Public Risk August 2017

PUBLISHED BY THE PUBLIC RISK MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION AUGUST 2017

Tennessee Risk Management Director Becomes PRIMA’s 2017 Public Risk Manager of the Year

MEET RODNEY ESCOBAR PAGE 6

ALSO IN THIS ISSUE

MILLENNIALS, SAFETY AND ERGONOMICS PAGE 10

UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF BODY CAMERAS PAGE 14

PRIMA BESTOWS RISK MANAGEMENT HONORS IN PHOENIX PAGE 20

PRO

TER

SUPPOR UD

PRIMA 2 017

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Old Republic Insurance Group offers a full suite of risk management and insurance solutions, and Third Party Administration (TPA) services, with specialized offerings and expertise to meet the unique needs of public sector clients.

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Insurance contracts are underwritten and issued by: 1. BITCO General Insurance Corporation and BITCO National Insurance Company; 2. Old Republic Insurance Company; 3. Pennsylvania Manufacturers’ Association Insurance Company, Manufacturers Alliance Insurance Company, Pennsylvania Manufacturers Indemnity Company.

AUGUST 2017 | Volume 33, No. 7 | www.primacentral.org

CONTENTS

The Public Risk Management Association promotes effective risk management in the public interest as an essential component of public administration.

PRESIDENT Amy J. Larson, Esq. Risk and Litigation Manager City of Bloomington Bloomington, MN PAST PRESIDENT Terri L. Evans Risk Manager City of Kingsport Kingsport, TN PRESIDENT-ELECT Jani J. Jennings, ARM Insurance & Safety Coordinator City of Bellevue Bellevue, NE DIRECTORS Brenda Cogdell, AIS, AIC, SPHR Risk Manager, Human Resources City of Manassas Manassas, VA

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TENNESSEE RISK MANAGEMENT DIRECTOR BECOMES PRIMA’S 2017 PUBLIC RISK MANAGER OF THE YEAR

Meet Rodney Escobar

By Jennifer Ackerman, CAE

Scott J. Kramer, MBA, ARM City/County Director of Risk Mgmt Montgomery County Commission Montgomery, AL Forestine Carroll Risk Manager Memphis Housing Authority Memphis, TN Sheri Swain Director of Enterprise Risk Management Maricopa County Community College District Tempe, AZ Lori J. Gray Risk Manager County of Prince William Woodbridge, VA Donna Capria, CRM, CIC, AINS Risk & Insurance Coordinator WaterOne of Johnson County Lenexa, KS NON-VOTING DIRECTOR Marshall Davies, PhD Executive Director Public Risk Management Association Alexandria, VA EDITOR Jennifer Ackerman, CAE Deputy Executive Director 703.253.1267 • jackerman@primacentral.org ADVERTISING Jennifer Ackerman, CAE 703.253.1267 • jackerman@primacentral.org

10 Millennials, Safety and Ergonomics

By Kathy Espinoza

14 Unintended Consequences of Body Cameras

By Ashley E. Bonner, WSO-CST

20 PRIMA Bestows Risk Management Honors in Phoenix

IN EVERY ISSUE

Public Risk is published 10 times per year by the Public Risk Management Association, 700 S. Washington St., #218, Alexandria, VA 22314 tel: 703.528.7701 • fax: 703.739.0200 email: info@primacentral.org • Web site: www.primacentral.org Opinions and ideas expressed are not necessarily representative of the policies of PRIMA. Subscription rate: $140 per year.

Back issue copies for members available for $7 each ($13 each for non-PRIMA members). All back issues are subject to availability. Apply to the editor for permission to reprint any part of the magazine.

POSTMASTER: Send address changes to PRIMA, 700 S. Washington St., #218, Alexandria, VA 22314.

Copyright 2017 Public Risk Management Association

| 4 NEWS BRIEFS | 19 ADVERTISER INDEX

AUGUST 2017 | PUBLIC RISK

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Further your public sector risk management education without leaving the office!

This Webinar series features top presenters delivering risk knowledge to your desktop!

PRIMA’S 2017 RISK MANAGEMENT

WEBINAR SERIES PRIMA WEBINARS ARE FREE FOR MEMBERS! Visit www.primacentral.org today to register for individual Webinars or for the entire program!

