It’s decision making practice, not target practice.
That’s how Delta police Deputy Chief Norm Lipinski described a new state-of-the-art simulator, part of a new Regional Municipal Training Centre, located in Delta that was opened on Monday afternoon.
A cost-sharing arrangement will allow officers from Delta, New Westminster, Port Moody and West Vancouver police departments, as well as Metro Vancouver Transit to take part in enhanced training in de-escalation and use-of-force scenarios at the City of Delta owned facility.
The training centre consists of a simulator, classroom, and a full mat room for practicing control techniques. The simulator is housed within a purpose-built structure to create an immersive environment, and consists of five large screens surrounding the officer, and real-time audio, linked to a computer operated by other officers.
The simulator itself cost $286,000.
“There may be an impression out there, that this type of training is about police learning to shoot accurately, in a high pressure situation,” said Lipinski. “While that’s important, it’s not actually our priority. Really, what’s vital for us, is that the simulator gives officers the chance to practice decision making. It’s decision making practice, not target practice.”
Within Metro Vancouver, police deal with people every day who are experiencing a mental health crisis, or who are in the throes of drug addiction. The vast majority of the time, incidents are handled without any issues, but sometimes, things become more complicated and officers need to rely on their training, as well as their past experiences.
The simulator offers hundreds of fully-interactive scenarios, to allow officers to practice their skills in an immersive environment.
In the simulator, police officers will assess the verbal and non-verbal cues of people they are interacting with. After the scenario, the trainer and the participant can discuss the actions taken, and the officer can immediately go back and work through the scenario again. This process of review ensures the officer has the memory and confidence of accomplishing a successful outcome.
The simulator also allows each department to tailor locations specific to their city.
“If we want to train on say the Alex Fraser Bridge we can do that,” said DPD S/Sgt. Mo Parry. “The scenarios can be as realistic as possible. We can add wind, rain, sun, darkness, add background sounds such as dogs barking, traffic or footsteps coming from behind the officer.”
Police Chief Neil Dubord said any part of a mental health wellness strategy is ensuring officers are trained adequately for what they encounter in the field.
“The research is very clear – officers who experience immersive, interactive and responsible virtual reality training are better prepared for their real world encounters,” said Dubord. “I consider all of us very fortunate to be able to access such sophisticated training.”
Delta Mayor George Harvie called the partnership between the five police agencies a ‘true win for the entire Metro Vancouver region.’
“I think I can speak on behalf of my colleagues when I say that as municipalities with independent police departments, we’re always looking to help our police forces have up-to-date training,” said Harvie.
Port Moody Chief Constable Dave Fleugel said with his department being the smallest independent municipal police department in Metro Vancouver partnerships such as this are critical.
“We need partnerships to be successful and to make training work,” he said. “It makes our training more efficient. It’s a game changer for everyone, in particular for a community like Port Moody because in a smaller community such as ours, we don’t have as many of these major incidents. This type of training is critically important for our officers and our department.”
New Westminster A/Chief Dave Jansen said his first impression of the simulator is a positive one.
“It’s really impressive. I think back 25 years ago when I first got on the job to think where we have come and the type of training that the members need because of the situations they are put into and how quickly those situations change,” said Jansen. “It’s not just about shooting guns, it’s the de-escalation scenarios and the real city experiences. I think our officers are going to be very impressed.”
West Vancouver A/Chief Shane Barber offered praise to DPD for spearheading this initiative.
“I really appreciate Delta’s leadership…it would never have happened without them,” he said. “They brought this to us. It’s an amazing initiative and it is something that is really a game changer for us in terms of our ability to practice those decision making episodes that Norm talked about earlier. With all the mental health issues we encounter on the streets and the complications around mental health and drug abuse, there is always a better way to manage people without using force. If there is a tool to help us do things better…this is the tool.”
Representatives from all five agencies and the four cities were present at the grand opening. Training gets underway later this week.
