Advocate Condell hosts First SANE training of 2012
Advocate Condell Medical Center will host the first 2012 training course for nurses seeking Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner credentials.
About 42 nurses are expected to attend the five-day course, which will be held online and from Jan. 31- Feb. 2 at Advocate Condell in Libertyville. The course is offered in cooperation with the Illinois Attorney General's Office.
“Hosting this training is a natural extension of our role as a Level 1 Trauma Center and a hospital committed to the best possible treatment of survivors of sexual assault,” said Advocate Condell Medical Center President Ann Errichetti, MD, MBA. “We are pleased to be chosen for this opportunity to help other medical professionals learn these critically important practices.”
SANE training is designed to educate RNs and other medical professionals on performing forensic medical examinations on survivors of sexual assault. Proper evidence collection from a medical examination is key in prosecuting perpetrators in sexual assault cases.
Healthcare providers who have contact with sexual assault victims are encouraged to attend, but the training is also open to law enforcement officers and prosecutors.
Topics covered will include the role of the SANE nurse; sexual assault examination; testimony techniques; crime victims' compensation; Illinois State Police evidence collection kit; criminal trial procedures; Illinois' sexual assault laws; Illinois State Police crime lab: DNA analysis; and sexual assault response team: the multidisciplinary approach.
Registered nurses must complete a post-didactic clinical component independently prior to practicing as a SANE nurse. Nurses with the SANE certification provide advantages to the sexual assault victim because one caregiver can provide care, gather forensic evidence, counsel and testify in court.
The SANE certification is recognized by the Emergency Nurses Association, the American College of Emergency Physicians, the American Nurses Association, the International Association of Forensic Nurses and the United States Department of Justice.
Advocate Condell is the only hospital in Lake County to staff Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANE) around the clock. Having an on-call SANE nurse at all times means sexual assault survivors will always have privacy and a compassionate and dedicated nurse who is able to guide follow-up care, said Condell SANE Coordinator Jennifer Slominski.
“We are proud of our SANE program and are pleased to partner with other health professionals and our local law enforcement community to help expand the program to other hospitals in Illinois,” Slominski said.
Advocate Condell's work is part of a larger initiative being spearheaded by the SANE Joint Action Committee, lead by the Illinois Attorney General's Office and the Illinois Hospital Association. The groups want to double the number of fully-practicing SANE nurses in Illinois, from 75 to 150, by mid-2012. They also want to establish hospital-based SANE programs in each of the state's 11 trauma regions. The SANE Joint Action Committee is also studying the possibility of establishing regional SANE centers.
The program increases the standard of patient care available to all sexual assault victims and the quality of evidence collection and documentation, and reduces the risk of re-traumatizing the patient in a health care setting. Sexual assault survivors are more likely to report crimes, and police and prosecutors have more convictions, according to the Joint Action Committee.
Advocate Condell Medical Center treated an estimated 120 sex assault patients in 2011. According to the attorney general's office, more than 5,600 rapes were reported to Illinois law enforcement agencies in 2008, and the Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault helped almost 10,000 victims in 2009.
Registration for this month's class is now closed. Medical professionals interested in taking classes later in 2012, including those for advanced and pediatric certifications, should contact their medical facility or the Attorney General's Office at www.illinoisattorneygeneral.gov.
About Advocate Condell Medical Center
Advocate Condell Medical Center is the leading provider of comprehensive medical and surgical services in Lake County, with state-of-the-art heart, neurosurgical, maternity and emergency services. Condell's emergency department is the only Level 1 Trauma Center in Lake County, Illinois, treating the area's most seriously injured patients. Advocate Condell also is the only Lake County hospital to staff ICU intensivists 24 hours a day, and features the only dedicated pediatric emergency department. Advocate Condell is also the only Lake County hospital to feature all private adult patient rooms.