AU G U ST 16 | 1 2 : 0 0 P M – 1 : 3 0 P M E ST CURRENT TRENDS IN LAW ENFORCEMENT LIABILITY CLAIMS SPEAKER: Aaron Stone, Vice President – Claims, OneBeacon Government Risks DESCRIPTION: The current law enforcement environment is in a state of flux. Media attention, and in particular social media, is presenting a dire picture. There seems to be more law enforcement/citizen interactions that are resulting in a higher number of claims.

This presentation will focus on recent developments in case law, claims trends and risk control issues.

AT T E N D E E TA K E AWAYS :  Develop an understanding of recent developments in case law  Gain knowledge of current claims trends and issues involved in defending such claims  Discuss possible ways to manage law enforcement

For more information, or to register, visit primacentral.org/webinars.

MESSAGE FROM PRIMA PRESIDENT AMY J. L ARSON, ESQ.

hope that everyone had a safe and happy July 4th holiday. My, how fast time flies! It’s hard to believe that summer is almost over and in no time, we’ll be switching gears from summer exposures (swimming pools, special events and road construction) to winter exposures (snowplows, icy roads and kids being back in school). It seems like just yesterday the kids were getting out of school. Next thing you know, school supply lists will be out and the back to school sales will start.

Speaking of going back to school, it’s time to start preparing for PRIMA Institute, October 9–13, 2017, in San Antonio, Texas.

PRIMA Institute 2017 (PI 17) is the premier educational program for new risk managers as well as seasoned risk professionals who seek to learn more about emerging trends and best practices. The key difference between PI and the Annual Conference is that attendees are able to experience directed learning in a smaller, more interactive group setting. This year’s curriculum includes the following topics: • • • • •

Monday – Insurance and Risk Management Tuesday – Risk Methodology Wednesday – A Social Experiment in Litigation Thursday – Safety Friday – Workplace Issues

I have had the privilege of being a member of the PI faculty since 2013. Throughout the week, attendees will participate in 100, 200 and 300 level classes that have been suggested by the previous year’s attendees. I learn something new each time I attend, and this year I am especially looking forward to Wednesday’s program that will include “a day in the life of a risk manager” as we role play a public relations crisis and prepare for a mock trial. A copy of the detailed

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Be sure to take advantage of all the educational

opportunities that PRIMA has to offer. Registration is now open for PI and ISO 31000 Training. Check out the available podcasts and register for the remaining 2017 Webinar

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I

My, How Fast Time Flies…

Series. If you have any ideas for webinar or podcast topics, please reach out to PRIMA’s Education and Training team at education@primacentral.org or give me a call.

schedule, including faculty listing, can be found on PRIMA’s website.

In addition to PI 17, PRIMA also has a number of other educational opportunities coming up this fall.

There are four webinars scheduled in the months of August, September and October that will cover topics related to law enforcement liability trends, contracts, data analytics and cyber liability. All are timely topics and free of charge to members.

Finally, the fall installment of the ERM/ISO 31000 Training will take place on November 14-15 in San Diego, Calif. This training runs concurrent public sector and higher education tracks. Attendees learn the fundamental components of the ISO 31000 standard.

Participants analyze applied case studies to become familiar with the enterprise risk management (ERM) implementation process.

The curriculum is designed to equip individuals with the skillset necessary to implement ERM in their respective organizations using the ISO 31000 standard. To learn more about the ISO

31000 Training, interested parties, members or not, can listen to a podcast on PRIMA’s website, www.primacentral.org.

Be sure to take advantage of all the educational opportunities that PRIMA has to offer.

Registration is now open for PI and ISO 31000 Training. Check out the available podcasts and register for the remaining 2017 Webinar Series.

If you have any ideas for webinar or podcast topics, please reach out to PRIMA’s Education and Training team at education@primacentral.org or give me a call.

Until next time…

Amy J. Larson, Esq. Risk and Litigation Manager City of Bloomington Bloomington, MN

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NEWS BRIEFS

NEWS Briefs

KENTUCKY OKs NATION’S TOUGHEST LIMITS ON PAIN PILLS The number of drug-overdose deaths in Kentucky has climbed the past four years, culminating in an all-time high of 1,404 in 2016, reports the Tribune News Service. It is hoped that a new law restricting opioid prescriptions will reverse the trend.

By placing a three-day limit on opioid prescriptions for acute pain, such as removal of wisdom teeth, lawmakers hope House Bill 333 will hit the opioid epidemic where it often starts— prescriptions from well-intending physicians.

A 2013 study found that 80 percent of heroin users reported using prescription opioids before heroin.

