Police injuries dropping

ON GUARD: Injuries to police officers on the job in Wairarapa have been steadily falling.

Wairarapa police have suffered almost 40 injuries in the past four years while defending the thin blue line.

The casualty list includes fractures, burns, dental injuries and hernias.

But the number of workplace claims has been dropping consistently since the introduction of body armour and Taser gun access, police say.

Figures released to the Wairarapa Times-Age under the Official Information Act reveal a total of 39 on-the-job injury claims have been lodged by the region's police staff since 2009.

There were no claims in the last financial year, compared with 24 in 2011/12.

Three-quarters of the claims were made by police in the Masterton District and the rest in South Wairarapa. No claims were lodged by police in Carterton. Wairarapa police injury claims totalled just over $70,000 for the four years.

The cost to the taxpayer has dipped over the same time period, from $4211 in 2009/10 to $1804 in 2012/13. The years in between saw a spike in claims costs of about $14,000 each year.

Soft tissue injuries were the most common among police nationwide, peaking in 2010/11 at 1086 claims. The number has dropped dramatically since then, with only 78 claims made in 2012/13.

Lacerations, puncture wounds and stings were the second most common injury category, followed by fractures and dislocations. In the past four years, police have lodged 21 claims for having a "foreign body in an orifice or eye".

Other claims included concussions, dental injuries, burns and hernias.

Bashed police also made 19 claims for dental injuries.

National Assistant Commissioner Operations, Superintendent Mike Rusbatch, said the local drop in injuries reflected a gradual decline across the country.

"From 2007 to 2012 there has been a 22 per cent drop in assaults on police, and we are committed to continuing to reduce that number. Police takes the health and safety of its staff seriously and works hard to ensure that they are well trained, equipped and supported to carry out their jobs."

The introduction of stab-resistant body armour, improved tactical training, greater access to Tasers and firearms, and the introduction of safety alarms for police working in remote areas had all helped reduce injuries on the force, Mr Rusbatch said.

Police had also been working hard to prevent injuries among the 12,000 staff.

However, despite the falling number of injuries and assaults, police still needed to keep their guard up, Police Association president Greg O'Connor said.

The stabbing of a constable in Auckland last week highlighted the risks faced by police carrying out everyday tasks, and officers should be armed as a matter of course, Mr O'Connor said. But Mr Rusbatch said police did not support the routine arming of staff.