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WVAMC Police train, stay sharp with new technology

VA Officer Training
Wilmington VA Medical Center Police Officers use a MILO simulator with simulated exercises that can be adapted to any situation they may encounter at the medical center on a daily basis, here an officer has a 180-degree view of events with sound and interactions with people on screen.
By James Pernol, Public Affairs Specialist

Here at the Wilmington Veterans Affairs Medical Center (WVAMC), the VA police force stays fresh with the help of new technology that allows for more training while maintaining COVID-19 safety protocols.

The Multiple Interactive Learning Objectives system (MILO), allows for training on several tasks in the same location at once while adding hands-on firearms and use of force training exercises and scenarios. (Watch a video of the Wilmington VA Police using the MILO system here.) 

Before the WVAMC received the MILO system, they were conducting training activities off site for a wide-range of activities. Although actual weapon range time is still conducted off site, now the officers can crawl, walk and run through the gamut of exercises and scenarios while preparing for the challenges they may face.

“It allows officers to come through virtual-based training, and allows us as trainers to create an environment that the officers would be familiar with working in the medical center and give them an opportunity to go through active-threat training,” stated Lt. David Stroup, Wilmington VA Police.

The range system is complete customizable to fit any situation our VA Police may encounter at the medical center or out at one of the five community based outpatient clinics and allows the use of interactive weapons with feedback as to recoil on weapons and heart-rate monitors.

“In the past we conducted a lot of table-top exercises with simulated weapons, and this system allows the officers to hold all the weapons they would actually deploy to a call with and allows them to engage with the targets on the screen with a laser system and subjects on screen will react,” said Stroup.

The benefits of the system are already paying off in the new environment of COVID with interactive training and instant feedback to save lives.

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The VA police force is made up of more than 5,000 officers nationwide. They are responsible for ensuring a safe, welcoming, and supportive environment for employees and Veterans alike. They maintain order through voluntary compliance and law enforcement as needed and are integrated into the patient care team through a variety of relationships and committee memberships.

Wilmington VA Medical Center provides health care services to approximately 33,000 Veterans through its main medical center and five Community Based Outpatient Clinics in Delaware and southern New Jersey. For more information, visit www.wilmington.va.gov.