“The elephant in the room is that we have mistreated pain for years,” said Dr. Ryan Stanton, a physician in Central Baptist Hospital’s emergency department. “We have used opioids as the ‘easy button’ when there are better, less addictive options on most pain-related conditions. We have to be supported to go with the evidence and research like we would in almost every other facet of health care.”

While the law officially goes into effect, along with dozens of other laws approved by the General Assembly earlier this year, doctors won’t have to abide by the new standard immediately.

First, the Kentucky Board of Medical Licensure must develop regulations to implement the rule, a process that includes a public hearing.

Kentucky is one of several states that recently limited the amount of painkillers physicians can prescribe for acute pain, but the Bluegrass State’s three-day limit is the tightest in the nation, said Van Ingram, director of the Office of Drug Control Policy.

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Ingram said Kentucky’s new rule is based on prescribing guidelines suggested by the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“For an overwhelming majority of acute situations, three days will be enough,” he said.

When it’s not enough, Ingram said, there will be built-in exceptions to the rule allowing a doctor to increase the prescription.

Opioid prescriptions in Kentucky went down 11 percent between 2013 and 2015, according to the Pew Research Center, though doctors still prescribed more than 10.6 million controlled

substances between June 2015 and July 2016, according to the Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy’s 2016 report.

Medical experts say that while limiting prescriptions can help prevent future drug abuse, it does little to help people who are struggling with addiction.

The law’s sponsor, Rep. Kimberly Moser, R-Taylor Mill, had a second bill that focused on recovery and treatment for addicts, but it failed to pass the Senate on the final day of this year’s legislative session.

THE ONLY MAJOR U.S. CITY TO LOSE POPULATION IN 2016

It’s the city’s third consecutive year of population loss. Chicago’s population fell by 8,638 residents between 2015 and 2016, to 2,704,958.

The year before, it declined by 4,934.

The population of the greater Chicago area, defined by the Census Bureau as the city and suburbs extending into Wisconsin and Indiana, is also declining. Numbers made available in March showed a drop of 19,570 residents in 2016—the greatest loss of any metropolitan area in the country.

Illinois’ population fell by more than any other state in 2016, down 37,508 people, according to census data released in December.

Chicago’s population drop is part of a larger pattern of slowed urban growth in 2016. The country’s top cities did not see the same surge as in previous years, experts say.

During the recession of 2008, families chose to stay in or move to core urban areas, and migration to the suburbs decelerated. Now, as families recover economically, they’re deciding it’s time to move back to the suburbs—a trend experts say may keep city populations where they are for the next few years.

Illinoisans in recent years have flocked to Sun Belt states, such as Texas, Arizona and Florida, contributing to the local population loss. During the years after the recession, migration to those states slowed, but then it heated up again as states in the South and West had greater job opportunities and affordable housing.

While the major cities in those states continue to grow, they aren’t growing as rapidly as they have in recent years. Houston, which saw the second-largest increase among major cities in 2015, when it gained 40,817 residents, gained 18,666 residents in 2016.

Even New York didn’t see as much growth in 2016 as it had in previous years. It grew by 21,171 people, compared with 44,512 people in 2015 and 49,530 in 2014.

“The big city growth we saw at the beginning of the decade is not quite as evident in the last couple years,” said William Frey, a demographer with the Brookings Institution who analyzes census data.

By most estimates, Chicago’s population will continue to decline. Over the past year, the Tribune surveyed dozens of former residents who said they have packed their bags for a variety of reasons: high taxes, the state budget stalemate, crime, the unemployment rate and weather.

Black residents have been among those leaving in search of safe neighborhoods and prosperity, with many heading to the suburbs and warm-weather states. Chicago lost 181,000 black residents between 2000 and 2010, according to census data.

Chicago’s population plunge continues to be a result, mostly, of losing residents to other states.

About 89,547 residents left Chicago and its surrounding suburbs for other states in 2016, a number that couldn’t be offset by new residents and births, according to an analysis of census data released in March. The number of people leaving the Chicago region is the highest since at least 1990.

More than any other city, Chicago has depended on Mexican immigrants to balance

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the slow growth of its native-born population.

During the 1990s, immigration accounted for most of Chicago’s growth. After 2007, when Mexican-born populations began to fall across the nation’s major metropolitan areas, most cities managed to make up for the loss with the growth of their native populations.

Chicago couldn’t.

The entire Midwest has been losing residents, census data show. Detroit lost 3,541 residents from 2015 to 2016, and Milwaukee lost 4,366.

