overtime to be trained during regular business hours.

"(Online training) allows us to get around the shift work and it's much less expensive," Vinson said. "We're not paying overtime and we're not paying a trainer."

Trainers for some classes charge as much as $2,500 per day, she said.

In Carlsbad, the city's Web-based training for officers is limited to some first-aid instruction ---- "the part when you would usually sit in a class, watch a PowerPoint and have somebody explain something," Carlsbad Sgt. Bob May said.

The online instruction is at least as effective as traditional classroom training, said May, who has taken the self-directed online course.

"I probably got more out of it because I had to be more engaged with the program," he said.

May said Carlsbad does see some savings by not having to pay officers overtime to train during normal business hours. But he said the cost of online services from San Diego-based A-B-CPR and First Aid Training, a company that also offers traditional courses, is about the same as hiring a trainer.

He said he expects the city will switch to a free first-aid course offered by the state-run Commission on Peace Officer Standards and Training after the A-B-CPR contract expires.

Over the years, the commission has added multimedia options for required training, including CD-ROM and video courses.

Sheriff's Lt. Phil Brust said deputies are welcome to take alternative classes offered by the commission, but the county does not provide online training.

Through the commission, officers and deputies have access to seven free Web-based classes, including those on best practices of police training, recognizing terrorist threats and extraditing suspects.

"I think they're recognizing that training budgets are shrinking," Escondido training Lt. Mark Wrisley said of the commission.

In Escondido, police training actually has expanded thanks to online offerings.

Though not required by state or federal law, Escondido officers take online courses in stress management and preventing back injuries at the request of the city.

Vinson said without the Web option, officers just wouldn't get that training because of budget constraints. She said it's too soon to tell if the classes reduce injuries and job-related stress, but the city will be tracking the results.

Contact staff writer Colleen Mensching at (760) 739-6675 or cmensching@nctimes.com.