CHELMSFORD – Chief James Spinney reports that the Chelmsford Police Department is participating in the Sigma Tactical Wellness program, aimed at reducing injuries from a leading threat to police officers — heart disease.
Thanks to generous funding from the Town of Chelmsford and the American Rescue Plan Act, the Chelmsford Police Department is the first police department in Massachusetts to offer 61 officers an opportunity to participate in Sigma Tactical Wellness’s program, designed to detect potentially deadly heart conditions in police before routine medical screenings would catch them.
Studies have shown that police officers have a life expectancy of approximately 22 years less than average community members, and heart disease is among the leading causes of line of duty deaths.
While police officers must pass physical fitness tests during the police academy and work to remain healthy afterward, repeatedly responding to high stress situations throughout a career can take a major toll on heart health.
Sigma Tactical Wellness offers a program for public safety personnel that tests for early markers of coronary issues that traditional medical insurance would not cover, and which typical municipal testing regimes do not include.
Tests include active electrocardiogram with physician interpretation and evaluation, cardio metabolic stress tests, advanced lipid panels including cardiac inflammatory biomarker analysis, and carotid intima-media thickness ultrasound. Additionally, the program provides consultations with clinicians and exercise physiologists, as well as an in-depth nutritional analysis based on individual results of cardio metabolic testing.
“Through this aggressive and cutting-edge technology, the rates of heart attack, obesity and other metabolic illness can be drastically reduced, if not eliminated,” according to Sigma Tactical Wellness. “Not only does Sigma’s program help to decrease the prevalence of heart disease among law enforcement officers and increase the life expectancy of LEOs, but it can work to bring down departmental healthcare costs.”
Chelmsford Police Lt. Gary Hannagan first learned of the program while attending the Northwestern University Police Command and Staff School, where he met Sigma’s CEO and Founder Dr. Benjamin Stone. Lt. Hannagan then worked with Chief Spinney and the Town of Chelmsford to get the program funded.
“I have always been passionate about officer wellness in my role within the Chelmsford Police Department,” said Lt. Hannagan. “I want to strive to build a culture that puts emphasis on the people who take care of people, and I’m grateful that Chief Spinney and the town both supported this effort.”
“Any police department’s most valuable resource is it’s employees, and I’m grateful that the Town of Chelmsford supported our efforts to be the first police department in Massachusetts to work with Sigma Tactical Wellness,” said Chief Spinney. “This program could save lives, save healthcare costs, and will ensure our officers all have a better chance at a happy and healthy future.”
To learn more about Sigma Tactical Wellness, visit: iamsigma.com.