But job and business opportunities are still stronger in neighboring Midwestern states than in Illinois, sending more Chicagoans to other parts of the Midwest than vice versa, experts said.

The greatest number of Illinois residents in recent years went to Texas, followed by Florida, Indiana, California and Arizona, according to 2013 Internal Revenue Service migration data.

Chicagoans are likely to continue heading to those warmer states, as the South in 2016 was home to 10 of the 15 fastest-growing large cities.

The population of Texas as a whole continues to rise, and the Census Bureau placed five Texas cities on its list of major cities with the largest population increases.

“It’s just sad to see that people have to leave the city to protect their own future cost of living,” he said.

The big city growth we saw at the

beginning of the decade is not quite as evident in the last couple years …

It’s just sad to see that people have to

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Chicago was the only city among the nation’s 20 largest to lose population in 2016—and it lost nearly double the number of residents as the year before, according to newly released data from the U.S. Census Bureau.

leave the city to protect their own future cost of living.

William Frey, a demographer with the Brookings Institution

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Tennessee Risk Management Director Becomes PRIMA’s 2017 Public Risk Manager of the Year

Meet Rodney Escobar

BY JENNIFER ACKERMAN, CAE

W

HEN PRIMA’S PUBLIC RISK MANAGER OF THE YEAR RODNEY ESCOBAR arrived at his job with the State of Tennessee Department of the Treasury in 2013, he walked into a risk management division that had been recently combined with claims administration. For the first time, these two departments would work in concert to implement a true risk management program for the State of Tennessee.

As the new director of risk management, Escobar had his work cut out for him, to say the least.

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PRIMA’S 2017 PUBLIC RISK MANAGER OF THE YEAR

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Risk awareness is critical and should influence all governmental operations because it improves the state’s ability to prepare and respond to known or unknown risks that could have an adverse or catastrophic impact on all areas of government.

Rodney Escobar, PRIMA’s 2017 Public Risk Manager of the Year

RISK MANAGEMENT IN THE VOLUNTEER STATE

The State of Tennessee Division of Claims and Risk Management (DCRM) has 18 employees and an operating budget of nearly $61 million.

DCRM administers the state’s workers’ compensation, tort liability, risk management and loss prevention, property and insurance programs for 41 agencies, 49 higher learning institutions, six hospitals, two medical schools and provides service to approximately 85,000 state employees and 6.3 million Tennessee residents.

• • • •

• In 2009, State Treasurer David Lillard was instrumental in introducing new risk management legislation that allowed the Tennessee Board of Claims to implement loss control programs and initiatives. Despite this new legislation, the risk and claims departments’ directors did not introduce any new risk management programs or initiatives to reduce claims and financial losses in the risk or claims administration areas.

All of this began to change with the hiring of Escobar.

NEW JOB, NEW CHALLENGES

When Escobar arrived at his new job, he found a laundry list of risk management challenges awaited, including: • Departments, agencies and higher learning institution were silos and did

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not have workflows to manage and process claims.

Risk awareness was not part of the organizational culture worldwide.

There was no return-to-work program established statewide.

Employers did not have procedure to follow on how to report a work-related injury.

Employers, especially human resources personnel, did not know when employees were injured and did not receive consistent updated regarding claims status.

There were no organizational goals or vision for the Division of Claims and Risk Management.

There were only eight adjusters assigned to the state’s workers’ compensation program to process between 2,300 to 2,500 open claims per year. On average, an indemnity adjuster’s caseload fluctuated between 160 and 190 at any given time during the year; medical adjusters average ranged from 250 to 320.

Escobar immediately met with the Treasury leadership to explain the importance of making risk management a priority for daily operations and practices for all state entities.

“I explained that by identifying and understanding the different types of internal and external risk, state leadership would be able to see the positive and negative impact on the

state’s budget, department, employees and citizens,” Escobar said. “Risk awareness is critical and should influence all governmental operations because it improves the state’s ability to prepare and respond to known or unknown risks that could have an adverse or catastrophic impact on all areas of government.”

From this meeting, the treasurer provide Escobar and his team with three main goals:  Improve customer service;  Implement innovative technology to improve risk communications and capture the total cost of risk for state government;  Establish and instill risk management best practices throughout the state.

Escobar and his team immediately began meeting with all levels of state government to introduce the risk management services they offer as well as a report card on how their workers’ compensation programs have improved or need to be improved. These meetings still continue today.

