Hofstra University Develops Sexual Assault Nurse Training Program

Hofstra University has announced that it is developing a program to train nurses to be certified sexual assault nurse examiners with a goal of increasing the number of examiners on Long Island, New York. The program was made possible by a $754,000 federal grant awarded to Hofstra’s Northwell School of Graduate Nursing and Physician Assistant Studies.

Amy Smith, a nurse practitioner at Long Island Jewish Forest Hills, has been a sexual assault nurse examiner for 10 years and will be the project coordinator. The funding for training examiners can cost up to $1,000 per nurse, causing difficulty for many organizations to find the funding, resulting in a lack of nurses available for victims of sexual assault.

Smith tells TheIslandNow.com, “The assumption is a hospital should be able to take care of [victims of sexual assault] and not all do…We want people that are really interested, that are passionate about people and want to stand with the victims and believe survivors.”

Nurses who are interested can apply to Hofstra for admission to the nine-month certification program. Certified examiners support rape and sexual assault patients both medically and emotionally, and provide patients with resources for moving forward, including psychological support. Examiners can also serve as liaisons between sexual assault victims and police and collect evidence for use in law enforcement investigations.

Although not every hospital has a sexual assault examiner, New York City and Long Island emergency departments saw over 1,200 victims of sexual assault in the first six months of 2017. Smith that hopes that other nurses will take this opportunity at Hofstra to diversify their skills and explore a new style of nursing.