Saint Mary’s Emergency Department Doctors Sworn In as Tactical Police Physicians
February 25, 2024Categories: Awards and Recognition
On February 20, Wesley Kyle, M.D., and Scott Whyte, M.D., were sworn in as Tactical Police Physicians by Naugatuck Mayor Pete Hess III, with the town of Naugatuck Police Department, formalizing the positions they currently serve as tactical medics on the Waterbury Regional SWAT team. The SWAT team serves the towns of Waterbury, Wolcott, Watertown, Naugatuck, and others.
Drs. Kyle and Whyte have been volunteering medical support for regional SWAT teams for over a decade. In their roles they respond to various calls with the SWAT teams and are on hand should officers or civilians require medical care. In some cases, they have been called to assist federal law enforcement agencies.
In 2014, Dr. Whyte started East Coast Tactical Medicine, LLC with a friend in Special Forces to teach and train first responders, physicians, law enforcement, military, and all walks of life on various lifesaving skills, in addition to other tactical medical classes. Dr. Whyte also provides training as a certified instructor with the Waterbury Police Department Training Academy. Drs. Whyte and Kyle completed the Southwest Regional SWAT school training and additional various course trainings over time and continue to train with the team on a regular basis.
Dr. Kyle is a member of the Connecticut Army National Guard. In 2019, he deployed to Afghanistan to run a battalion aid station. Dr. Kyle was deployed again in 2021 as the Battalion Surgeon for the 1-102nd Infantry Regiment in Somalia and Kenya. In addition, he spent a decade serving as a tactical physician for the North Central Connecticut SWAT team before joining the Waterbury Regional SWAT team.
Although the physicians’ malpractice coverage was covered by Trinity Health Of New England, Drs. Kyle and Whyte were always slightly exposed to potential civil lawsuits. Immunity from prosecution under the Good Samaritan Law was not guaranteed to them because they train regularly with the team, pass the physical and "technical" skills their teammates pass annually, and respond to callouts which places them outside the casual bystander Good Samaritan guidelines.
The doctors have petitioned at the state legislature to pass legal protection for the few physicians in the state performing this role and although they have made progress, the bill, An Act Providing Immunity From Civil Liability to a Physician Who Accompanies and Assists A State, Regional or Municipal SWAT Team, has passed the Judiciary Committee, it has not yet made it to the full floor for a vote.
Naugatuck Police Chief Colin McAllister has chosen to formalize the physician’s position through a Swearing In process, the first department in the state of Connecticut to do so, thus enabling the town to assume additional liability protection. According to Chief McAllister, while it is unusual in New England, it is standard across the country for physicians to be embedded with law enforcement teams.
“The formalizing of Dr. Whyte’s and Dr. Kyle’s roles highlights their character and commitment to the community they serve first as emergency medicine physicians and then choose to give back to their communities on their own time, after hours,” said Chief McAllister. “We rely on members of a tactical team to handle some of the most dangerous and high-risk operations law enforcement can face; it would only make sense that we would also want the highest level of medical care present for both our first responders and the public.”
"This means a lot,” said Dr. Kyle. “We do this work because it means something. Hopefully, it provides officers and their loved ones a sense of comfort knowing that we are there should something go awry.”
The physicians, along with Naugatuck Chief McAllister and bill sponsor, Connecticut State Senator Rob Sampson, will continue to petition for reintroduction of the legislation at the state level which would afford civil liability immunity to volunteer police physicians operating in the state.
“Chief McAllister is the first to take this action in the state and most of New England,” said Dr. Whyte. “We hope this will open the door for other towns and cities to follow suit and hopefully encourage more physicians to volunteer their time for our brothers and sisters in blue.”