IMPROVING RETURN-TO-WORK Escobar and his team realized that in order to reduce losses and improve the recovery time of injured employees, they needed to establish a system-wide return-to-work program and simultaneously improve lag time reporting for all 85,000 state employees. Escobar understood

that to make this happen, he would need to use the authority of Title 9, TCA9-8-108 (10), which authorizes the Tennessee Board of Claims to establish incentive and loss control programs for state departments, agencies and higher education “for the purpose of reducing liabilities to the risk management fund.”

Escobar’s idea involved creating a pilot return-to-work program with the Tennessee Department of Corrections (TDOC). TDOC accounted for 25 percent of the total losses for the entire workers’ comp program. The challenge was that they had a strict policy that no correctional employee could return to work with any medical restriction, no matter how minor the injury.

“We selected the Department of Corrections because we knew that if TDOC was successful in managing a return-to-work program, it would set an example of all other state entities to follow,” Escobar said.

The challenge for Escobar and his team was changing a culture that had been in place for more than 20 years. To begin, they started marketing and communicating the importance of a return-to-work program, explaining that it is the duty of all employers to ensure the safety of their employees and being a part of the recovery process is their employees are injured on the job.

Some of the tenets of the pilot program were to designate one person to manage the program at each facility; adopt an empathy program; establish a guaranteed temporary transitional duty period and evaluate and improve the program on a regular basis. The TDOC pilot program was a success and at the end of December 2014, the TDOC commissioner decided to implement a return-to-work program throughout the entire department of corrections.

DEFENSE AGAINST CYBER THREATS

Like all public entities today, the State of Tennessee is not immune from the threat of cyber terrorism. Under Escobar’s recommendation, the State Central Procurement Office began to add cyber insurance language to all

state contracts for vendors that have access to, store and control, disseminate or process personal information, including payment card information.

The contract language and insurance requirements transfer the liability from the state to the vendors to eliminate or minimize the financial exposure that may occur due to a cyber breach. Prior to 2014, the State did not require vendors to have this type of coverage in state contracts.

Escobar also led the development of a statewide Cyber Incident Response Plan (CIRP) for all state entities to assist them with breaches to minimize losses and exposure, as well as a plan of action on how to respond appropriately and timely to a breach that will increase confidence and trust of stakeholders.

IMPROVEMENT ALL AROUND

In Escobar’s three year tenure as risk management director, the State of Tennessee has seen dramatic improvements in processes, procedures and overall cost savings related to risk.

“Departments, agencies and higher learning institutions no long work in silos and have established workflows and technology to manage and process all claims,” said Escobar. “There are now informal and formal communication networks between state leadership and risk management, which has helped improve risk awareness. It’s begun to become part of the organization’s culture.”

At the end of FY2016, workers’ compensation programs total incurred losses (reported losses, including paid + case) were $11 million, compared the FY2012, with $17.8 million—a 38 percent reduction. Lag time averages statewide are now 6.4 days—a reduction of more than 50 percent. The state also employs its first pharmacy benefits manager, with first year savings of $1 million.

“Departments, agencies and higher learning institutions no long work in silos and have established workflows and technology to manage and process all claims,” said Escobar.

“There are now informal and formal communication networks between state leadership and risk management, which has helped improve risk awareness. It’s begun to become part of the organization’s culture.”

Congratulations to Rodney Escobar for being selected as PRIMA’s 2017 Public Risk Manager of the Year!

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MILLENNIALS, SAFETY AND ERGONOMICS

BY KATHY ESPINOZA

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ILLENNIALS ARE OFTEN REGARDED AS BEING A “DIFFERENT” workforce. However, each generation has had its own quirks, so to speak. Boomers are seen as the long-haired, rebellious hippies of the ‘60s who wanted to challenge the status quo and sometimes still do. They’ve historically occupied the largest cohort in the workforce, but that dominance no longer holds. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, Millennials (age 18–34) surpassed the Baby Boom generation in 2015 by having 75.3 million move into the workforce. Moreover, their numbers are expected to peak at 81.1 million in 2036.

NEW-WORLD HABITS CAN BE HARD TO BREAK

Millennials have grown up in world where technology is pervasive and is moving to mobile devices more and more. The downside is mobile technology enables them to use their devices basically anywhere from the kitchen counter or dining table to in bed or on the couch while gaming or interacting on social media—yet rarely at a workstation. As a result, they’ve lived and developed poor, slouching posture ever since they were old enough to turn on the device.

