By Joanna Putman
EMS1
LOS ANGELES — A Los Angeles trauma surgeon also trains LAPD medical teams in trauma response, KCAL reported.
Dr. Kenji Inaba graduated from the LAPD academy in 2016, according to the report. He now serves as a reserve officer and as the medical director for the department, working with the Metropolitan Division EMT teams.
“Doing this job really gives me a deep understanding of what happens in that entire pre-hospital phase of care before a patient arrives to us,” he said. “It allows us to communicate better. We’re much more readily able to deal with whatever it is that comes in.”
Inaba’s training helps officers on the field treat gunshot wounds and other injuries, according to the report. Officers in the metropolitan division undergo medical training drills every four weeks.
Officer Steve Wills was injured in a shootout last year, according to the report. He said he owes his life to the training the team received.
“I owe all of them my life,” Wills said. “That’s a level of gratitude I can’t verbalize and a debt I can never repay. And, you know what? Without Kenji providing that training. I don’t know where I’m at.”