The Oneida Daily Dispatch (Oneida, NY)
Program aids nurses in addressing sex assault
“The board listened. The board cared. The board moved. And they told [then] Dean Nelson to tell me: Make it happen.”
Those were the instructions Merrill Miller, MD and Colgate University Director of Health Services were given when told to start the Sexual Assault Nurse Examiner or SANE program.
Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners are registered nurses who have completed specialized education and clinical preparation in the medical forensic care of a patient who has experienced sexual abuse.
Over the last 15 years, there have been three significant discussions about bringing SANE nurses to the local area. But the complexity, the cost, the time, the effort and the needed volunteers had pushed the SANE program back.
But finally, the SANE program is coming to Madison County, bringing with it the resources victims of sexual assault need to bring their attacker to face justice.
If someone in Madison County was the victim of sexual assault and lived in the local Madison County, they’d be expected to drive up to 30 miles towards Syracuse to get tested by certified nurse.
“Liberty Resources and Help Restore Hope Center is pleased to bring greater victim services to this area,” Sara Haag, Divisional Director of Liberty Resources said.
Bringing the SANE program to
Madison County is a joint partnership, with Colgate University, Community Memorial Hospital in Hamil- ton and Liberty Resources.
“Community Memorial Hospital is proud to partner with Liberty Resources and Colgate University to provide this crucial service for the region,” said Sean Fadale, President and CEO of Community Memorial Hospital.
The f ive inaugural nurses who have been SANE trained “...are ready to help victims become survivors, and to move forward after a traumatic experience,” Miller said in a press release.
Madison County SANE services can be accessed by contacting Help Restore Hope Center’s hotline at 1-855-966-9723 or presenting directly to the emergency room at Community Memorial in Hamilton.