The fundamental concern with new Millennial workers is that what may seem normal to them is in reality a high-risk posture that’s simply not

good for them. We typically tell employees to let comfort be their guide, but this guideline doesn’t apply with Millennials. Unfortunately, they are now accustomed to poor posture, and a new posture at the workplace can feel awkward.

That’s why education on ergonomics becomes so essential. But a “because I said so” attitude from the employer doesn’t work when trying to have Millennials pay attention to their posture. They need information to understand and accept why it’s important. The usual risk factors for injury have not changed. It’s the omnipresent exposure to technology that’s new.

One of the big changes with Millennials is the fadeout of old-school touch typing. Business

typing, and even computer keyboarding, are not taught in schools as much anymore. That leads to a hunt-and-peck method, forcing users to type with their head down for extended periods of time, which can become painful.

UNDERSTAND INTRINSIC NEEDS Other common Millennials traits to address include:

Feedback. More than any other, the Millennial generation craves feedback. In contrast, Boomers are used to annual performance evaluations. But Millennials need it much more frequently. So schedule monthly visits with a new hire for the first few months and

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MILLENNIALS, SAFET Y AND ERGONOMICS

ask them about their workstation setup. You’ll connect with them and can gauge how they’re doing. Keep in mind that their parents were very attentive to their “specialness,” and they may expect that from their boss. Take the time to listen.

Immediate Satisfaction. Technology in the palm of a Millennial’s hand allows immediate answers to life’s questions. In terms of ergonomics, offer a selection of devices, keyboards, mice, monitor stands, etc., that they can try out immediately. Most ergonomic equipment offers a free trial period. Make sure your vendors respond quickly to purchase orders, so you can deliver quickly on your equipment recommendations.

What’s New. It’s a very tech-savvy group that loves having the latest and greatest devices.

Stay on top of new ergonomic equipment coming out and the research behind it. A great resource is the annual National Ergonomics Conference that has hundreds of vendors and products on display.

CAPITALIZE ON THEIR STRENGTHS

That said, Millennials do bring many strengths to the workforce. For example, having worked in classroom groups or teams, they assimilate well within departments and when working on team assignments. A high familiarity with technology enables them to understand and accept online types of training more readily. They also accept that technology changes frequently and applaud upgrades and new systems they can discover.

In other words, where Boomers had to adapt to technology, Millennials were born into it and embrace it.

They are also a very creative group and can bring excitement to the workforce by asking, “Why do we do it that way?” So it makes sense to listen to and consider their ideas for making work processes smoother. Another tremendous characteristic Millennials exhibit is a strong civic mindedness in wanting to do the right thing, for the right reasons and build a better world. That drive is excellent news since, as employees, they believe in giving back to communities which can enhance the organization’s brand image.

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IMPLEMENT SAFETY AND WELLNESS STRATEGIES

What’s important is to address ergonomics, safety and wellness up front in the onboarding process for new hires. And the sooner, the better, before bad habits set in. Since Millennials began early with terrible technology-based behaviors, they’ve gotten used to them. In fact, many are coming into the workforce with levels of pre-MSD (musculoskeletal) injury that most employees don’t experience until after 10 or 20 years on the job.

After-work activities must be addressed as well. According to Common Sense Media (2015), the average teen logs nine hours each day on his or her device. Add that time to their new job working on a computer, and it’s a “claimready” situation.

Some proactive strategies to consider include: Wellness. Ergonomics should become a fundamental aspect of your wellness program and vice-versa. That’s because, although a healthy employee still can become injured, their recovery time will be quicker.

Onboarding. Make ergonomics, safety and wellness an integral element in new hire orientation. For example, the longer it takes to help them set up their workstation, the longer their bad habits will solidify and affect your organization.

Involve IT. This means also training your IT team on proper workstation set up when delivering computer, mouse, keyboard, etc., for a new employee. Do not wait until a Millennial complains of pain before addressing proper ergonomics.

Purchasing. Keep your purchasing department up to speed with well-proven ergonomic solutions. Don’t ever allow employees to simply buy what they think they need. Not all products displaying an “ergo” label are valid.

Online Training. It’s the preferred learning method for Millennials. They often find classroom-style training to be boring and frustrating to them, which can easily turn them off. Their brains move faster than other

generations of workers, constantly striving for new, readily-accessible information. They move quickly from screen to screen, often with loud music or other media in the background.

