Patient outcomes of sexual assault victims examined by sexual assault nurse examiners

Abstract

Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) are nurses that provide forensic examination and crisis intervention to victims of sexual assault. The training required to receive SANE certification ensures that SANE nurses are 1educated to provide thorough examinations and compassionate care to sexual assault victims. A SANE often works on a Sexual Assault Response/Resource Team (SART) which combines the efforts of law enforcement, detectives, victim advocates, and healthcare providers to provide a rapid response to the sexual assault victim. Proper evidence collection and a maintained chain of custody provide support for the conviction and if the evidence is obtained inaccurately the examination may be inadmissible in court. Even though SANEs can provide quality nursing care, many facilities lack trained SANEs to perform sexual assault examinations. Accurate data is crucial to support the need for facilities to implement a SANE program. This review and synthesis of literature examines the quality of forensic examinations performed by SANEs, conviction rates, and psychological well being of victims examined by SANEs. Research studies examined in this review suggest that SANE examinations are more complete and contribute to higher conviction rates then examinations performed by non-SANEs, however a combined SANE and SART intervention results in the highest level of victim participation. The research also suggests that the psychological well being of victims is improved with SANE intervention, however more evidence is needed

Notes

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Thesis Completion

2010

Semester

Spring

Advisor

Heglund, Stephen

Degree

Bachelor of Science in Nursing (B.S.N.)

College

College of Nursing

Degree Program

Nursing

Subjects

Dissertations, Academic -- Nursing;Nursing -- Dissertations, Academic; Nursing

Format

Print

Identifier

DP0022531

Language

English

Access Status

Open Access

Length of Campus-only Access

None

Document Type

Honors in the Major Thesis

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