“All survivors of sexual violence deserve access to compassionate and competent care, and professionals must be able to obtain the resources, training and institutional support required to meet survivors’ needs. Medical forensic care providers can have an enormous impact on survivors, as well as on the investigation and prosecution of these cases,” said Deputy Attorney General Monaco. “Programs, initiatives and projects funded under the Violence Against Women Act, including the SAMFE Virtual Practicum announced today, support practices that save lives and help build coordinated community responses to sexual and domestic violence.”
“Forensic medical examiners are often among the first people survivors encounter in the aftermath of sexual assault, on what might have been the worst day of their lives, when they are just beginning to process the trauma of what they’ve been through. It is not an easy job, but it is critical in so many ways: research shows that survivors who work with forensic medical examiners have much better outcomes when compared to those who do not,” said OVW Principal Deputy Director Randall. “The SAMFE Virtual Practicum ensures that nurses and other professionals have the knowledge and skills they need to respond effectively when a survivor needs medical treatment and evidence collection after an assault.”
With funding from the department’s National Institute of Justice, OVW collaborated to update the SAMFE VP with End Violence Against Women International; the Academy of Forensic Nursing; the International Association of Forensic Nurses; and more than 30 multidisciplinary experts – the full list of people and institutions who made the project possible is available as a pdf file. For more information about SAMFEs and Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (SANEs), OVW’s Patchwork Podcast has an episode titled “Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners Assist Survivors at the Intersection of Health and Justice Systems.”
OVW provides funding under several grant programs to provide sexual assault patients with medical forensic exams to treat their post-assault healthcare needs and to collect evidence of their sexual assault. OVW provides leadership in developing the nation’s capacity to reduce violence through the implementation of the Violence Against Women Act and subsequent legislation. Created in 1995, OVW administers financial and technical assistance to communities across the country that are developing programs, policies and practices aimed at ending domestic violence, dating violence, sexual assault, and stalking.