As trainers on ergonomics, safety and wellness, we need to jazz up the experience to appeal to this faster-paced generation. Online ergonomics training works well to help triage and prevent problems sooner rather than later.

DISCUSS AFTER-HOURS ACTIVITIES

In the past, bringing work home was rare, as was becoming consumed with technology after work (Facebook, Messaging, Instagram, Solitaire, Candy Crush Saga). In the days of pre-mobile technology, people mowed the lawn, puttered around the house and talked to each other, eye to eye after work. Today, Millennials tend to get home and play games for hours on end. For all of us, the boundaries between work and home are more blurred than ever because it’s easy to review work emails and projects at home, on our handheld devices. This is an important phenomenon because it makes it harder to determine where the injury actually occurred. It’s crucial to talk to Millennials about what they do at home and how they can create a safer and more comfortable environment to prevent injuries.

SHARE THE ERGO LOVE

Also remember that Millennials grew up in an “everybody gets a trophy” world. If you provide an ergonomics evaluation to one individual, you should be prepared to help everyone else in that immediate work area. If an employee claim results in a secondary gain like a new sit/stand workstation, better keyboard, new mouse, new chair, etc., you may encounter a case of “ergo envy” with others putting in claims just to get new equipment. So share the ergo love around the office and take the time to adjust monitors and chairs. Let everyone know they’re important.

Kathy Espinoza, MBA, MS, CPE, CIE is a board-certified professional ergonomist. She is assistant vice president, Ergonomics and Safety, for Keenan.

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UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF BODY CAMERAS ANTICIPATE THE CHALLENGES THAT COME WITH BODY CAMERAS TO MAKE THE MOST OF THIS ADVANCE IN PUBLIC SAFETY

BY ASHLEY E. BONNER, WSO-CST

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E’VE ALL SEEN VIDEOS OF CONFRONTATIONS BETWEEN POLICE

OFFICERS AND CITIZENS. Police departments throughout the country introduced body cameras to record what happens in these hostile encounters, evaluate what transpired, then use the results of these evaluations to train police officers and resolve allegations of criminality.

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UNINTENDED CONSEQUENCES OF BODY CAMERAS

The success of body cameras in holding police and citizens accountable for their actions had led many states—23 at last count—to enact legislation to govern the use of these devices.

Yet life is full of unintended consequences. Most people would think that increased use of body cameras would reveal more instances of police misconduct and would lead to more complaints from citizens claiming police misconduct. You would be wrong—on both counts.

It turns out that law enforcement agencies are finding substantial reductions in uses of force by police officers and in complaints from citizens alleging excessive uses of force.

According to findings presented at the August 2016 National Conference of State Legislatures, “The pre-eminent study on body-worn cameras, a field experiment conducted by the Rialto (California) Police Department, found that when police were equipped with cameras during the test period, use of force incidents and citizen complaints against officers were reduced by 50 and 90 percent respectively.” The use of this technology—and the awareness by officers and citizens that this technology is being used—can change behaviors for the better.

The success of body cameras in holding police and citizens accountable for their actions had led many states—23 at last count—to enact legislation to govern the use of these devices.

These laws don’t necessarily force municipalities to buy cameras, nor do they always supply the money required to put in place the technical and personnel infrastructure to

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uphold the law. The State of Connecticut is a perfect case in point. Its legislature passed a law to govern the use of body cameras by police departments but denied the extra funding that law enforcement agencies requested for the data storage required to support the law. What good are data from body cameras without the means to store it, index it, and access it?

STORING DATA

Each large police department in the United States collects some 52,000 hours in a year.

That’s more than 2,100 days of footage, or nearly six years’ worth for a single year. Storing these data and paying for that storage is a prime concern for law enforcement agencies throughout the country. As Time magazine cited recently, the New Orleans police department “plans to pay $1.2 million for 350 cameras, with much of that total going to data storage. A 2014 Police Executive Research Forum report cited one department that reported it would cost $2 million a year for a plan that included 900 cameras—with storage again accounting for the bulk of the amount.”

Storage is not merely a technical question.

It’s also a legal one. States such as California, Connecticut, and Georgia have created record-retention laws that require law enforcement agencies to retain data for certain lengths of time. Compounding this challenge, law enforcement agencies must preserve an

unbreakable chain of custody for data from video surveillance. This chain of custody should include a record of who has handled these data. Law enforcement agencies must take specific care to avoid spoliation, which is the destruction of evidence necessary to pending or contemplated litigation. These agencies must be diligent about following retention schedules and ensuring that records are not destroyed prematurely. Spoliation can result in large fines from the courts, therefore data should be carefully protected.

