Transforming Care for Sexual Assault Survivors
In a groundbreaking collaboration, the Forensic Medical Unit at Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center has partnered with Wichita State University to explore why some survivors choose not to report sexual assaults to law enforcement authorities.
Those who experience sexual violence can choose to have a forensic medical examination as well as have evidence collected using what is commonly known as a rape kit. However, as many as 25 percent of survivors choose only to store the kit instead of providing it to law enforcement detectives.
Clinicians from Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center and researchers from Wichita State University sought to understand why. They analyzed medical records, engaged in confidential conversations with survivors and delved deep into the complexities of post-assault decision-making. Four themes emerged about why survivors might choose not to report their experience to authorities: “Reporting won’t help,” “Reporting will harm,” “Not now” and “Not what I’m here for.” Each reason reflects the deeply personal and often agonizing decisions survivors face in the aftermath of an assault.
Research-Based Policies
Wichita State University sought out the Forensic Medical Unit at Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center as the epicenter of this vital research, said nurse practitioner Jessica Volz, the unit’s clinical director. Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center is home to Montgomery County’s only Forensic Medical Unit, where specially trained nurses care for survivors of assault, abuse, neglect, human trafficking and workplace violence.
The research will help drive policy recommendations and shape future practices in the care of survivors, Jessica said. Those could include more education for survivors on the police reporting process and ways to ensure that financial concerns do not prevent reporting. Ultimately, the findings will ensure survivors’ voices are heard and valued in new ways.
Adventist HealthCare Shady Grove Medical Center offers safe, confidential services to those impacted by violence. Learn more at AHCYou.com/S24FMU.
