Friday, 22 February 2019
The aim is to determine the effectiveness of a sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) didactic course in a southern rural setting in Indiana. Every 98 seconds a person is sexually assaulted in the United States, with one out of six women a victim of attempted or completed rape (Rape, Abuse, Incest National Network, 2018). The Federal Bureau of Investigation (2017) mentioned there were 41.2 reported rapes per 100,000 people. Violent crimes, which include sexual assault, occur to 155 per 100,000 people in Bartholomew County and 244 per 100,000 people in Jackson County (County Health Rankings, 2017), The Human Resources & Service Administration (2017) deemed both of these Indiana counties medically underserved. Trained SANEs provide optimal care for the victims, collect medicolegal evidence correctly while providing appropriate resources (International Asssociation of Forensic Nurses, 2015). This training also decreases the risk of vicarious trauma (Nielson, Strong, & Stewart, 2015). The literature review revealed minimal information on the effectiveness of this training on nurses. Training begins with the didactic course followed by a clinical course. This course is the first part leading to full SANE training, which improves sexual assault patient care in the southern rural area of this midwestern state. This didactic course accommodates rural hospital staffing by holding classes every Thursday for six weeks in early Fall 2017. The design is an experimental quantitative study held in a rural area of a midwestern state. The method uses aggregated data collected through pre- and post-course tests and surveys. The expected results are increased number of nurses completing didactic training, more nurses ready to take clinical training to become SANEs, and positive course satisfaction. Additional results include more nurses completing didactic course and ready for clinical course, along with positive course satisfaction. Anticipated implications for nursing practice include an increased number of rural nurses taking the course and being prepared to take the clinical portion of the SANE training.