Project no. LLP-LdV/TOI/2010/RO/005 - Setting up the Centre of Excellence for initial and continuous training on professional stress management and duty weapons using tactics, based on transfer of innovation from partner countries (BIA Project) Closing Conference”Coping with police stress” Cluj-Napoca, 13 th of June 2013

On June the 13 th 2013, The Romanian Police General Inspectorate and “Septimiu Muresan” Police School from Cluj-Napoca have organized the Closing Conference of Project no. LLP-LdV/TOI/2010/RO/005 - Setting up the Centre of Excellence for initial and continuous training on professional stress management and duty weapons using tactics, based on transfer of innovation from partner countries (BIA Project).

At the Closing conference have participated: police quaestor dr. Gheorghe POPA (photo 1) - deputy of the Romanian Police general inspector; police colonel dr. Zsolt POLYÁK (photo 2) - chief of Békés County Police; police lieutenant Árpád UDVARI- HAJDU; police captain László GYŐRI (photo 3) - Hungarian experts coordinator; police chief superintendent Hans-Jörg BARTH (photo 4) - German experts coordinator; police chief superintendent Laureniu STOICA (photo 5) – director of “Septimiu Muresan” Police School.. There were also present representatives of The Ministry of Internal Affair and of the Romanian Police General Inspectorate involved in the project, psychological and shooting experts from partner countries, team project members from Cluj-Napoca police school, Romanian trainers and police agents trained during the project, other guests.

During the Closing conference, there was a live transmission from the Centre of Excellence, located at “Septimiu Muresan” Police School headquarters: a training session using the shooting simulator purchased during the project. The aim of the activity was to demonstrate the efficiency of using the simulator in the process of police training, in preparing them for team work, in taking the best intervention decisions, in using the weapon correctly and efficiently in stressful conditions.

The project had a budget of 419,884 euro, of which 300,000 euro were granted under the Lifelong Learning Programme - Leonardo da Vinci. The partners involved were: The Romanian Police General Inspectorate - as the applicant, through „Septimiu Muresan” Police School from Cluj-Napoca (the subordinated implementing structure and also the location for the Centre of Excellence); Bereitschaftspolizeipräsidium Baden-Württemberg; Országos Rendőr-Főkapitányság.

During the development of the project, the following were realized/created:  a research with the aim to design, for the benefit of Romanian Police operational staff, a new model of professional stress management and duty weapons using tactics within professional context, based on transfer of innovation from partner countries;  a Centre of Excellence for initial and continuous training on professional stress management and duty weapons using tactics within “Septimiu Muresan” Police School;  theoretical and practical training sessions for 20 Romanian psychologists and shooting instructors, who will be later used as trainers in the Centre of Excellence;  theoretical training sessions for 160 Romanian police constables, as well as practical training sessions for 80 of them;

 The Manual regarding the training of Romanian Police staff in the field of shooting tactics;  The Methodology on identifying, monitoring and managing the professional stress risks and vulnerabilities related to the Romanian Police operational staff missions;  The Curriculum which contains the objectives, theme content, conducting chart, types of activities, material and time related resources, the didactical and evaluation strategies that will be used in the Centre of Excellence for the training sessions of policemen in duty weapons using in stressful situations;  an audio-video teaching material;

 The Anti-stress Guide that aims to offer to all the structures of The Ministry of Internal Affaires measures on how to prevent psychological disorders, to deliver psychological support and to provide psychological recovery for the Romanian Police staff who copes with activities that involve intense professional stress ant the use of duty weapons;  new techniques of using duty weapons and tactical scenarios for the shooting simulator purchased during the project;  the website of the project:

We would like to thank all the people involved in this project, and first of all to the working group experts. It was an intense period of time, with great efforts, but the hard work is already showing its results. The Centre of Excellence created in Cluj represents a clear proof of the Romanian Police interest in educational and professional training, by getting European innovation, experiences, best practices, knowledge and methods, for the benefit of a very specific and well defined profession - police work.