Forensic Nurse

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Forensic Nurse

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Outline

Overview

Forensic nurse
1. Advanced practice RN
  1. Specific education/training
    1. Forensic evidence collection
    2. Criminal procedures
    3. Legal testimony expertise
    4. Identify signs of abuse/trauma
  2. Cares for
    1. Victims of violence
    2. Vulnerable populations
  3. Bridges gap between
    1. Law and medicine
2. New nursing discipline
  1. Recognized by ANA 1995
    1. First began with SANEs
  2. Developed due to
    1. Crime related injuries in patients
      1. Assault
      2. Domestic violence
      3. Elder abuse
      4. Child abuse
      5. Sexual assault/rape
      6. Death

Nursing Points

General

How to achieve
1. Different routes
  1. SANE certification
    1. Must be RN
    2. Complete SANE course
    3. Complete hours with preceptor
    4. Pass SANE exam
  2. MSN with forensic speciality
    1. BSN to MSN
      1. Typically online

Assessment

Forensic nurse roles
1. Sexaul assault nurse examiner (SANE)
  1. Adult and pediatric
    1. Collect evidence
    2. Work with law enforcement
2. Death investigator/nurse coroner
  1. Work at crime scene
  2. Collect evidence
3. Legal nurse consultant
  1. Work in law office
    1. Evaluate evidence
4. Corrections specialist
  1. Work in prison setting
    1. Care for inmates with trauma
5. Forensic photographer
  1. Photograph crime scenes/evidence
6. Domestic violence specialist
  1. Work in domestic violence shelters
    1. Care for DV victims
7. Forensic psychiatric nurse
  1. Work with criminal offenders
8. Forensic gerontology nurse
  1. Work with abused elders
9. Expert medical witness
  1. Strangulation
  2. Sexual assault

Nursing Concepts

Clinical judgement
Ethical and legal practice
Patient centered care
Safety

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Transcript

Hi guys! I’m super excited today to get to talk to you about something that is so important and interesting to me which is the role of the forensic nurse! Guys this is important to me because I actually have a master’s degree in nursing with a forensic specialty. I love that I get to talk to you about this today because this is a newer specialty of nursing that many people, including nurses, really don’t know much about!

So who is the forensic nurse? So in the most basic terms the forensic nurse is an advanced practice RN who has completed either specific training or education to care for victims and situations of violence, abuse, or just vulnerable populations in general.

So what does the forensic nurse know? Through education and training a forensic nurse with know and understand how to collect evidence either from a patient who has been sexually assaulted or from a crime scene. The forensic nurse is extremely knowledgeable of the legal system and is familiar with how criminal procedures work and how to provide legal testimony. Of course the forensic nurse can identify victims of trauma, assault, abuse and know how to physically and emotionally provide them trauma-informed care. The forensic nurse also oftentimes acts as a liaison between law enforcement and the victim is a victim advocate.

Lets take a look at the history of forensic nursing. So in terms of nursing forensic nursing is a pretty new discipline that is still growing and developing. Forensic nursing was just recently recognized by the American Nurses Association in the 90’s. In some areas of the country, it is definitely more recognized than others, for instance, you will see more job postings for a forensic nurse on the west coast than on the east coast. Although more and more universities are adding MSN forensic programs and more entities are realizing the benefit of forensic nurses which is awesome to continue to grow and bring a focus to this discipline! So years ago nurses in the emergency department were taking care of individuals who would come in because of sexual assault. These nurses, now known as SANE nurses, would be thrown into situations where they were having to collect evidence from very traumatized patients to turn over to the police. They wanted to be trained appropriately and also identified a need for victims of abuse, trauma, neglect, and even death which is where the forensic nurse was born from!

There are many facets of forensic nursing the oldest and most identifiable role is the sexual assault nurse examiner for pediatrics and adult victims where evidence is collected in typically the emergency room setting. Forensic nurses are also serving as death investigators and nurse coroners collecting evidence at crime scenes and working with victims’ families and law enforcement. The legal nurse consultant role is also a role where the forensic nurse may work in a law firm to evaluate evidence or legal documents. The forensic psychiatric nurse typically works with criminal offenders. It is very common to see a forensic nurse to be a paid expert witness in a trial sometimes being an expert on strangulation or the sexual assault exam. A few other roles are a corrections specialist working with inmates who have been assaulted in prison, a forensic photographer, or a domestic violence specialist. So I actually have experience working with the domestic violence population through my forensic role which has been so rewarding. Working with victims of trauma and seeing how you are able to help them in their recovery is extremely rewarding work.

So how can you become a forensic nurse? Well maybe you work in the ER and you want to be able to perform sexual assault exams…to do this you must be an RN, you must take a SANE course, perform a certain amount of hours with a SANE, and then sit for the SANE exam and of course pass. There are separate exams to be pediatric versus adult SANE. If you are looking more so into the other facets of forensic nursing may be the graduate level route is better for you! So with this route, you must have a bachelor’s degree in nursing and then apply to an MSN program that has a forensic focus. Most graduate programs do provide this in the online format. On a side note a masters degree will not also get you a SANE certification….if you want to practice as a SANE and you also want a Masters degree in forensic nursing you must complete both pathways.

Ok guys lets review! The forensic nurse is an advanced practice RN who cares for victims and situations of violence/abuse and also vulnerable populations. There is specific training and education involved. The forensic nurse is well versed with forensic evidence collection, they identify and care for victims of trauma and abuse, they are legal experts and act as a liaison between law enforcement and victims. A few forensic nursing roles include SANE, nurse coroner, legal nurse, forensic photographer, medical expert. You can become a forensic nurse by becoming a SANE by being an RN, completing a course, clinical hours, and pass a SANE exam or attend a MSN forensics program after you already have a BSN.

What nursing concepts can we apply to the forensic nurse? The forensic nurse always provides patient centered care to victims of trauma, clinical judgment is always necessary when collecting evidence, speaking with law enforcement, and victims. Finally, the field of forensics is closely related to ethical and legal practice.

We love you guys! Go out and be your best self today! And as always, Happy Nursing!