Steve Mora MD
Orange County Orthopaedic Surgeon
I’m very excited about the new unloading utility vest being tested by the Anaheim Police Department. For years Police Officers have struggling with neck pain, upper back pain, shoulder pain, low back pain and hip pain. It’s been suspected that the heavy utility belt was at the root cause for some of these problems. Police Officers carry upwards to 35-40 pounds of extra weight on their chest plate and utility belt. Can you imagine yourself walking around with a 40 pound fanny pack full time, 10 hrs a day for 25 years? Fortunately recent changes in the Anaheim Police Department have allowed the testing of these utility vests. The utility vest allows some of the heavy equipment to be moved from belt-to-vest leading to better weight distribution. The vest has an internal thorax support strap which can unload the shoulders.
It also Velcros on both lateral sides and can be easily lifted off. This makes it very easy for the Police Officer to remove the vest while at the station. Officers can also cool off easily on hot days by readily removing the vest or releasing the side Velcro straps to allow for ventilation.
The vest has wide-open axillary areas which allows free movement of the arms, neck and head. This freedom of movement can facilitate better posture and body mechanics.
Lastly this specific vest did not have an overly military appearance. This is also important factor for successful community Policing.
So far the Police Sergeant I interviewed reported markedly improved neck, shoulder and back pain. There are a handful of Anaheim Police Officers who are part of a beta test program. I’m hoping that I will be able to assist in data collection and reporting. Looking forward to disseminating information in the near future.
If you are a Police Officer from a different department and would like to connect with the Anaheim Police Officer in charge of this testing please let me know. I’ll be more than happy to connect you. If you’d like to learn more about Police Officer work injuries you can Google my article “The Art of Taking Care of Police Officer Injuries”. Thank you.
About Steve A. Mora MD:
Dr. Mora is a board-certified orthopedic surgeon at Restore Orthopedics and Spine Center in Orange County.
He specializes in:
-Sports Trauma -Arthroscopy of the knee, shoulder, hip and elbow.
-Arthritis of the Knee
-Mixed Martial Arts Injuries
-First Responder Injuries
-Regenerative Medicine:Lipogems, Bone Marrow Stem Cells, Plasma therapy.
For a consultation please call Restore Orthopedics and Spine Center in the City of Orange 714-332-5498