The Role Of The Sane The Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner
tudies have shown that well as testify in trials as
less than half of the expert witnesses in the victim's
victims of sexual assault perpetrator's trials.
treated in emergency rooms get
basic help with information about They have extensive training in
the risk of pregnancy or forensic evidence collection,
emergency contraception to expert witness testimony, STD
prevent pregnancy. treatment, and pregnancy
evaluation. 75% of SANE programs
They have to wait for sometimes are hospital based, housed in the
up to six hours for treatment, emergency rooms while 25% are in
and during this wait, they're the community setting at rape
told not to eat, drink, or even crisis centers or health clinics.
use the bathroom before they're
examined because it might destroy
evidence. The first SANE programs started
in the mid 1970's but it wasn't
By the time of the examination, until the late 1980's that the
victims often feel "re-raped" programs got a major growth spurt
from the treatment by the staff as they grew more rapidly in the
of the emergency room. For this 1990's when localities started to
reason, emergency rooms are see the benefits of what these
realizing a need for SANE SANE programs have to offer. And
programs. by 1996, there were approximately
70 programs in existence.
SANE's are registered nurses who
have specialized training in Now, there are at least 280 SANE
examining victims of sexual programs throughout the United
assault. They provide much needed States. Nearly all of these SANE
emotional support for victims as programs serve adolescents and
adults, and around half serve
pediatric patients. Many municipalities are starting
to see the need in these much
The programs are staffed by RN's needed programs. They offer a
and nurse practitioners that great service to victims by
conduct forensic exams of victims quickly processing forensic
of sexual assault. They are evidence and giving emotional
required by law to report to support while making their time
local law enforcement sexual to wait for examination as short
assaults that may have caused the as possible.
victim injury.
As SANE programs get more and
On the other hand, the victim has more popular, we'll start to see
the right to decide to have many more of these programs as
evidence collected and cooperate time goes on and this can only
with law enforcement by providing help the victims of sexual
them with information. After a violence and help put their
SANE program is established, most perpetrators behind bars so they
emergency room personnel are won't have a chance to hurt
relieved by the service that anyone else.
SANE's provide.
About the Author:
Larry Ford is the webmaster of Forensic Nursing Zone, a website dedicated to the new specialty of forensic nursing. You can find it at http://www.forensicnursingzone.com/
Source: www.isnare.com
|
|
|
|
