MAHONING VALLEY Sexual assault exam program includes St. Joseph Health Center

A key goal is to put victims at ease and let them know that they are safe.
By WILLIAM K. ALCORN
VINDICATOR HEALTH WRITER
YOUNGSTOWN -- HMHP's Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners program at St. Elizabeth Health Center has expanded to include St. Joseph Health Center in Warren.
The SANE unit at St. Elizabeth has examined and collected forensic evidence from 150 victims of rape and sexual assault in its two years of existence, said Barbara L. Turner, program coordinator.
"The same core group of nurses will cover St. Elizabeth and St. Joseph. We felt like Trumbull County was left out and we want to provide same level of service in both places," said Turner, an original member of SANE at St. Elizabeth.
Victims examined
Under the sexual assault program, trained nurses examine rape victims for forensic evidence, such as hair, saliva, semen and injuries, that can be used in court, Turner said.
Rape victims must be examined within 72 hours after being assaulted or the forensic evidence that could help convict their attacker in court disappears, said Turner.
But along with the importance of the prompt gathering of evidence, the way rape victims are treated during the examination process is also extremely important to their ultimate recovery, Turner, a registered nurse, said.
"A key goal of SANE is to put the victim at ease ... to let them know that they are safe ..., that we believe them and it's not their fault. How the victim recovers physically and emotionally is linked to receiving prompt, compassionate care," she said.
Funded through grants
The SANE program began at St. Elizabeth in April 2001 when the hospital's emergency department received a $50,000 grant from the Ohio Crime Victims' Compensation Fund. Some of the training for the program is also funded through grants from the St. Joseph and St. Elizabeth Development Foundations, said Turner, who became part-time program coordinator in 2002, and full-time coordinator with the program expansion.
Successful prosecution of a rape case often depends on the reliability of evidence collected at the hospital after the attack, she said.
Members of the SANE unit, which numbers 11 registered nurses, all women, receive 40 hours of training through the Dove Program at Summa Health System in Akron on how to examine and treat sexual assault victims, Turner said.
As part of their training, they learn the correct use of the Rape Kit, which consists of slides and swabs with which to collect evidence. They are trained on how to testify in court using scientific forensic principles. The nurses have clinical experiences on pelvic exams, have a ride-along with a police officer, and spend time in the Ohio Bureau of Criminal Investigation crime lab learning about forensics and DNA and how the rape kits are processed, said Turner.
Time with detectives
SANE nurses also spend time with police detectives learning what they look for when interviewing victims or witnesses, and with prosecutors to see how the court works.
A rape victim's body literally becomes a crime scene for the forensic nurses, who do a "head-to-toe" examination. A high magnification camera, called a colposcope, takes images of bruises and other evidence that can't be seen with the naked eye. The evidence is then turned over to police, who send it to a crime lab for analysis, Turner said.
The SANE program partners with the Mahoning County Rape Crisis and Information Team, which provides counseling and support for the victims, Turner said.
Turner, a Niles native, graduated from Niles McKinley High School in 1990 and received a bachelor's degree from Case Western Reserve University's Frances Payne Bolton School of Nursing. She came back to the area in 2000 after working as a nurse in Cleveland Universities Hospital and in Arizona.
Her nursing background is in labor and delivery, and she has worked in St. Elizabeth's emergency room and now works out of the hospital's emergency services department.
'Forefront of nursing'
Turner sees forensic nursing as being at the"forefront of nursing" and a nice addition to her skills. "Working with assault victims is stressful, because what we do is so important, but it is also very rewarding and unique," she said.
The criteria for nurses to become part of the SANE program are five years of nursing experience and willingness to be on call at least 24 hours a week. There is a SANE nurse on call and available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, she said.
Most of the SANE nurses have full-time jobs in the HMHP system and are on call on days off. When they are called out, they get a special rate of pay, she said.
SANE members are recruited from throughout the organization and include nurses with expertise in emergency, labor and delivery, psychiatry, cardiac care and long-term care, Turner said.
"I love this program and constantly strive to break down the stigma of rape, which can leave many victims feeling guilty. We need health-care professionals, police officers and the general public to become better educated about sexual assault and the treatment of rape victims," Turner said.
"It truly does change your life. It is second in seriousness only to homicide in the criminal justice system," Turner said.
alcorn@vindy.com