While storing data is a primary challenge associated with the use of body cameras, it’s not the only challenge. Here are four more big ones:

PROTECTING PRIVACY

Law enforcement agencies have several decisions to make about the technologies they use and the consequences of these technologies. For instance, do the body cameras worn by their officers—as well as subsequent data processing and storage procedures—protect the privacy of victims of crime? What about the camera’s facial-recognition and live-streaming capabilities? They can raise privacy concerns. So can the algorithms and processing power associated with the technologies. Where does a law enforcement agency draw the line on what it is prepared to do or not do?

REVIEWING FOOTAGE

Law enforcement agencies must put in place safeguards to prevent the negligent use of these data. First and foremost, agencies should review footage routinely from each officer, not only to ensure that officers are following procedures and training mechanisms properly, but also as a defense in court. A police official on the stand should be in a position to respond affirmatively to the question: Have you ever reviewed video data and, if so, how often? To respond in the negative could give rise to negligence.

PLACING CAMERAS

Another challenge with body cameras is their placement on the body and the direction in which they point. When a camera points at the ground, only the audio portion may be useful.

Or not. Vague language often raises more questions than it answers. A camera should be placed stably on the body—the higher on the officer that the camera is mounted, the better.

It should also point forward and not at the ground. The idea is for the camera to see what

the officer is seeing, to aid in understanding the officer’s perception of the situation at hand.

Many times, several officers will be on the scene, giving multiple videos of different angles, which can be quite helpful in understanding what exactly transpired.

EDUCATING THE MEDIA

Law enforcement agencies, of course, aren’t the only organizations gathering data via video.

Media outlets do, too. These outlets collect vast amounts of footage yet may only air brief moments during their broadcasts, which gives rise to public outcry and even violence. As such, risk managers encourage police departments to build strong relationships with local media and use these ties to educate broadcasters on what law enforcement does and why incidents occur. A rapidly evolving situation can be confusing to someone who is not familiar with the training options an officer is provided with, the hierarchy of the use of force, or the nature of handling someone who is unhealthy and overcome by drug use. If local

media outlets are educated, they may be able to share more of the story on the air, which would help departments prevent members of the community from jumping to conclusions before the full story is told.

Life is full of unintended consequences. Body cameras come with many of these surprises.

Gain the knowledge now to anticipate them and thereby take full advantage of the public-safety benefits of body cameras.

Ashley Bonner is a senior risk control consultant with Trident Public Risk Solutions.

Life is full of unintended consequences.

Body cameras come with many of these surprises. Gain the knowledge now to anticipate them and thereby take full advantage of the public-safety benefits of body cameras.

AUGUST 2017 | PUBLIC RISK

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PRIMA Bestows RISK MANAGEMENT HONORS in Phoenix

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HE PUBLIC RISK MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION (PRIMA) honored public risk managers during its 2017 Awards Luncheon, held Monday, June 5, in conjunction with the 2017 PRIMA Annual Conference in Phoenix, Ariz.

Amy Larson, Esq., risk and litigation manager for the City of Bloomington, Minn., presented awards for achievement in public risk management programs, products and pools to the following entities:

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First Place State of Tennessee Cyber Incident Response Plan State of Tennessee Department of the Treasury

First Place Loss Control Best Practices Guide (for Public Works and Solid Waste Management) Minnesota Counties Intergovernmental Trust

Honorable Mention Vehicle Backing Safety Campaign City of Winston-Salem, NC

Honorable Mention Pre-Active Assailant Risk Assessment Guidelines and Training Michigan Municipal Risk Management Authority

PUBLIC RISK MANAGEMENT PROGRAM CATEGORY First Place Marijuana Safety Program City and County of Denver, CO Honorable Mention An Innovative Approach to Risk Management City of San Antonio, TX

INTERGOVERNMENTAL RISK POOL PROGRAM CATEGORY First Place Property Conservation Risk Management Program The Pool, TN Honorable Mention Safe Supervisor: Integrating Operations & Safety CIRSA, CO

At the luncheon, PRIMA member Jennifer Hills was awarded PRIMA’s Public Risk magazine Article of the Year award for The Risk-Crisis Continuum from July 2016 issue of the magazine.

Congratulations to all of our award recipients!

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